[Case study 8]　Former Disney executive, holds a foreign MBA and now an entrepreneur. Aki Nakamura

シンガポールで就職起業した21人(日英表記)

<Profile>Graduate of Keio University and subsequently a double MBA from UCLA and the National University of Singapore. Worked at Disney's office in Japan focusing on developing new lines of business including mobile, animation, cross-platform etc. Moved to Singapore after and become an entrepreneur. Currently the founder of ExpertConnect Asia (www.expertconnect.asia) which provides a network for large corporations to connect with local experts in Southeast Asia. A frequent speaker and mentor at local educational institutions such as the National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University, Raffles Institution and Hwa Chong Institution.

[Case 8]
The amazing thing about Singapore is that talented high school students can produce quality work that matches the level you would expect of people with 2-3 years of work experience
Former Disney executive, holds a foreign MBA and now an entrepreneur. 
Aki Nakamura

When did you start working overseas?

In 2010 I obtained a Personalised Employment Pass (PEP) and moved to Singapore. That was the start of my career in Singapore. As for my career back in Japan, I used to work at Disney on developing new lines of businesses. During my time at Disney I did a double MBA at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the National University of Singapore (NUS). Post the Great Financial Crisis of 2008 I started job hunting in Singapore. My first job in Singapore was a foreign consulting firm and following that, another consulting firm. I started my own business in Singapore 3 years ago.

Why did you think of working overseas?

Personally I felt that my career path in Japan would have been limited as there weren't that many possibilities. I wanted to expand the region as well as countries that I was covering, find more opportunities and make my job more interesting. And so in 2006 I thought one way I could get exposure outside of Japan would be to pusue an MBA.

Around 10 years ago when people talked about going to business school it was always in Europe or the US. However that was when double degrees started gaining popularity. At that time I was working in Disney so I wanted to go to a school that was known for marketing, media or entertainment. Schools that were known to be strong in these were Colombia University, Northwestern University or UCLA. A friend of mine gave me the advice that
since I was in my mid thirties, I should try to make use of my strengths as a Japanese and choose a program that would allow me to do so. As such I opted for the UCLA and NUS double MBA program.