Hiroshi’s executive role is based in Nashville, Tennessee. But his journey to the position began 25 years earlier and some 7,000 miles (11,000 kilometers) away.
Born in Osaka, Japan, Hiroshi was raised in Tokyo, and holds a BA in economics from the University of Tokyo. A few years and several jobs later, he joined a global consulting firm, advising corporate pension funds clients, where he found AB among the top-notch asset managers the firm evaluated and which many clients trusted.
This connection would prove to be the touchstone that kept AB on Hiroshi’s radar for years. In 2007, he jumped at the opportunity to bring his asset-management experience to AB. “I joined the AB Tokyo office as a product specialist in fixed income and alternatives, which leveraged my pension and asset-allocation knowledge into a new role for the company,” he said. “By promoting our capabilities to retail and institutional investors, I was quickly immersed in many unfamiliar areas of the business, especially business development, which I really enjoyed.”
Hiroshi’s broadening knowledge soon earned him a promotion to head up AB’s marketing in Japan, which also brought an opportunity to mentor a diverse team of skilled individual contributors. “My manager saw my leadership potential, but it was still very challenging,” he said.