Day 15 — A Life of Being a Person Bridging Japan, Taiwan, and the US
My name is Go Nakakomi, and I serve as an Executive Officer here at HENNGE K.K. I am in charge of managing our subsidiary companies abroad. My job requires a physical presence, a deep understanding of local markets, and a bridge that connects the headquarters’ vision with local execution. Currently, we operate two subsidiaries outside of Japan: HENNGE Taiwan, Inc. and HENNGE Inc. in the United States.
It is a role that requires me to wear different hats depending on where I am. For HENNGE Taiwan, I serve as the Managing Director, directly overseeing operations and strategy on a granular level. For our US entity, HENNGE Inc., I serve as a Director, where I am involved in guiding the broader strategic direction. It is a life that is as challenging as it is rewarding.
Our Business Model: Growing Together with Partners
Before I introduce my daily life, I would like to share our business model, as it dictates why I travel the way I do. At HENNGE, we don’t just sell products; we build ecosystems. Historically, our growth has been inextricably linked to the success of our partners. We believe that when our partners succeed, we succeed. This philosophy of mutual growth travels with us wherever we go, though the implementation varies slightly depending on the geography.
The Taiwan Model
In Taiwan, our approach mirrors the successful model we have established in Japan. In fact, the business culture in Taiwan is quite similar to the Japanese one. Because of this cultural alignment, we can leverage our existing playbooks effectively.
We work with local distributors and resellers who have strong, long-standing connections with local Taiwanese companies. My role as Managing Director there is to ensure that we are continuously delivering the value of our products to Taiwanese customers through these trusted channels. It is about maintaining consistency and ensuring the HENNGE spirit in Taipei as it is in Tokyo.
The US Model
The United States, however, presents a different landscape. While the core philosophy of partnership remains, the partners themselves look different. In the US, our primary channel is through MSPs (Managed Service Providers).
For those unfamiliar, MSPs are not merely resellers of IT products. They are comprehensive service organizations that manage a client’s IT infrastructure entirely. They act as the outsourced IT department for many companies, handling everything from security to printers. In the US market, Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs) rely heavily on MSPs to curate their tech stack. Therefore, our strategy is to collaborate closely with these MSPs to put HENNGE One into their portfolio. We have to prove to them that we are the right partner to help secure their clients.
My Flying Life
Even though I do not reside in Taipei, as the Managing Director of HENNGE Taiwan, I travel there every month. Once I’m in Taipei, I hold meetings with the team and get an understanding of the current market situation. These monthly visits provide me to understand the on-the-ground reality and I can provide relevant advice accordingly.
My trip to the US is a bit different. We exhibit at MSP-focused trade shows and events. However, since the MSP ecosystem in the US is vast and regional, events are held in different cities across the continent throughout the year.
To connect with as many MSPs as possible, we need to be physically present at these events. Standing in the booth, shaking hands, listening to the specific technical challenges MSPs face, and explaining our value proposition face-to-face is vital work. It is in these conversations that we learn what the market truly needs.
Recently, after exhibiting at a major MSP event, I traveled to the Portland office with other HENNGE Inc. members. We used this time for a retrospective to review how the event went.
Because these events are scattered across the country, my trip to the US isn’t just going to a single place. In 2025 alone, we have already attended 5 MSP events in total. Each one requires travel to a different state, a different hotel, and a different convention center.
My Life in the Sky
If someone ask me about the frequency of my business trips, I usually summarize it like this:
“I go to Taiwan every month, and I go to the US every two months.”
It sounds simple when said in a single sentence. But as a result of this business rhythm, I recently looked at my travel data for the year to see what that actually looks like in practice. The numbers are quite interesting.
Statistics of my life in 2025
Flight Numbers:
A little less than 50 flights. That is nearly one flight every single week, on average.
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Total Distance Flown:
Approximately 160,000 km. To put that in perspective, the circumference of the Earth is about 40,000 km. I have flown the equivalent of 4 times around the world this year.
Time in the Air:
I have spent almost 10 full days sitting in an airplane seat. That is 240 hours of staring at the seat in front of me, eating meals, sometimes working offline, or trying to catch some sleep.
When I look at these numbers, I am even surprised. Some may say it is a significant physical and mental investment to spend.
The Value of Being There
Seeing those statistics, people might ask “Why?” In an era where Zoom, Teams, and Slack allow us to communicate instantly with anyone on the planet, is it really necessary to fly 160,000 kilometers? Why spend 10 days in a metal tube when we could just have an online meeting?
It is a valid question. But for the work I do, the answer is clear: face-to-face is irreplaceable.
The Practicality of Time Zones
The first reason is purely practical, specifically regarding the US. The time difference between Japan and the US is brutal. Finding a window where both teams are awake, alert, and ready to collaborate for multiple hours is incredibly difficult.
Online meetings across these time zones are often rushed or held at inconvenient hours, leading to lower productivity. When I travel to the US, I am on their time. We can spend hours on discussion, diving deep into issues.
The Power of Openness
The second reason is psychological. I have noticed a distinct difference in the quality of communication when I am physically present.
I feel our members speak more openly about current issues when we meet in person. There is a safety and intimacy in sitting in the same room that a video call cannot replicate. On a video call, we tend to stick to the agenda. But in person, over lunch, or just between meetings, the real issues come out.
These are the “trivial matters” that never make it into a formal report. Yet, often, these trivial matters are the core of the issues — the small frustrations or the hidden opportunities that you only find when you are physically there.
Bridging the Gap
My job, fundamentally, is to solve issues between Headquarters (Japan) and our subsidiaries.
By being physically present, I can hear the context. I can see the frustration or the excitement in someone’s body language. Understanding these circumstances allows me to be a better translator and mediator. It helps me make a genuine effort to change the current situation and align everyone toward the same goal. I cannot do that effectively if I am just a face on a screen.
In addition, every six months, HENNGE K.K. holds an all-hands meeting, gathering every member at our Shibuya Office. I ask every member from our subsidiaries to fly to Japan to attend these meetings. We view this as a crucial time to foster face-to-face communication between headquarters and our subsidiary members.
Conclusion: Health and the Future
Living a life that circles the globe four times a year is not easy. As my work style has evolved into this pattern, I have had to become much more intentional about self-care.
I have started taking care of my health with a new level of discipline. Whether it is managing sleep cycles, watching my diet, or going for a workout, maintaining my physical condition became extremely important. If I am not healthy, I cannot serve our teams in Taiwan and the US effectively.
I think this work style will not be changing for a while. We need to grow, and this level of hands-on management is what the business demands right now.
Therefore, my hope is simple: to stay healthy, to keep flying safely, and most importantly, to see our subsidiary businesses grow. Eventually, when I see our partners in Taiwan succeeding, or our brand recognition growing among US MSPs, I know that every hour spent in the air was worth it.
Check out other 2025 HENNGE Advent Calendar articles here
