Abstract
The main purposes of this study were to extract the characteristics of Japanese global leaders and to clarify facilitating factors in their leadership development. Eight Japanese global leaders were selected based on a nomination method and they were invited for an in-depth interview for about 90 minutes. Interview contents were qualitatively analyzed and categorized into three main domains: self-management competence, relationship building competence, and intercultural competence, along with various subordinate categories under these domains. In addition, two facilitating factors for global leadership development, flexibility and resilience, were identified. Moreover, the analysis indicated that consciously utilizing strengths as a Japanese person is an important foundation for Japanese global leaders.
