Position Description
Job Title
MIMJ, People Partner
Business Unit
Manulife Investment Management Japan (MIMJ)
Job Function
Human Resources – People Partner
Department
MIM Japan, People Partner
Reports To
Chief People Officer and matrix to CEO, MIM Japan
Role Purpose (General Accountability)
The MIMJ, People Partner is a senior, strategic HR leader and trusted advisor to the MIM Japan leadership team. This role partners closely with business and functional leaders to translate business strategy into an integrated people agenda that drives performance, engagement, leadership capability, and sustainable growth.
As a People Partner, the incumbent leverages deep understanding of the local Japan market, regulatory environment, and Manulife’s global people strategy/framework to shape and deliver people strategies aligned with MIM Japan’s business priorities.
The role works in strong partnership with global and regional Centers of Expertise (COEs) and shared services to deliver end‑to‑end people solutions across talent, reward, culture, organization effectiveness, and employee experience.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic People Partnership
- Act as a strategic advisor and trusted coach to the MIM Japan CEO and senior leaders on all people and organization matters.
- Translate MIM Japan business strategy into a clear people and workforce agenda, aligned with Manulife’s Asia and global priorities.
- Bring an enterprise mindset to balance local market needs with regional and global frameworks, ensuring alignment and consistency while respecting Japan-specific requirements.
Talent, Leadership & Succession
- Drive integrated talent strategies across workforce planning, succession planning, leadership development, and critical role identification.
- Partner with leaders to build strong leadership pipelines, promote inclusive leadership behaviours, and strengthen internal mobility.
- Support annual talent reviews, succession discussions, and performance calibration with data-driven insights.
Organizational Effectiveness & Change
- Advise leaders on organizational design, role clarity, and operating model changes to support business transformation and growth.
- Lead and support change management, restructuring, and transformation initiatives, ensuring clear communication, risk management, and employee engagement.
Performance, Reward & Engagement
- Partner with leaders to drive a high-performance culture, including effective goal-setting, performance management, and feedback practices.
- Provide strategic input on compensation, incentive, and reward decisions, balancing market competitiveness, internal equity, and performance differentiation.
- Use engagement data and employee insights to shape targeted actions that improve employee experience, engagement, and retention.
Employee Relations, Risk & Governance
- Serve as the advisor on employee relations, performance risk, and complex people issues, ensuring fair, consistent, and compliant outcomes.
- Ensure compliance with local labour laws, regulatory requirements, and Manulife governance standards in Japan.
- Influence leaders to role-model ethical behaviour, strong conduct, and prudent people risk management.
Partnering with HR COEs & Shared Services
- Orchestrate support from COEs (Talent, Reward, Employee Experience, DEI, TA) and HR Operations to deliver seamless, high-impact people solutions.
- Act as the single point of accountability for the overall HR experience for MIM Japan leaders and employees.
Knowledge, Skills & Experience
Experience & Background
- Extensive experience 12+ years in senior HR / People Partner roles within complex, matrixed organizations.
- Strong preference for experience in financial services or asset / investment management, with exposure to regulated environments.
- Proven track record of partnering with senior leaders and executive teams on strategic people topics.
- Strong business acumen with the ability to connect people strategies to commercial outcomes.
- Demonstrated capability in consultative influencing, executive coaching, and stakeholder management.
- Deep expertise across core people domains: talent management, organization design, change, performance, and reward.
- Confidence using people data and insights to inform decisions and shape leadership conversations.
- Excellent judgment, resilience, and ability to operate effectively in ambiguous and fast-changing environments.
- Bachelor’s degree required; postgraduate qualification in HR, business, or related field preferred.
- Fluency in Japanese and English required (written and spoken).
Key Challenges
- Balancing global and regional people frameworks with local Japan market practices and regulatory requirements.
- Supporting leaders through ongoing industry change, transformation, and talent competition.
- Operating effectively within a matrix organisation with multiple stakeholders across geographies.
Organisational Impact
- Senior People Partner for MIM Japan, supporting leadership decision-making and workforce outcomes across the business.
- Material impact on talent quality, leadership effectiveness, engagement, and culture within MIM Japan.
Over time:
0-40 hours/month.
Salary:
Based on our Work Rules, we will consider your experience, skills and knowledge when we decide the salary.
Commutation allowance and Variable Incentive Bonus are paid based on our Work Rules.
Working Hours:
Standard Working Hours: 9:00am - 5:00pm (Include 1 hour break. Flex-time system available)
Benefits:
Social Insurance (Health Insurance, Employees' Pension, Unemployment Insurance, Worker's Accident Insurance), Benefit One, Training system (include Japanese lesson / English lesson), Childcare Leave/Family care Leave, Baby-sitter support program, wiwiw System (Support program for those who take Childcare Leave), Retirement Pension (only for Regular employee).
Holidays/Vacations:
Saturdays and Sundays
National Holidays
Year-end and new year holidays (December 30, December 31, January 2 and January 3)
Annual Paid Holiday
For Regular employee, other special holidays are available (e.g. Anniversary Leave, etc.)
Location
Marunouchi Office, Marunouchi Trust Tower North 15F, 1-8-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Japan
What motivates you?
- You obsess about customers, listen, engage and act for their benefit
- You think big, with curiosity to discover ways to use your agile mindset and enable business outcomes
- You thrive in teams, and enjoy getting things done together
- You take ownership and build solutions, focusing on what matters
- You do what is right, work with integrity and speak up
- You share your humanity, helping us build a diverse and inclusive work environment for everyone
Our commitment to you
- Our mission; to be a part of making Decisions Easier and Lives Better
- A leadership team dedicated to your growth and success
- A bold ambition and set of goals to be a leader in driving transformation in our industry
- Our best. Every day.
Learn more about opportunities with us at jobs.manulife.com
About Manulife and John Hancock
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html.
Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer
At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law.
It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact hr@manulife.com.
Working Arrangement
Hybrid
