We've been doing this in Japan for a long time.
Exentive G.K. is a Tokyo-based executive search and recruitment firm with over 15 years of experience in Japan talent acquisition.
We started Exentive because we'd seen what good recruitment looked like. And how rarely it happened. Too many agencies run on volume: blast CVs, collect fees, move on. We built something different.
Every mandate we take on is assigned a dedicated team. Every candidate we work with gets our honest read of the market. We believe transparency is not a differentiator. It should be the baseline.
We work with startups and global enterprises alike. What they have in common is a need for the right person, not just a person. That's what we optimise for.
Recruiting License No. 13-ユ-309336
Issued by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan
What we stand for.
Transparency
You'll always know where you stand. We share our pipeline view, market feedback, and honest assessment, even when it's not what you want to hear.
Honesty
We won't take a mandate we can't deliver on, and we won't pitch you a candidate we don't believe in. Our reputation is built on calls we could have made differently but didn't.
Market Knowledge
Japan is not a market you can parachute into. We've been here, in this field, for over 15 years. We know what's changed, what hasn't, and where the talent actually is.
Quality Over Volume
We'd rather deliver a shortlist of four exceptional candidates than a pipeline of twenty that waste your time. Quality is our KPI, not placements per quarter.
The people behind the searches.
Srikesh Chidambaram
Managing Director, Partner
Co-founder of Exentive with prior roles at Recruit Group and Robert Walters, and hands-on experience building talent functions inside startups. Deep expertise across executive search, RPO, and HR consulting in tech, professional services, and finance across Japan and Asia.
