(2015-12-24, 9:36 am)vix86 Wrote: More than likely it's pushed your chances of an internal transfer out by a few years. Salesforce is a huge company, you have to figure there are more people wanting to go to Japan in Salesforce than there was when your company was smaller. I'd talk to the new HR when stuff gets set up and find out.
I think it opens up a lot more opportunity. Salesforce already has a presence there with some significant Japanese clients, such as Japan Post.
Vinster, I'd recommend starting to network with anyone in SFDC Japan as soon as you can. The more people you know and the more of a name you make for yourself over there, the easier it will be to transfer in the long run. Your language skills, IMO, give you a huge edge: there are so few people stateside who speak Japanese that you should be able to find ways to make yourself a valuable asset to the Japanese business.
In my case, I joined a Training & Certification team at a large company a couple of years ago, and was lucky that at the time we had a sizable Japanese branch. I made it known that I was studying Japanese, and as a result I've been able to help out the Japanese team with things like content reviews, debriefing sessions on our training offerings, and interviews of new trainers. I'm working now with an American mentor who lives in Tokyo on doing some trainings at the Meguro office so that I can do some extended networking outside of my division.