For Candidates

While J-Source is a highly client driven search oriented business, we’re always happy to receive resumes from potential candidates in the market. Please understand that we will not be able to reply and assist everyone who submits a resume to us.

J-Source assures complete confidentiality when speaking or submitting information to us. Your information is only sent to those companies to which you have provided explicit permission to one of our staff. Learn more about our privacy policy.

J-Source prides itself on openness and transparency, and avoids tactical negotiation styles so both you and our clients can be confident that we are simply trying to create the best match in the market possible.

Get In Touch

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Frequently Asked Questions

How did you find my name / e-mail address / company number / cell phone number?

Finding names of qualified candidates for our clients is our most basic skill as recruiters, so there is no need to be surprised — we have many ways to find names. These methods include online resources, referrals from our existing contacts built up over many years working in Japan, 3rd party vendors — as well as simply calling into companies and asking people there who is in charge of a specific area. Once we have your name, we can figure out your e-mail address as most companies follow a standard e-mail format which we can easily reproduce. Cell phone numbers often come directly from your company to us by asking someone in your company how to reach you. It is amazing the information one can obtain simply by asking!

What is your client’s name?

The broad majority of our clients have engaged us on retained or exclusive searches for strategic positions for their firms. Should we mention the client name to potential candidates without properly assessing that there is a skill/qualification match and motivation on your end, we could do potential damage to our clients’ businesses. For the same reasons that we protect our clients’ privacy, we also protect your privacy. Of course, should you be qualified for our client and motivated for a move based on a conversation with our consultants, we will of course let you know the client name.

Is this confidential?

Yes. Both for our reputation, as well as legal requirements, we are unable to tell 3rd parties details of our conversation without your express consent. Please take a look at our privacy policy.

I can only speak Japanese — can I speak in Japanese with you?

Our Tokyo based consultants all speak Japanese. Depending on the client need, however, it may be necessary for our consultants to speak with you in English in order to assess your English level.

I am already working with another headhunter — is there any point to meet with you?

Yes. Different headhunters have different client networks. Additionally, if you consider that J-Source largely works on an exclusive basis with its clients, it is very likely that the opportunities we can introduce are not being handled by other recruiters.

I’m not based in Tokyo — is there any point to meet / speak with you?

If we are contacting you, we likely know your location. While many positions we handle are based in Tokyo, we do placements throughout Japan. It might be good to speak with us if you are considering a change of location, too.

Do I owe you anything for your services?

No. Our fees are paid by our clients — the companies doing the hiring.

I’m not interested in changing my job — should I meet you? I’m only interested in exchanging information and not changing my job. Is it okay to meet? What is my market value?

If you are 100% happy and feel that you will never change your job, regardless of the changing economy and an uncertain future, then there is no need at all to meet. However, life changes quickly, and it might be a good idea to prepare for an uncertain future through a conversation with one of our consultants. We can always discuss what we think your salary or ‘market value’ should be, but we wonder what the benefit of this to you or us unless you are dissatisfied with your current situation and are open to considering new opportunities. In the end, it is our clients who decide what your value is to their organization and in doing so determine an appropriate salary level. Naturally, the only way to determine that salary level is by completing a full interview process and receiving and offer from our clients.

It seems that many recruiters are contacting me these days — why is this?

Many recruiters use the same sources of information, including people from their existing database, online resources, 3rd party vendors, etc. If many recruiters are contacting you, there is a chance that new information exists publicly about you in the general media. Additionally, if you are registered with a few different recruiters, they may all be recruiting at the same time for the same position. Please note, that it is illegal and thus unlikely that recruiters are sharing information about you. If we are contacting you at the same time as other recruiters, it is a coincidence, based on our clients’ needs and the general market needs.

I would like for you to stop contacting me — can you remove my data from your database?

We would first ask you to refer to our privacy policy. Please keep in mind — if we remove your data from our database, you actually INCREASE the odds of us contacting you again. The reason is that if we keep your data in our database, we can make a note that you do not want to be contacted again. However, if we erase your data, it is very likely we will research your information again independently and contact you again.

Can you await my reply until next week / next month? Are you in a hurry?

While J-Source is not in a hurry, our clients might be. In most cases, our clients are focused on finding the right person rather than simply finding someone quickly. It’s really a case by case basis.

I’m busy now, can you call me back?

Of course! Please let us know your cell phone number so that we can call you more privately in the future. If you missed our e-mail address, you can also reach us from our contact page.

Why are you calling me? Can you avoid calling my office?

As part of the service offering to our clients, we are obligated to reach out to potential candidates by both e-mail and phone. Where possible, we try to contact by e-mail at first so as not to disturb you at work, but if we do not get a response from you, we must try to reach out to you until we get an answer to see if you would like to speak with us to find out more about you and see if you are a good match for our clients. While we understand that it may be an inconvenience calling into your office, if you were our client and looking to hire people, I’m sure that you would be pleased with our determined effort to do everything in our power to reach out to the best people in the market.

I have a non-compete with my company and cannot move to a competitor — should I meet with you?

This is entirely up to you. Our understanding is that non-competes are not legal documents in Japan as they prevent you from pursuing your livelihood freely. However, breaking such non-compete agreements may carry financial and reputational risk which you need to consider.