Gengo understands the need for small-batch translation. Global communication takes place exponentially faster than the project management cycle, and understanding is way too important to be left to machines. And with even the smallest and most early stage startups understand the importance of going global, Gengo seems to have found their niche.

Matt and I talk about the growth of the company, the changing nature of startup investment in Japan and the rest of Asia, how to recruit and retain high-powered engineering staff in a hyper-competitive environment and the significance of foreign entrepreneurs in Japan.

One of the most interesting topics we cover, however, is how Matt (and Gengo) are handling the recent change in CEO. It's always a difficult transition and many companies don't survive it. In this frank discussion without the usual platitudes, Matt explains the specific steps he’s taking to bring openness and transparency to all of Gengo’s stakeholders, and he also explains the changes he had to make in himself in order to take Gengo to the next level.

It’s a great interview and I think you’ll enjoy it.

Show Notes for Startups

The importance of simple solutions for large companies
Why an open API is critically important to growth
The defect in the existing translation agency model Gengo exploited for early success
Why it's important to get investors and employees talking
When personal change is the key to corporate growth
Advice to foreigners who want to start a company in Japan
Why Japan's founders are more advanced than her VCs
Why Asia is becoming more attractive for investors

Links from the Founder

The Gengo Home Page
Matt's old company Majides
Follow Matt on twitter @quanza
Friend him on Facebook
Mattermark for info on startup activity
James Riney home page
The Slush Asia startup event

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Transcript from Japan
Welcome to Disrupting Japan. Straight talk from Japan's most successful entrepreneurs.

I am Tim Romero, and thanks for listening.

We are broadcasting today from the new Disrupting Japan Studios at the foot of Tokyo Tower. In fact, if you look closely at our logo you can almost see the building. Of course, the most interesting part of the show is recorded at the offices of Gengo over a beer with Co-Founder and new CEO, Matt Romaine.

Gengo is one of the world's largest Crowd Source Translation Platforms. We talk a bit about his crazy journey building it, and the changes that lay ahead for the Translation Markets.

You know, since Disrupting Japan is focused on innovation and disruption there is never a shortage of new topics. Change is the one thing that is constant in this industry, and in this world I suppose. I guess you could say that change is the one thing that never changes. Change is simple. The world changes whether we want it to or not. Change is easy, but progress is hard.

What I found most interesting in this discussion is all of the different ways in which Matt is focusing on progress in this time of Corporate change.

We talk about the recent change of CEO at Gengo, and how he is using this change to improve relationships among his staff, his customers, and his investors. Matt explains not only the changes he had to make in his Company to make this work, but also the changes he had to make in himself.

Matt tells the story much better than I do. Let's get right to the interview.

[Interview]

Tim: We are sitting here with Matt Romaine of Gengo formerly My Gengo. It is the largest and certainly the most interesting Crowd Sourced Translation Platform in Japan. Perhaps the world now. That's a really simple way to introduce it. I think you can probably do your Company a lot more justice than I just did.

Matt: Well, to start the word Gengo means language in Japanese. There use to be a boom in Japan to add the word “My” before something so like My Hashi would be like my personal chopsticks.

Tim: Oh,