Among positions he has held in the past are Foreign Minister; Defense Minister; Minister in charge of COVID-19 Vaccine Roll-out; Digital Minister; Minister for Cyber Security; Minister for Administrative Affairs; Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission, or Minister in charge of the National Police Organization; Minister for Regulatory Reform; Minister for Administrative Reform; Minister for Civil Service Reform; Minister for Consumer Affairs and Food Safety; Minister for Disaster Management; and Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives. He is a graduate of the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. He was Chairman of the Japan Race Horse Association and Chairman of the Shonan Bellmare Football Club, the 1995 Asia Champion Soccer Club. He is married to Kaori and has a son, Ippei.

Noboru Saito's career at the TDK Corporation began in 1989. His journey includes a term as President of TDK Electronics Europe GmbH starting in 2006, where he spearheaded operations across the continent, holding other pivotal roles such as General Manager of the Europe Sales Division and later Deputy General Manager at TDK-EPC Corporation.

He became Senior Vice President in June 2013. For the next two years, he also held the titles of General Manager of the Electronic Components Sales & Marketing Group and General Manager of Corporate Strategy HQ. He rose to the role of President and CEO in April 2022, where he has continued to spearhead the group's innovation and global expansion to date.

Professor, Tama University Graduate School
Managing Director, EcosyX Lab
Specially Appointed Professor, System Design Management (SDM) unit of Keio University.
Managing Director, Future Center Alliance Japan (FCAJ)
Board member, The New Club of Paris
Director, Knowledge Creation Principles Consortium Advisor, Nikken Sekkei Ltd.
BS of the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University.
Ph.D. (Management Information Science, academic)

Publications:
●"Intellectualizing Capability" (Nihon Keizai Shimbun, 1995, FT Best Global Business Book Award)
●"Introduction to Knowledge-based Management: Knowledge Management and Its Era" (Chikuma Shinsho, 1999)
●"Methodology of Knowledge Creation: The Way of the Knowledge Worker" (Toyo Keizai, 2003)
●"The Principles of Knowledge Creation Management: A Practical Theory of Wise Capitalism" (Toyo Keizai, 2012)
●"Methodology of Conceptualizing Capability" (Nikkei BP, 2018), etc.
The above books are co-authored with Ikujiro Nonaka
●"The Art Company" (Nihon Keizai Shimbun, 2008)
●"Design Thinking for Business" (Toyo Keizai 2010)
●"Why People Who Think Only about Profit and Sales Fail (Purpose Engineering)" (Diamond, 2013)
●"The Whole Innovation Catalog" (Toyo Keizai, 2020)
●"New Generation Leaders for Transformation: Call for the Dynamos" (co-author, Nikkei BP, 2021), etc.

Nick has a particular focus looking at the intersection between geopolitics and trade, and regularly delivers briefings on how to navigate the shifting era of globalisation, particularly in the context of China’s evolving relationship with the West. Nick also concurrently helps to lead the EIU’s award-winning coverage of China, Taiwan and Macau. In that role, he shapes the EIU’s view on China-Taiwan relations, including how companies and governments can mitigate the risks attached to cross-Strait ties.

Nick previously conducted trade research in Beijing with the US-China Business Council, where he advised US companies on the Chinese market. He graduated from the University of Virginia with degrees in Foreign Affairs and Chinese, and holds graduate certification from the Johns Hopkins-Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies.

Rodrigo González is the Director for Tokyo of Economist Intelligence Corporate Network.

He works closely with regional business leaders to assist them in economic and market trends, business competitiveness, monetary and fiscal policy and general economic advisory to help them optimise their business strategies and further enhance their connections to their c-suite peers.

He has vast experience in statistical analysis, strategy consulting and market research in different industries in and outside Japan. Rodrigo is a published author in environmental and transport economics and has spoken at international conferences in global warming and fiscal policy throughout the world.

Rodrigo holds a PhD in Economics from Keio University and is fluent in Spanish, English, French and Japanese.