The Role
The HR Director Japan serves as the primary HR Business Partner, providing strategic leadership in labor relations, employee engagement, and HR governance, while ensuring compliance with Japanese laws.
Summary Generated by Built In
Are you ready to accelerate your potential and make a real difference within life sciences, diagnostics and biotechnology?
At Radiometer, one of Danaher’s 15+ operating companies, our work saves lives—and we’re all united by a shared commitment to innovate for tangible impact.
You’ll thrive in a culture of belonging where you and your unique viewpoint matter. And by harnessing Danaher’s system of continuous improvement, you help turn ideas into impact – innovating at the speed of life.
At Radiometer, life comes first. Our vision is to improve global healthcare with reliable, fast, and easy patient diagnoses. We’re a team that celebrates diverse ideas and continuous improvement. Here, you’ll find a place to grow and make a real impact, with your unique perspective driving us forward in improving patient care.
Learn about the Danaher Business System which makes everything possible.
The HR Director Japan is responsible for serving as the primary HR Business Partner for the Japan organization, providing both strategic and hands‑on HR leadership across labor relations, regulatory compliance, employee engagement, talent, and HR governance.
This role plays a critical part in translating global and regional HR frameworks into effective, compliant local execution, while enabling People Leaders to lead their teams with confidence, clarity, and accountability across the full talent lifecycle. The role is designed with a future‑oriented mindset and is expected to evolve over time in response to business needs, operating model development, and regional priorities.
This position reports to the Senior Director HR, Commercial and Enabling Functions and is part of the HR Business Partner organization, located in Japan, and will be an on‑site role.
In this role, you will have the opportunity to:
- Act as the trusted HR Business Partner to Japan leadership, advising on people strategy, organizational effectiveness, culture, and change.
- Translate global and regional HR strategies into practical, compliant local execution, aligned with Japanese labor laws and business practices.
- Enable and coach People Leaders to confidently lead talent planning, performance management, development, engagement, and employee relations.
- Partner with HR COEs (Talent Acquisition, Talent Management, Total Rewards, L&D, HR Operations) to deliver end‑to‑end HR solutions across the talent lifecycle.
- Lead labor relations in Japan, including union engagement where applicable, and proactively manage people‑related risk.
- Drive a strong culture of engagement, inclusion, integrity, and continuous improvement.
- Ensure robust HR governance, policy application, and data quality, in collaboration with regional and global HR teams.
- Contribute to regional or global HR initiatives, transformations, or time‑bound projects as business needs evolve.
The essential requirements of the job include:
- Bachelor’s degree or higher in Human Resources, Business Administration, Law, or a related field.
- 10+ years of progressive HR experience, including senior HRBP or country HR leadership roles.
- Deep expertise in Japanese labor law, employment regulations, and local HR practices.
- Proven experience partnering with senior business leaders and HR COEs to deliver HR programs across the talent lifecycle.
- Demonstrated ability to enable and coach People Leaders
- Ability to operate effectively in a matrixed, global organization.
- Business‑level fluency in Japanese and English.
Travel, Motor Vehicle Record & Physical/Environment Requirements:
- Ability to travel domestically within Japan and occasionally internationally (estimated 10–20%).
It would be a plus if you also possess previous experience in:
- Medical device, life sciences, pharmaceutical, or similarly regulated industries.
- Organizational transformation, integration, or operating model evolution environments.
Radiometer, a Danaher operating company, offers a broad array of comprehensive, competitive benefit programs that add value to our lives. Whether it’s a health care program or paid time off, our programs contribute to life beyond the job.
Check out our benefits at Danaher Benefits Info.
At Radiometer, we believe in designing a better, more sustainable workforce. We recognize the benefits of flexible working arrangements for eligible roles and are committed to providing enriching careers, no matter the work arrangement. Additional information about work flexibility will be provided by your interview team.
Join our winning team today. Together, we’ll accelerate the real-life impact of tomorrow’s science and technology. We partner with customers across the globe to help them solve their most complex challenges, architecting solutions that bring the power of science to life.
For more information, visit www.danaher.com.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree or higher in Human Resources, Business Administration, Law, or related field
- 10+ years of progressive HR experience, including senior HRBP or country HR leadership roles
- Deep expertise in Japanese labor law, employment regulations, and local HR practices
- Proven experience partnering with senior business leaders and HR COEs
- Business-level fluency in Japanese and English
Cepheid Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Cepheid and has not been reviewed or approved by Cepheid.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — PTO and paid holidays are portrayed as robust, with formal programs and mentions of generous time off and rollover in some cases. This breadth supports a positive view of time-off availability.
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Healthcare Strength — Core medical, dental, and vision coverage is highlighted repeatedly and is viewed as comprehensive for regular full‑time employees. Descriptions such as “good” or “great” benefits reinforce the strength of the health coverage.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) plan with company matching is consistently included as part of the package. The presence of matching contributions strengthens perceived retirement readiness.
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The Company
What We Do
Cepheid is dedicated to improving healthcare by pioneering molecular diagnostics that combine speed, accuracy, and flexibility. The company's GeneXpert® systems and Xpert® tests automate highly complex and time-consuming manual procedures, providing A Better Way for institutions of any size to perform world-class PCR testing. Cepheid’s broad test portfolio spans respiratory infections, blood virology, women’s and sexual health, TB and emerging infectious diseases, healthcare-associated infectious diseases, oncology and human genetics. The company’s solutions deliver actionable results where they are needed most – from central laboratories and hospitals to near-patient settings. For more information, visit http://www.cepheid.com.
