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CBI Partners · Excellence through implementation

We build, fix, run and transfer businesses between Europe and Japan.And we stay until it works.

Japanese and European partners at the same table, inside your team.

Find your situationSee the cases
CBI Partners · Cross Border Implementation

We don't advise across borders.We deliver across borders, and stay until it works.

20+years Japan–Europe
20+companies built, fixed, bought or sold
5offices in Japan and Germany
When companies call us

Which one sounds like you?

Eight situations, eight fields, one crew. Pick yours and see what we do and where we have done it.

  1. You want to enter the other market quickly, without building an office first.Market Access & Representation→
  2. No local leader, a change at the top, or you have to restructure, downsize or exit.Interim, PMI & Turnaround→
  3. You are buying, selling or integrating a company across the border.Alliances, Partnerships & M&A→
  4. Growth has stalled: the strategy is good, but it does not land in the other market.Strategy & Business Development→
  5. Your systems, processes and data don't match across the border.IT Transformation & AI→
  6. Your global and local strategy are not aligned, and the organisation has to change with it.HR & Organisational Development→
  7. A cross-border project is late, over budget or stuck.Projects, Engineering & R&D→
  8. Your ESG and SDG targets have to become real projects.Sustainability & Renewables→
All 8 fields on one pageSupporting services
Rowing eight seen from above, all oars in sync: eight seats, one boat, one rhythm
Where we come from

Our first order was not a study. It was a factory.

In 2006 Karmann asked us to build its plant in Japan, on Nissan's grounds. On the day production started, the parent company declared insolvency. We kept the plant running and sold it as a going concern to Magna.

€60mplant built and run
250jobs kept
0deliveries missed
Read the full case →
Karmann Japan team at the start of production in 2009
Karmann Japan, 2009. The team at the start of production.
Team

The people you will work with.

Japanese and European partners. Each of them has run what we advise on.

Markus SchädlichMarkus SchädlichFounder · Lead PartnerDr. Tilo Schmid-SehlDr. Tilo Schmid-SehlFounder · Managing Partner EuropeYurika MimuraYurika MimuraManaging Partner · HansenBeck TrainerDavid SyradDavid SyradFounding Partner · NegotiationChiaki KataokaChiaki KataokaLead Partner HR & ODHans-Peter MusahlHans-Peter MusahlSenior Partner · Legal & FinanceNovica StanisavljevićNovica StanisavljevićSenior Partner JapanLin ZhuLin ZhuAssociate · China LiaisonJulien LoretanJulien LoretanConsultant · Market AccessJunko TilgnerJunko TilgnerMarketing & PR · Business TrainerJan ZinnerJan ZinnerConsultant · Strategy & AI Enablement

All profiles →

Two markets, one team

Present at your headquarters and at your subsidiary.

Five offices. Japanese, German and English in the boardroom and on the shop floor.

EUROPE · DACHJAPANCET · UTC+1JST · UTC+9≈ 9,400 km7–8 h time differenceOne team.Same people at HQand at the subsidiary.ReutlingenMunichHiroshimaOsakaYokohama
Insights & events

The strategy is good. Why does implementation fail?

Article + self-check · AHK Japan · October 2026

It's not the culture.

Our article on the set-up between headquarters and Japan unit, and a 20-question self-check with your result at once.

Read and take the self-checkAll insights
Workshop room set up for a leadership session
White paper · 20 years

Between Headquarters and Japan

Seven tensions that cost European companies performance in Japan, and what resolves them. Free download for our 20th year.

Coming soon
Seminars & events

Meet us in person

Our seminars and trainings, and the events in Tokyo where you find us.

See dates
Industries

Where our partners have worked.

From family-owned suppliers to listed groups, as managers, board members, interim leaders and advisers.

Automotive suppliers
Machinery & automation
Medtech & life science
Energy & renewables
Electronics & semiconductors
Logistics services
Chemicals & materials
Japanese companies in Europe
Start small

Each step is quoted after the previous one has shown results.

4–6 weeks

Enter

Fitness check or assessment: the real gaps, and a baseline to measure against.

6 months

Prove

One mandate or programme, with a decision gate after every phase.

12–24 months

Scale

Representation, interim leadership, integration. The same people from day one.

Next step

Talk to someone who has done it.

Start with one call. Each step after that is quoted on its own.

Talk to us →