What do you do at Mizuho?
I’m on the NY Japan Sales Desk where we sell fixed income, credit and derivatives products to Japanese institutional clients. I’ve been in a derivatives front office role for most of my career at Mizuho so I do lean heavier on anything to do with derivatives.

What surprised you about Mizuho?
The exponential growth of the Mizuho franchise over the past couple years. We have also become faster to adapt to changes in the market. I’ve been at Mizuho for a long time and the past couple years definitely saw the most change/growth, it’s exciting to be a part of it. 

How is Mizuho different from other places?
Even though Mizuho has grown a lot in the past few years, it still maintains a bit of the family-like feel from before. There are some amazing people here that genuinely care and are willing to help and educate even across departments. I’ve learned a lot from other departments, allowing me to be more well-rounded in my job, but more importantly I have also formed deep professional and personal relationships here that would last well beyond life at Mizuho.   

How have you grown since joining Mizuho?
I started at Mizuho with no knowledge of the industry, and was very appreciative of colleagues who took the time to educate me and patiently explain concepts. I remember how intimidated I felt at the time when I was an entry-level employee – so I try to be as approachable and helpful as possible when I train junior employees, no matter how busy I am.

What’s one thing you've learned while at Mizuho or in the industry?
Be respectful, helpful, and treat everyone equally regardless of title or department… even at other firms. You tend to cross paths with the same people under varying circumstances in this industry. 

What do you do for fun?
I love to travel - exploring new countries and learning new cultures. It helps in developing interpersonal skills, and I find these cultural experiences to be inspirational as well as thought-provoking. It’s also very refreshing to see the looks of wonder and excitement from my children as they discover new places.