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JAPAN WANTS TO NURTURE GLOBAL TALENT FROM WITHIN by emphasis on English and Chinese (editorial in The Japan News May 13 2013 p. 9). One of Japan's hot issues is university reforms to a achieve global competitiveness. The editorial emphasized the need to focus on IP which is "strategically vital for national security". The focus on the Chinese language is related both to the increasing number of Chinese employed in Japan, and to the "threat to the diplomacy and security of Japan" and the huge market it represents. Curiously, there is no mention to attract external talent. View in LinkedIn

DR CHARLIE HSIAO WAS A LEGENDARY ENTREPRENEUR and a dear friend. He grew up in Taiwan in humble circumstances, as a tall shy boy, and made it to a good University studying pharmaceutics. He co-founded Ivax Pharmaceuticals, a generics powerhouse that grew to be one of the largest generics companies worldwide until sold to Teva for 7.4 Bn USD. Charlie went on to co-found Impax Labs with Larry Hsu, which today is worth over a billion. Sadly, he died of multiple myeloma a couple of years ago. I was honored to be one of two speakers at his funeral. View in LinkedIn

JAPAN NEEDS TO ATTRACT INTERNATIONAL TALENT, according to the founder of the giant INCJ VC fund. He shared his vision of the problems of kickstarting innovation in the stalled Japanese economy: one was attracting and securing international talent to the cause. The cultural and language barriers to integrating a foreigner are still significant. Although curious and deeply hospitable, Japan is still a culture that requires a big investment by a foreigner to integrate. Fortunately, most of the business leaders speak fluent English, and many can understand it. View in LinkedIn

I HAD SUPPER WITH THE CHIEF Medical OFFICER OF ELAN BIOPHARMACEUTICALS last night. Menghis Bairu MD is an old friend, whose jet-set life at Elan (NYSE: ELN) includes inking multiple gigantic deals, and editing/authoring few books on Global Clinical Trials, including a recent one on Alzheimer's Disease. With roots in Eritrea, Menghis had a truly meteoric career, but never forgets the values of family and simplicity. When I worked for Elan, it had a tumultuous history, but today in downsized mode of under 100 staff, it is poised to collect giant royalty payments for decades. What a ride! View in LinkedIn

SAN FRANCISCO AND BARCELONA ARE SISTER CITIES, most appropriately. These are two world-class extraordinary locations that are on every Bucket List, with open-hearted people and a source of cutting-edge technological" "innovation and remarkable entrepreneurs. California is the trend-setter for the US, and is a leading economy. Catalunya is the leading economic region, the intellectual capital of Spain, and is the California of Spain. View in LinkedIn

FEW APPS ARE GAME CHANGERS, but Uber is one of them. This App allows you to hail a taxi in minutes. Circumventing taxi medallion waiting lists (years) and costs (enormous), they link Limousines directly with online cell phone customers, in prepaid assignments, and showing the map location of the incoming Limo. In one strike, this has expanded insufficient taxi pools in cities where mayors have failed to act. When my taxi driver in San Francisco said it would take up to an hour to get a return cab from the old call-in system, I smiled, knowing I had Uber in my side. View in LinkedIn

EFFECTIVE STEERING COMMITTEES ARE ESSENTIAL For example, a co-development plan between Big Pharma and a SME. Each group has equal votes about the partnership. The goal for the small partner must be to minimize surprises. The working committee must anticipate future outcomes and reveal how they would be dealt with by their organizations. If Big Pharma has made the agreement only for a short-term pipeline stuffer, and any delays would result in a termination, this information is key for the small partner. Nothing is worse than an unanticipated termination for the small partner. View in LinkedIn

THE FAMOUS RUGBY SCRUM AT RUSH HOUR IN JAPANESE TRAINS has to be experienced to be believed. Literally heaved into train cars like rugby players in suits, it is a serious contact sport. I was momentarily worried about my wallet, " "until I reassured myself that they are scrupulously honest. My wallet would have lasted a second in many other countries. Looking around at the sea of polite face masks (to keep your germs to yourself), at the inpeccable sea of suits, I reaffirmed that this is a very unique culture. Planet Japan. View in LinkedIn

CHANGING SHOES IS ALMOST A FETISH IN JAPAN. Your outdoor shoes change to slippers at the front door. And again as you enter a changing room the first slippers must change for another pair, and again as you enter a toilet. And everything reverses as you go back. These are some of the numerous cultural rules about polite behavior in Japan. And in such a crowded society, polite behavior is a mandatory element. View in LinkedIn

THE CALIFORNIA ECONOMIC BOOM AND VC MONEY DISCONNECT. Shopping bags everywhere from throngs of tourists in San Francisco, record stock market, over-ask bids on houses (including Mark Zuckerman paying 14 M USD for a 4 M home!); but I have met with SME CEOs who have been unable to raise capital. Most memorable was a Stanford microchip diagnostics company with stellar technology, top experts, 19 patents, who have been flat out of luck trying to raise Series A. They are asking me for help accessing overseas partners. There is a deceptive economic boom in California. View in LinkedIn