Partner
Thomas Ballan
LEGAL, TOKYO
Independent Agent
ASK ME ABOUT
Soccer doing to me in an hour what fifteen years of rugby never could, my reluctant impersonation of Wim Hof, or why I once drove all night to Spain and back.
AND FOR THE REST OF THE STORY
Make way for Japan’s next superhero. Because, just as much as the Batman he admires, Thomas has all the right stuff: pro rugby physique, GQ looks, charisma, wit, katana-sharp intellect, and street smarts nurtured by his parents while he and the other Ballan brothers were growing up in the fine wine region of Bordeaux, France. Oh, and he hates bullies. During a one-year leave of absence from his talent acquisition job in Canada, Thomas became the hiring director of a Tokyo-based company: when it pulled out of Japan, he stayed on and took the logical step of becoming a corporate recruiter. Luckily for us, he soon decided that life in a tiny office with one window, a micro-managing boss and downcast colleagues wasn’t for him, and came knocking. Zensho difference? “Like night and day,” he says. “This is a family where you enjoy support, guidance, laughter… The collaboration between partners is awesome.” True, although with his incredible one-to-one introduction-to-placement ratio, he does just fine for himself and others, thank you. And unlike the caped crusader, he doesn’t need a utility belt to work wonders for his community.
