The Making of TIER IV People
Joanna Tang | Marketing Communications Team
Launched in September 2022, TIER IV People shines a light on the people and teams whose unique experiences, backgrounds, and stories bring our mission to life. For this installment, the MarCom team's Joanna Tang explained the thinking behind the series.
― How did you arrive at TIER IV?
I was introduced to TIER IV through a headhunter in 2019. After meeting [TIER IV founder] Shinpei Kato and other members of the management team, I realized that the company’s vision of addressing social challenges with an open-source approach resonated with me. I believe TIER IV has the potential to grow into a global company with a worldwide impact. By joining the company, I thought I could give something back to Japan, a country that has been a great help to me since my time at graduate school. I decided to join TIER IV because I was confident it would offer unique experiences that I couldn’t find elsewhere.
― Why was the TIER IV People series launched?
The idea had been in the works for two years. TIER IV is made up of employees with diverse backgrounds and characters, so we wanted to shine a spotlight on them. This year, we took the opportunity of renewing our core values to put this into practice. We want to let people outside the company know about the talented individuals at TIER IV, to attract new team members and increase awareness of the technology. Internally, we want employees to have a deeper understanding of the work being done by team members in different departments and roles, which will hopefully create new opportunities for dialogue.
The autonomous driving market is still developing. By showcasing the efforts of our team members working on the technology, I want people to learn about some of the impressive and interesting individuals here. I also want to increase the number of people who want to work for us.
At the same time, I hope the series serves as a catalyst for internal communication. Remote work increased during the pandemic. As a result, opportunities for in-person conversations decreased. I hope the posts provide opportunities to understand more about the activities and thinking of employees in other teams.
Even among colleagues, it would be great if the articles could reveal new things about each other that don’t usually come up in everyday conversations: For instance, discovering skills they have, ideas they’ve been thinking about, or hobbies they enjoy. Ultimately, I hope it leads to more active communication and greater understanding and respect among each other.
― What qualities do TIER IV members share?
First, the diversity of backgrounds among our members. As a startup that grew from a university project, team members include professors, PhD students and many student engineers. In the past, we even had a University of Tokyo graduate student who was also a professional shogi player, as well as MIT and Harvard graduates. However, it’s important to stress that academic credentials are not the main priority when it comes to recruitment. Our mid-career hires also hail from a variety of backgrounds, including automotive manufacturers, IT companies, and multinational firms. It’s great that the company has a flat, hierarchy-free culture where everyone supports each other while taking on various challenges.
Shinpei is also an associate professor, and he has a strong desire to nurture talent and provide opportunities to all kinds of people. Perhaps this mindset is reflected in our company culture. Team members are always willing to support coworkers rather than solely pursuing their own interests. Being a startup, our company culture thrives on exchanging ideas without being bound by conventional thinking, which I find very appealing. About 80 percent of our employees are engineers. Their commitment to creating great things reminds me of the work of artists. In this series, I want to engage with them as though they were artists.
― What other projects are in store?
Through our work in marketing communications, we want to create a world where TIER IV is synonymous with autonomous driving, both in Japan and around the world. I want people to feel excited about the evolution of autonomous driving whenever they see or hear the name TIER IV. But branding activities cannot be achieved by the Marketing Communications team alone. At TIER IV, we’ve been fortunate that engineers have helped to spread brand awareness by writing blog posts and speaking at lectures.
We believe in brand building with the full participation of all employees. It’d be great if all employees could get stuck in, whether it’s writing articles, sharing social media posts or helping out at events. I’d like to bring back a social event that got put on hold during the pandemic – the office happy hour. We always welcome ideas for new activities. It's all about working together to make this a company that people around the world can relate to and support. If you’re the type of person who’s excited about taking on new challenges, we’d love you to join us at TIER IV.
The Hero's Journey is a concept proposed by Joseph Campbell, an American mythologist who, in the course of researching myths from around the world, discovered a common pattern. Despite their different appearances, forms, world views and cultures, the main characters follow the same path. He named this pattern of growth that heroes follow the Hero's Journey.
In fact, the Hero's Journey influenced filmmaker George Lucas and his magnum opus, Star Wars. Many captivating growth stories around the world feature protagonists that we cheer for, anxiously watching as they face significant challenges and feeling inspired as they overcome obstacles.
TIER IV’s vision of making autonomous driving accessible to all is truly a Hero's Journey. Team members from diverse backgrounds are bound by the belief that an open-source approach can expand the possibilities for people, partners, and communities. Everyone is working together toward a common goal. I’m sure there will be many stories along the way that will captivate and excite. The purpose of the TIER IV People series is to focus on the stories of all team members, who are the true protagonists of this journey.
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Joanna Tang｜Marketing Communications Team
Joanna joined TIER IV in September 2019 and set up the Marketing and Communications team, where she leads corporate branding. Her work has included expanding the company website, coordinating press releases, and supporting events like CES. She came to Japan for graduate studies and later worked in marketing and communications at a Japanese media outlet, a foreign IT company and a fintech firm.
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