Stewardship Across Generations: A Stronger Model for Japan’s Boards

Japan’s corporate governance reforms have improved board independence, but age diversity remains a clear gap. Evidence from both academic studies and in-house research suggests that multigenerational boards can support stronger capital allocation, better risk management, and higher ROE.

For investors, this points to an opportunity in companies willing to refresh leadership without losing institutional knowledge. The Sanrio example shows how bringing in younger perspectives can unlock strategy, improve agility, and revive shareholder returns. The main risk is that change must be balanced carefully, since experience still matters and not every board refresh will translate into better performance.