Slalom elevates ANZ head Mike Shimota to Regional APAC leader

Global consulting firm Slalom has elevated ANZ boss Mike Shimota to regional leader of the firm’s Asia Pacific business.

Mike Shimota joined Slalom in January 2020 to launch the firm in the Australian market. Over the past four years, he has led the company through an impressive growth trajectory, building Slalom into a $90 million business and into one of the leading digital consulting firms in the Australian market.

Last year, Shimota also guided the expansion of Slalom into the New Zealand market, with the Auckland office complementing its hubs in Melbourne and Sydney.

Effective this month, Shimota has taken on the expanded role of Regional APAC Leader, meaning that he will also oversee the office in Japan (the Tokyo office launched in 2022 and is led by Japan country lead, Ko Asami) and the soon-to-launch business in Singapore.

Near-term growth plans in Asia Pacific further include the setup of a nearshoring division for technology work, with Shimota spearheading the exploratory efforts and what the company’s nearshore strategy will look like.

The region is not new for Shimota. After starting his career in the US with Accenture, he moved with the company to Asia Pacific, working and living in several countries including Japan and Singapore.

“Working in other countries – especially Japan, where consensus is key and I was a minority and unfamiliar with the language and the culture – taught me to observe, listen, adapt. That’s enabled me to evolve and be more effective in Australia and across Asia Pacific. It’s helped me work with the next generation of people and with collaborative methods and approaches too,” Shimota reflected.

Shimota has over 30 years of consulting and professional experience, all of which he gained in the consulting industry. “I’ve been fortunate enough to work on some of the most interesting and largest transformation programs across the globe – all over the US, in Germany, Japan, Australia, and throughout Asia Pacific. All these experiences, especially the exposure to diverse cultures, languages, approaches, and styles, have shaped me both personally and professionally.”

Globally, Slalom has over 13,000+ team members in eight countries. The firm has close partnerships with over 400 leading technology providers, including AWS, Google, Microsoft, Salesforce, Snowflake, and Tableau.