The business world is highly complex, and organizations need leaders who both can and want to lead. Since 2015, our team at Kay Group, in Asia, has helped leaders find the perfect balance of vision, courage, determination, humility and collaboration to be not only impactful in their position but also encouraged to continue their growth to become better leaders in the long term.
We work with executive leaders in Japan and globally, offering services both in person and virtually.
While reflecting on our careers, we asked ourselves how many bosses have truly impacted us. The number was shockingly low. So, we started to think about what made those few leaders stand out in our minds. Next, we asked ourselves, how can we do better?
Reflecting on our experiences, we concluded that ambition to lead and the ability to lead are often imbalanced. In addition, there tends to be a disconnect among stakeholders and leaders regarding role expectations. Addressing the misalignment of the delicate triangle of ambition, skills, and role is the starting point of our “leader-by-design” methodology.
“If the highest aim of a captain were to preserve his ship, he would keep it in the port forever”
- THOMAS AQUINAS (1225-1274)
Our Mission
At Kay Group, our mission is simple: to help people be successful and achieve positive, lasting change for themselves and the people around them. We aim to be a catalyst for leaders to recognize their strengths, build confidence, and learn how to guide teams with greater impact and improved success, all while partnering with their peers to move into even bigger roles.
To achieve this mission, we partner with clients to prepare and propel them as leaders. They might be seasoned executives, expats new to Japan, or talent destined for local or international assignments, so all coaching programs are customized according to the client’s objectives. Most clients want to become better leaders. For those seeking to tackle obstacles preventing them from performing optimally, we work on getting them back on track.
The success of leaders and their teams is our priority and undivided focus. We use our backgrounds as executive and team coaches as well as our experience in a vast range of international settings to provide the most appropriate growth path for each individual client and team.
Where East Meets West
Although living in Japan, we work with leaders and teams in APAC and Europe, often for succession planning and culture change initiatives. All our services can be delivered in multiple formats (face-to-face, virtual, and hybrid) and multiple languages (Japanese, English, and German). We have expertise in the life sciences industry, where we work across functions, hierarchy levels, and regions.
Kay Group is a privately owned firm, founded in 2016 and led by Axel Wellbrock who was born and raised in Japan. After obtaining a global education and extensive work experience in Europe, North America, and Asia, Axel returned to his adopted homeland with a passion to unlock the leadership potential of Japan’s talent. We all share his passion for people development and bring our unique experience to the table.
Axel Wellbrock
Axel is the driving force and representative director of Kay Group K.K. His primary passions are his clients—who he partners with for leadership, executive, and performance coaching—and the development of high-performing teams.
A German citizen, born and raised in Japan, Axel has a truly global outlook, having worked in eight countries. He brings more than 25 years of international leadership experience to Kay Group, with positions ranging from sales to regional executive, in Boehringer Ingelheim, Bayer, Eli Lilly, and AstraZeneca in Europe, North America, and East and Southeast Asia.
Axel holds advanced degrees from Harvard University, Stanford University, and the University of Tübingen, Germany, and follows his second passion—teaching—as an adjunct lecturer at Globis Management University in Japan. His clients highly value and appreciate his native-level language skills in English, French, German, and Japanese.
Axel Wellbrock’s profile
✓ Coaching senior managers & executives
leadership behaviours & skills coaching, mindset change coaching, leaders as part of teams & wider organizations
✓ Facilitating leadership team development
team building, developing high performing teams, effective leadership teams as part of the wider organization
✓ Developing organizational effectiveness
team workshops for problem framing & scoping and decision making, leaders’ and leadership team’s initiatives for organizational effectiveness and culture
✓ Assessing leaders and teams
for individuals: Hogan leadership personality, Saville Wave leadership personality, DiSC interaction styles, Leadership talent potential (KFALP)
for teams: team effectiveness, high performing team behaviours (Five Behaviors of Cohesive Teams), roles in a high performing team (Belbin),
Karin Wellbrock
Karin is a partner and COO at Kay Group, with two decades of international management consulting experience at Deloitte in Europe, North America, and East and Southeast Asia.
The leadership challenges that women face, especially in Japan, fueled her desire to make a difference by returning to Tokyo to focus on supporting women in leadership and the next generation of leaders. She uses her extensive consultancy background in life sciences and related industries to help new executives make career decisions and find their voice.
Karin holds advanced degrees in business administration and international relations from Harvard University, Stanford University, the University of Southern California, and the University of Tübingen, Germany. She works with clients in English and German, is a member of the Ethical Coach network, and assists NGOs in Japan and Asia that specialize in young leader development and capacity-building. Her clients highly value and appreciate the safe and non-judgmental space she creates for them.
Karin Wellbrock’s Certifications
✓ Certified Training Professional
with 6+ years of professional experience
✓ Certified Executive Coach (ICF PCC and EIA EMCC )
Certified in the following programs: International Coaching Federation (ICF) Professional Certified Coach; European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) Senior Practitioner; Systemic Coaches; Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered; Gallup Strengths Coach; Breakthrough Coaching; ACE Accelerated Coaching
✓ Certified Assessor
Trained in using the following frameworks: Gallup, Hogan, DiSC, Korn Ferry Leadership Architect and Assessment of Leadership Potential, Belbin, Five Behaviors of Cohesive Teams
✓ General Management Graduate Certificate (CSS) in Organizational Behavior
Harvard University
✓ Strategic Decision Making & Risk Management Certificates
Stanford University
✓ Master of International Relations & Political Economy & Finance
University of Southern California
✓ MBA in Strategic Planning & Political Science & Local Committee President of AIESEC
University of Tübingen
Some of the clients we’ve had the pleasure to work with
