How to Write a Job Description for a Japanese-English Bilingual Position

Two coworkers looking at a laptop in an office (illustrative image)

The short answer

State the language requirement clearly, describe what the role actually does in each language, and specify the proficiency level needed for each skill. A job description that says “bilingual required” without explaining what the person will do in Japanese, and at what level, brings in applications from people who cannot do the work and screens out people who can.

Why it works this way

The pool of Japanese-English bilingual professionals in the United States includes people who studied or worked in Japan, people with experience inside Japanese companies in the US or Japan, people who have worked with a Japanese head office, and Japanese-speaking professionals whose background and education are American. What varies is what each person has done with the language and at what level.

Someone who has negotiated contracts in Japanese can do work that someone who has only handled internal email cannot. Someone who has written reports for a parent company has done something different from someone who has only interpreted in meetings. The job description needs to say which of these the role requires.

How to structure the requirement

  1. Name the languages. State that the role requires Japanese and English.
  2. Describe what the role does in Japanese. Give concrete examples: preparing reports for the parent company, participating in planning meetings with head office, negotiating with suppliers in Japan, supporting Japanese-speaking clients.
  3. Describe what the role does in English. Running the US operation, managing an English-speaking team, working with US clients or partners.
  4. State the proficiency level for each skill. Business-level writing in Japanese for reports, conversational fluency for meetings, the ability to read technical documentation—whatever the role actually requires.

What it means for hiring

A requirement written this way brings in candidates who have done the work before and screens out people who have not. When the description says the role prepares quarterly reports in Japanese for the parent company and participates in budget meetings with head office, someone reading it knows whether they can do that.

It also protects the hiring process. A requirement that reads as nationality-based rather than skill-based creates legal exposure under US employment law. Describing the work the role does in each language, and the level needed, keeps the requirement on the right side of that line.

What to include in the description

Element What to write Why it matters
Language pair Japanese and English required Establishes the baseline requirement
Japanese tasks Reporting to head office, vendor negotiations, client support—specific to the role Shows what the candidate will actually do
English tasks Managing US operations, team leadership, client relationships Clarifies the US-side responsibility
Proficiency level Business-level writing, conversational fluency, reading technical documents Defines what “bilingual” means for this role
Office buildings in a city, daytime
Illustrative image — Photo: Huy Phan / Pexels

Common mistakes

  • “Native-level Japanese required” with no explanation of what the role does in Japanese. This phrase appears in job descriptions where the actual requirement is reading email and joining meetings. Someone who can do the work reads it and concludes the bar is higher than it is. Someone who cannot do the work applies anyway, because the description gave them no way to know.
  • No distinction between written and spoken proficiency. A role that requires preparing written reports for a Japanese parent company needs writing ability. A role that requires phone support for Japanese-speaking clients needs spoken fluency. Leaving this unspecified means the shortlist will include people who have one but not the other.
  • “Bilingual preferred” rather than “required.” When the role cannot be done without Japanese, the word “preferred” brings in applications from people who do not have it. If the language is required, say so.
  • Phrasing the requirement in a way that reads as nationality-based. “Japanese national preferred” or “someone who grew up in Japan” frames the requirement as demographic rather than skill-based, creating legal risk and excluding qualified candidates. Describe the language and experience needed, not the background.

Where to go from here

Writing the requirement clearly is the step that comes before the search. Once the description reflects what the role actually does in each language, the next question is where to find people who have done that work. Our national recruiting service connects US operations of Japanese and Japan-connected companies with Japanese-English bilingual professionals across the country. We work on roles where the ability to operate in both languages and both business environments is what the position requires.

Related reading: 5 things US companies get wrong when hiring Japanese-English bilingual talent covers the screening process after the job description is written. Why California companies are hiring bilingual Japanese-English professionals describes what drives demand for these roles. A full list of what we do is on the services page.

Looking for bilingual talent for a role? Tell us about the role and we’ll walk you through what comes next.

JA-TITLE: 日英バイリンガル人材の求人票の書き方
VISUAL-PLAN
process_flow: Shows the order of defining language requirements in a job description—what to specify first and what follows
checklist: Gives employers a concrete reference for what to include when writing the language requirement section
END-VISUAL-PLAN

The short answer

State the language requirement clearly, describe what the role actually does in each language, and specify the proficiency level needed for each skill. A job description that says “bilingual required” without explaining what the person will do in Japanese, and at what level, brings in applications from people who cannot do the work and screens out people who can.

Why it works this way

The pool of Japanese-English bilingual professionals in the United States includes people who studied or worked in Japan, people with experience inside Japanese companies in the US or Japan, people who have worked with a Japanese head office, and Japanese-speaking professionals whose background and education are American. What varies is what each person has done with the language and at what level.

Someone who has negotiated contracts in Japanese can do work that someone who has only handled internal email cannot. Someone who has written reports for a parent company has done something different from someone who has only interpreted in meetings. The job description needs to say which of these the role requires.

How to structure the requirement

  1. Name the languages. State that the role requires Japanese and English.
  2. Describe what the role does in Japanese. Give concrete examples: preparing reports for the parent company, participating in planning meetings with head office, negotiating with suppliers in Japan, supporting Japanese-speaking clients.
  3. Describe what the role does in English. Running the US operation, managing an English-speaking team, working with US clients or partners.
  4. State the proficiency level for each skill. Business-level writing in Japanese for reports, conversational fluency for meetings, the ability to read technical documentation—whatever the role actually requires.
Machinery on a manufacturing plant floor
Illustrative image — Photo: Yetkin Ağaç / Pexels

What it means for hiring

A requirement written this way brings in candidates who have done the work before and screens out people who have not. When the description says the role prepares quarterly reports in Japanese for the parent company and participates in budget meetings with head office, someone reading it knows whether they can do that.

It also protects the hiring process. A requirement that reads as nationality-based rather than skill-based creates legal exposure under US employment law. Describing the work the role does in each language, and the level needed, keeps the requirement on the right side of that line.

What to include in the description

Element What to write Why it matters
Language pair Japanese and English required Establishes the baseline requirement
Japanese tasks Reporting to head office, vendor negotiations, client support—specific to the role Shows what the candidate will actually do
English tasks Managing US operations, team leadership, client relationships Clarifies the US-side responsibility
Proficiency level Business-level writing, conversational fluency, reading technical documents Defines what “bilingual” means for this role

Common mistakes

  • “Native-level Japanese required” with no explanation of what the role does in Japanese. This phrase appears in job descriptions where the actual requirement is reading email and joining meetings. Someone who can do the work reads it and concludes the bar is higher than it is. Someone who cannot do the work applies anyway, because the description gave them no way to know.
  • No distinction between written and spoken proficiency. A role that requires preparing written reports for a Japanese parent company needs writing ability. A role that requires phone support for Japanese-speaking clients needs spoken fluency. Leaving this unspecified means the shortlist will include people who have one but not the other.
  • “Bilingual preferred” rather than “required.” When the role cannot be done without Japanese, the word “preferred” brings in applications from people who do not have it. If the language is required, say so.
  • Phrasing the requirement in a way that reads as nationality-based. “Japanese national preferred” or “someone who grew up in Japan” frames the requirement as demographic rather than skill-based, creating legal risk and excluding qualified candidates. Describe the language and experience needed, not the background.

Where to go from here

Writing the requirement clearly is the step that comes before the search. Once the description reflects what the role actually does in each language, the next question is where to find people who have done that work. Our national recruiting service connects US operations of Japanese and Japan-connected companies with Japanese-English bilingual professionals across the country. We work on roles where the ability to operate in both languages and both business environments is what the position requires.

Related reading: 5 things US companies get wrong when hiring Japanese-English bilingual talent covers the screening process after the job description is written. Why California companies are hiring bilingual Japanese-English professionals describes what drives demand for these roles. A full list of what we do is on the services page.

Looking for bilingual talent for a role? We’ll walk you through what comes next.

Tell us about the role

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