We understand how difficult recruiting can be in Japan and Asia.
In Japan and APAC there are unique challenges when searching for the right talent. These difficulties are particularly felt by multinational companies entering into the market.
At Morunda, we are here to make recruiting simple.
We do that by helping outsiders become insiders.
Our combined 75 years experience of living in Japan allows us to give you a masterful understanding of the healthcare hiring landscape.
We get the job done so you can do what you do best!
Philip Carrigan
Philip’s work in life science recruitment began back in 2001 and established Morunda in 2011. With over 2 decades of executive consulting experience under his belt, Philip is known for recruiting top talent ranging from marketing and clinical development managers to directors for multinational companies in the life science industry – an active thought leader in life science search.
He has written more than 200 published articles on leadership, HR, and industry trends as a monthly contributing writer for the leading Japanese industry newsletter, Pharma Japan and has been everywhere and on the scene in local networking industry events. Philip has personally placed more than 300 executives throughout his career, making him easily recognizable as one of Asia’s leading recruiters in the life science industry.
Perre Frias
Originally from the Philippines, Perre Frias graduated with a dual bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Nursing at one of the country’s
top universities. After a short but very successful time in the business process outsourcing sector, Perre went on to join Wyeth Pharmaceutical in 2011 as a Territory Manager and worked for the company for five successful years.
Perre joined Morunda in Tokyo from 2016 until 2020 as a Project Manager. He went on to successfully help establish the life science business of a start-up recruitment firm in Tokyo from 2020 to 2022 , reaching Principal level Consultant. Perre returned to his home in Morunda at the end 2022 to take on a role as VP for Life Science Business for Japan and APAC.
Gladys Toh
Originally from Singapore, she holds a Bachelor in Business, Major in Marketing from the University of Canberra, Australia. She has
extensive experience in sales, marketing and the service industry and has worked in Singapore, Hong Kong & Tokyo. Gladys additionally spent several years living in Dubai UAE whilst working as cabin crew for Emirates Airline. She speaks Mandarin and English. Gladys has been living in Japan since 2008. Gladys founded Morunda Asia in July 2013 to serve the growing demand for top talent across the Asia Pacific market.
Morunda Asia specializes in placing challenging-to-fill roles in sales, marketing and research and development and is based in Singapore. Singapore is the leading logistics hub globally, has world class intellectual property protection and is now Asia’s fastest-growing bio-cluster. Singapore additionally presents attractive strategic partnership / new medicines development opportunities with research institutes, corporate labs and public hospitals and future therapies that can be customized for regional and global markets.
Alan Thomson
Alan is the Director of the Finance & Operations team. They cover the corporate back-office roles for Morunda’s clients,
which includes finance, legal & compliance, procurement, human resources and operations. During his time in recruitment, he has placed many executives across various industries in the Japanese market and especially enjoys working with clients who are new to the region. Alan and his team work very closely with pharmaceutical, medical device and biotechnology firms to identify the key characteristics and abilities of candidates to drive their business forward.
Alan came to Japan in 2004, originally in financial consulting, where he worked closely with numerous Japanese executives and companies as clients, so he has a deep understanding of what is needed to succeed in this market. He really enjoys consulting with clients and candidates, to enable patient first focused companies to expand in Japan & APAC region.
Rachiya Permpetch
Rachiya is originally from Thailand. She came to Japan in 2015 and graduated from Ritsumeikan
Asia Pacific
top University, major in Marketing.
Having spent four years working in pharmaceutical recruitment in Japan, Rachiya has gained
valuable experience and expertise in the industry. This experience has allowed her to develop a
comprehensive understanding of the unique challenges and dynamics of the Japan
pharmaceutical sector.
One of Rachiya's key recruitment strengths lies in Digital Marketing , Business Intelligence and
Advanced Analytics for the healthcare industry with a proven track record. With a passion for the
healthcare industry and a keen eye for emerging trends and technologies, Rachiya is committed
to staying at the forefront of the talent pool in this space.
Benjamin Vermersch
Benjamin studied in France, in Berlin, Germany, and in London, England; he graduated in Linguistics
and started his
top career in education. He has worked in 5 countries before coming to Japan in 2015,
where he worked as a Manager of a French Language school.
He joined Morunda in 2021, he primarily focused on Commercial roles (Marketing and Sales roles for
pharmaceutical companies). Ben has an outstanding network in the pharmaceutical industry. Ben
has been instrumental in placing several senior executive roles since joining Morunda.
