The ‘NICE’ programme – which stands for Nihon (Japan), Igiris (England), Collaboration and Exchange – has been set up by Sheffield-based B. Braun Medical Ltd and is designed to look at ‘cultural differences in a business environment’.

Launched in 2017 to mark the 30th anniversary of B. Braun Aesculap Japan, the programme aims to strengthen B. Braun’s ‘sharing expertise’ philosophy and encourage closer collaboration between the two subsidiaries.

Last year saw two Japanese colleagues visit the UK, this year was the turn of two BBMUK employees to take the trip to Japan.

This years exchange saw Tanya Morgan, Senior Sales Aesulap ORT Consultant, and Josh Watts, Sales Specialist Hospital Care, from B. Braun UK visit Tokyo in Japan, where they gained an insight into the contextual differences between their projects and tasks compared to the UK.

Last year Daichi Ozaki, Orthopaedics Sales Representative, and Kazunori Inoue, Neurosurgery Product Manager, from Aesculap Tokyo visited colleagues in Sheffield to learn about their work, everyday life and culture.

Josh and Tanya both agreed that the organisation of the trip was fantastic, and whilst in the Tokyo head office they got to meet business managers from every B. Braun division and globally collaborate on strengths and weaknesses and compare markets in the UK and Japan, which was very insightful and certainly had a positive impact on the pair.

Hans Hux, Chairman and Group Chief Executive at B. Braun in the UK, said: “This type of programme broadens our experience and capability, and we also strongly recognise some of the benefits that such an exchange can bring to both partner companies – such as sharing skills, ideas, best practise and development.”

B. Braun is one of the world's leading providers and manufacturers of healthcare solutions with 62 subsidiaries. With its constantly growing portfolio of effective medical care solutions, B. Braun makes a substantial contribution towards protecting and improving people's health. In total, the B. Braun product range comprises 5,000 different products, 95 percent of which are manufactured by the company.

As part of the global B. Braun group, B. Braun in the UK is a leader in key market areas including computer navigated orthopaedic surgery, needle safety technology, surgical instrumentation, sterile technology and disinfection and hygiene.