Phyllis Campbell, Scott Oki to receive Japan’s Order of the Rising Sun

The Government of Japan announced on Tuesday that Phyllis Jean Campbell, former chair of the U.S.-Japan Council, and Scott D. Oki, former senior vice president of Microsoft, will receive the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, in recognition of their contributions to strengthening relations between Japan and the United States.

The Consulate-General of Japan in Seattle welcomed the recognition of the two Americans, whose work has helped advance bilateral friendship, economic exchange and mutual understanding.

Campbell is being recognized for her efforts to promote friendship and mutual understanding between the two countries, while Oki is being honored for his contributions to economic exchange and mutual understanding.

Following the Japan earthquake in 2011, Campbell played an active role in advancing the TOMODACHI Initiative and securing support from major corporations for reconstruction and recovery efforts. 

Campbell has also worked to expand women’s representation in corporate leadership. As vice chair for the Asia-Pacific region of Women Corporate Directors, an international organization focused on developing women corporate directors and promoting gender diversity in corporate governance, she helped establish its Japan Chapter in 2017. The chapter has since grown to more than 80 members, providing a platform for networking among women leaders and promoting women’s appointment to corporate boards.

Oki is being recognized for his role in expanding Microsoft’s business in Japan and advancing U.S.-Japan economic ties, as well as his contributions to preserving Japanese American history and fostering exchanges between future leaders of the two countries.

As Microsoft’s senior vice president, Oki led the establishment of the company’s International Division and played a key role in opening Microsoft Corporation’s Japanese subsidiary in Tokyo in 1986. He also promoted the localization of Microsoft products and the development of Japanese-language computing technologies, helping establish the company’s presence in Japan and other parts of Asia while supporting the growth of Japan’s high-tech industry.

In 1996, while serving as chairman of the Japanese American Chamber of Commerce, Oki founded Densho, an organization dedicated to documenting and preserving the history of Japanese immigration to the United States and the experiences of Japanese Americans incarcerated during World War II.