Yokonarabi – Keeping up with the corporate Joneses
…There was no business strategy reason, or other explanation. Just doing it because all our competitors were, and we didn't want to be the only one not doing it.”...
Japanese business
A3 reports – secret to Japanese productivity
Once one has become familiar with reading and writing A3 reports, they can certainly increase efficiency…any employee can pick up a report from anywhere else in the company and immediately...
Setting goals for U.S. and Japanese companies
When it comes to goals set by their organizations, Americans’ sense of practicality tends to take over. In Japan, goals are used to show employees a lofty vision, something...
Why do many Japanese businesspeople live apart from their families? Tanshinfunin.
When assigning an employee to a transfer, whether it be within Japan or to someplace abroad, Japanese companies typically do not ask employees “Is now a convenient time for you...
Americans paint a picture with words…Japanese tell the story with pictures
Many Americans discover that using more graphics is effective when working with Japanese. Do Americans find this approach more convincing? Or do they accept the need to use...
Saihatsu boshi – “Those who forget the mistakes of the past are doomed to repeat them”
Japanese are often mystified as to why many Americans seem to not be interested in learning from past problems to prevent future ones…quite a contrast from the way many Japanese...
Mi ni tsukeru –Easier done than said in Japan
When a movement is repeated over time, a long-term muscle memory is created for that task; eventually allowing it to be performed without conscious effort…...
Madoguchi – Your Japanese “go to” person
In Japanese firms, for any project there is always a designated person that people are asked to deal with, and that person is referred to as the madoguchi, which literally...
Liens de loyauté selon le système sempai/kohai
La dynamique sempai/kohai (senior/junior) affecte profondément le fonctionnement des entreprises japonaises...