Last Updated: 06 Feb 2025 Effective meetings with Japanese
By expecting a Japanese participant in the meeting to commit to a decision, you put them in a difficult position… clarify beforehand the purpose of the meeting, and whether decisions...
Free Resources
Last Updated: 06 Feb 2025 “Career woman” and “feminine” — mutually exclusive for Japanese?
The idea in Japan that successful businesswomen can’t be feminine seems to go beyond clothes. There is a traditional notion in Japan that aggressive behavior is unattractive, and that...
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 Strategic alliances with Japanese firms: making them work
There are any number of reasons why a strategic alliance may be unsuccessful....
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 Why do Japanese take so long to make decisions?
Japanese are conscious of time and particularly deadlines, but tend not to feel the need to rush things unnecessarily…The traditional Japanese approach to change and decision-making is increasingly out of...
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 Are Americans always making excuses?
Japanese take very seriously the concept of personal responsibility. When westerners refuse to apologize and instead dwell on all the extenuating circumstances that caused the problem, Japanese view this...
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 Japanese and English – Bridging the language barrier
There is a tremendous linguistic gap between the Japanese language and English....
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 Japanese and American attitudes toward risk
Different structures and incentives of the business environments in Japan and the U.S. also have a major impact on attitudes toward risk. Americans are comfortable charging forward even if...
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 Overcoming Japanese risk-adverseness
When risk-averse people like the Japanese feel that they need more information, they tend to stall…Thus, many Americans who work with Japanese firms wonder, how can we get the company...
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 Women working with the Japanese
The number of women in professional and managerial positions in Japan has been rising significantly in recent years. In the past there may have been instances of Japanese who...
Last Updated: 15 Jul 2020 “Magic Phrases” when dealing with Japanese
Non-Japanese are often frustrated by Japanese colleagues who do not give sufficient direction or opinions. It can feel like pulling teeth to try to get clear guidance…...