Browse through the hundreds of articles by our team members on a wide variety of topics related to Japanese business and culture. Find articles on specific topics of interest using the search box in the sidebar.
In the U.S., professors typically do not have contact with companies in the recruiting process. In Japan your professor determines not only your grades but also holds the key...
In Japan, the lunch break is Noon to 1:00pm. All work stops and everyone goes to lunch at the same time…Americans work at their desks through lunch or get their...
Our tips on how to nemawashi (build consensus) with Japan headquarters when you can't be there....
Learning a new language is only the beginning—then we have to figure out what people mean by the words they say in that other culture, and it isn’t always easy....
Being harsh towards one’s subordinates is often encouraged in Japanese culture, and a blind eye is turned toward yelling and other harsh treatment. For many Japanese, a tough boss...
Non-Japanese employees of Japanese firms frequently mention the penchant that many Japanese managers have for public criticism. Whereas Americans would prefer to receive negative feedback in private, Japanese seem...
Methods used to manage engineers in Japan often do not meet the expectations of non-Japanese engineers. This results in disruptive high turnover rates, and difficulty transferring technology....
For Japanese companies operating outside Japan, this means that the Japanese expatriates assigned to overseas locations are knowledgeable about different cultures and take those cultures into account in their business...
Japanese companies have mixed feelings about their decision-making processes. Employees will admit that the process is quite frustrating at times, and it seems that some Japanese businesspeople regard how...
Japanese executives often complain that their American colleagues are “bad at organizing data.” According to one Japanese manager who is a key decision-maker in his company’s operations in Japan,...