 |
|
Review focus: Wa, principles of Japanese business, trust, respect, Jishu Kanri or "Volunteer Management"
Asian Business Code Words Index NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company Asian Business Strategy & Street Intelligence Ezine
|
It was not until well into the 1970s that Japanese business people really accepted the idea that there was indeed something unique in their culture that gave them a significant economic advantage over Western nations, and it was not until the early 1980s that they began to feel at ease and confident in attributing their remarkable accomplishments to such traditional concepts as wa. Then, suddenly, wa was on the lips of almost all executives who got up before any kind of audience, including their own employees, because here was a concept, sanctified by age, that they could really get their teeth into. It was endlessly pointed out that wa, the ancient word for the concept of peace and harmony, literally menas "circle" and that the secret of Japan's economic success was based on employees and managers functioning in human-oriented "circles" (instead of the series of horizontal layers favored by Western management). The principle of wa in all of its various nuances is now given credit for almost every aspect of Japanese management that has proven effective. As manager after manager explains, wa incorporates mutual trust between management and labor, harmonious relations among employees on all levels, unstinting loyalty to the company, mutual responsibility, job security, freedom from competitive pressure from other employees, and collective responsibility for both decisions and results. Wa is also said to be responsible for such things as the almost total lack of joking, horseplaying, complaining, drinking on duty, and other nonproductive behavior in Japanese companies. It is also responsible for the active participation of assembly line workers in the management process through such techniques as Jishu Kanri (Jee-shuu Kahn-ree), or "Volunteer Management" groups. Each of these groups is made up of about ten workers who meet regularly to discuss their work, as well as the jobs of those around them that impinge on their own output. Then they make suggestions to management for improvements. The concept of wa provides the Japanese with an all-in-one philosophy/ethic for their business system that includes specific day-to-day guidelines. Furthermore, it is a system of thought and behavior that they do not have to go to business schools or seminars to learn because it is part of their culture. Major firms do, however, often require their new employees to take intense refresher courses in the principles and practices of wa. The is nothing mysterious or esoteric about wa. It is no more than a deeply ingrained system of principles and rules designed to prevent conflict and to promote harmony, mutual trust, mutual help, mutual respect, cooperation, and so on - all traits which Westerners have a nodding acquaintance. But there are profound differences in the way Japanese and Westerners do business. The most important of these differences is that the Japanese system, as inhuman as it can sometimes be, is based on human feelings and needs and is intensely personal. Konosuke Matsushita, founder of the world's largest manufacturer of consumer electronics, is widely regarded in Japan as the supreme master of the "Way of Wa". Before retiring from the chairmanship of his company in the 1970s, Matsushita codified his wa approach to management in seven objectives (which each Matsushita employee is expected to learn and follow). These objectives are as follows:
One can begin to grasp how important these concepts are to Matsushita managers and workers - and in considerable degree to all Japanese business people and workers - by equating them with the role of the Ten Commandments in the Christian religion, keeping in mind that the Japanese tend to take Matsushita's guidelines seriously.
|
|
Boye Lafayette de Mente is one of our regular monthly columnists at the 
| This month's column is excerpted from Japanese Etiquette & Ethics in Business, by Boye Lafayette De Mente available from NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company |
 |
| email updates | email this page | discuss | search | today's asian business strategy news | advertise | about |
| daily asian news, research & commentary for the international business strategy, market research & strategic management professional |