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Review focus: rikutsu-poi, Americans, Westerners, logical thinking, personal factors, human factors, business relationships
Asian Business Code Words Index NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company Asian Business Strategy & Street Intelligence Ezine
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Americans and other Westerners pride themselves of thinking logically and presenting their opinions in a factual manner. You might say this principle is the basis for all business and professional discourse in the West. It often doesn't work that way in Japan. On too many occasions to count, I have witnessed individuals and teams of Westerners make carefully reasoned, fact-filled presentations to Japanese businessmen that ended up doing more harm than good. The presentations did not take into account any of the personal or human factors that are always a part of business relationships; the factual material was for more than anyone could absorb or write down in a usable form; the presentations were too long; and the Japanese side was neither prepared for nor welcomed such hard sell approaches. Instead of impressing the Japanese side, the presentation reinforced the common Japanese position that foreigners do not do their homework before coming to Japan - in these instances, homework that would have explained to the foreigners that detailed presentations are out of place at first meetings, especially when top executives are in attendance. Had they done their homework, the newcomers to the Japanese Way would have learned that it is first of all necessary to satisfy the emotional demands of a proposed business relationship before going into the hard facts; and that the key to developing and sustaining a desirable relationship with a large Japanese company is first of all obtaining a go-ahead signal from top-level management, followed by introductions from the executive contact to the appropriate middle-level managers; then developing close, emotion-based tie with the middle managers and thereafter working very closely with them. They would have learned that typical Japanese are turned off by someone who always resorts to logic or pure reason to make points or resolve issues; and that the more intelligent and clever people are, the more effort they must make to disguise or downplay their abilities. Despite growing recognition that people with high intelligence coupled with a strong individualistic bent are vital to the future of Japan, generally speaking, brains still take a backseat to a humble approach, team play and mutual responsibility. In most Japanese organizations still today, one of the worst things that can happen to people, insofar as cooperation from others and advancement up the ranks are concerned, is for them to get a reputation for being rikutsu-poi (ree-kuu-t'suu-poy). Rikutsu means "logic" or "reason". Adding the intensifier poi to it means the person being described is overly logical - does not give any, or enough, consideration to emotional or human factors. Even though downplaying the importance and role of logical thought is a deeply ingrained cultural characteristic of the Japanese, it does not mean that they do not apply logical reasoning to their work, planning and research efforts. They most certainly do, but only in conjunction with a variety of other elements. The Japanese side, in fact, generally does more research and is far more systematic (logical) than are Westerners in preparation for negotiations and new relationships. The big difference between the Japanese and Western approach is both in the amount and quality of the preparation as well as in the way they view it and use it. The term "fuzzy logic", created to describe a computer function that can deal with irrational, un-programmable bits of information, is a pretty good way of describing the kind of thinking preferred by Japanese in all things at all times. Foreign businessmen and politicians who base their Japan policies on strict rikutsu, and what they regards as "facts", will not have an easy time of it.
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Boye Lafayette de Mente is one of our regular monthly columnists at the 
| This month's column is excerpted from Japan's Cultural Code Words, by Boye Lafayette De Mente available from NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company |
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