BizSugar.com › User › JapanIntercult › Upcoming

Western communication style relies heavily on words. In contrast, Japanese communication relies less on verbal manipulation, and more heavily on non-verbals. Japanese are able to rely more on non-verbals for their communication, due to what scholars refer to as a high degree of shared context… Read More

Recently there are more examples of Japanese firms that are creating global databases of all their employees, not just the ones hired in Japan, for purposes of targeting development activities and doing succession planning.

Read More

Japanese can be turned off by slick presentations…handwritten things more clearly show the effort of the person who was making it, and thus have more power to pull on the heartstrings. Read More

While compensation can certainly be an important motivator for non-Japanese employees, other factors like recognition, involvement, challenge, and opportunities for growth, can also play key roles in job satisfaction.

Read More

It is in the Japanese employee's interest to make as few waves as possible, because he has few alternatives other than to stay with his firm...Job assignments are determined unilaterally by the personnel department, with little or no input from the employees themselves. Read More

Japanese customers tend to not ask for what they want, they believe that they shouldn't have to explain...Suppliers should anticipate their needs and give them what they want before they even think of it. Read More

I have seen Japanese expatriates coming to Mexico, assuming that Mexicans will be similar in values and behaviors to Americans…anyone familiar with Mexico knows that that is not an accurate assumption, but it’s an understandable one in the absence of appropriate information having been provided.
Read More

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 to aspire to. Thus, trying to use one set of goals with two very different ways of interpreting them is not a recipe for suc Read More

American employees of Japanese firms tend to measure their career progress against their peers in American firms and thus expect more rapid advancement. An adjustment Japanese firms will need to consider if they are to retain non-Japanese staff. Read More

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 to have an out-of-town assignment?”

Read More