Team 1 Japan

Presented By: Supriya Dawra, Mark Fehrn, Lindsey Lukaszka, Erin McCormick, Ashley Miller, Rebecca Paluch and Leila Zaritzky

Basic Facts • Capital: Tokyo• Population: 127,078,679 (2009 est.)• Currency: Yen• Government: Parliamentary with constitutional

monarchy• Prime Minister: Yoshihiko Noda (elected 2011)• Industries: motor vehicles, consumer electronics,

machine tools, steel, nonferrous metals

Customs in the Home

• Table Manners

• Chopsticks

• Slippers

• Bathing

Social and Respect Customs

• Bowing

• Interdependence

• Non-verbal communication

• No tipping

Business Practices in Japan

• In Japan you do not question the boss.• Japanese accept and appreciate inequality• Usual work is 8hrs, but when your superior is still

working you better leave after them.• Promotions are based on seniority.

Meetings and Negotiations

• Team as opposed to an individual

• Lower ranking individuals usually do the negotiating

• Decisions are rarely made in meeting• Group consensus is important

Japanese Attitude to Women• Based on three philosophies:

• Confucianism- “A woman is to obey her father as daughter, her husband as wife, and her son as aged mother.”

• Buddhism- “No salvation for women.”

• Samurai feudalism: “A women should look upon her husband as if he were heaven itself.”

Japanese Women at Home• Roles for mothers and fathers are

segregated.

• Women are responsible for their family budgets and make independent decisions about the education, careers, and life-styles of their families.

• Women also take the social blame for problems of family members.

• Husbands and wives have very little communication and conversation, as little as ten to fifteen minutes per day.

Japanese Working Women• Women are the last hired and

first fired

• Employment advertisements often specify age and sex.

• Women often work as uniformed OLs ("office ladies"). OL jobs are generally, low-paying clerical and service positions with duties such as opening doors, serving tea and coffee.

Discrimination against Women Workers in Japan

• Women workers in Japan typically make 30 to 40 percent less money and receive fewer benefits like vacation time and health insurance than their male counterparts for positions requiring equal training and experience.

• Women lose their jobs when the word is out they are pregnant.

• “Thick glass ceiling."

• Families with non-working wives receive a tax deduction of $3,000

Ko Sasaki for The New York Times.

• Yukako Kurose said she was forced into a dead-end clerical job after she had a baby

Difficulties Women Face in Corporate Japan

• Promotions sometimes are based on exams that men but not women prepare with special company-sponsored classes.

• Hard for Japanese women to advance when employers expect them to go on heavy drinking binges.

• Many business meetings extend past 6:00pm, when women are expected to be home.

Can Women Be a Catalyst for Japan's Renewal?

• The country can no longer afford massive gender inequality if it wants to recover from the devastating earthquake

• The impact of this differential treatment is a significant loss of economic growth, according to a 2010 economic study by Goldman Sachs If the gender employment gap could be closed then more than 8 million additional people would participate in the economy which, the study argues, would increase Japan's GDP by 15 percent.

Management Styles

• “Bottom up” approach with respect to flow of info

• More supervisory in nature; less “hands on”• Mainly responsible for creating a dynamic

work environment where team can thrive.• Expects team to work well together and

communicate often thus creating a highly successful and efficient work environment.

• Source: www.worldbusinessculture.com

Japanese Labor Laws

• Labor standards that are guaranteed in Japan’s Constitution include:

- Right and obligation to work- Ban on child labor- Right of workers to organize, bargain, and

act collectively.• Source: www.ilo.org

Major Labor Laws Defined

• Labor Standards Law (LSL) : mainly regulates working conditions and safety.

• Trade Union Law (TUL) : Ensures worker’s have the right to collectively bargain and organize.

• Labor Relations Adjustment Law (LRAL) : Covers labor disputes, and any modification to labor laws.

• Source: www.ilo.org

Work – Life Balance Issues• 2008 inaugural year for work-life initiatives as declared

by the Minister of Health, Labor, and Welfare (MHLW)

• Government target objective for workers is 1,800 hours per year; however recent reports show employees working on average 2,200 hours per year.

• Despite working regular and some overtime hours, not all time worked was equitably compensated.

• Source: www.bc.edu

Expatriation Selection• Common Misconceptions– Previous success– Local language ability– Previous international experience– Women will not be interested

• Recommended Considerations– The Big Five: openness, conscientiousness,

extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism– Arthur and Bennett: job knowledge, motivation,

relational skills, flexibility, extra cultural openness and family situation

– Cultural empathy, emotional stability and open-mindedness

Training for Expatriates and Families

• Time to learn language and culture• Transportation• English services• Should not stop upon deployment http://www.japantimes.co.jp/

Professional Interactions

• Business cards• Emotional stability• Body language• Long hours • Outsiders vs. insiders• Career path

Support of the Employee and Family

• Language classes on site • Social Network • Get to know the city• Job opportunities for the Spouse• Going Back home

http://www.internations.org/japan-expats/americans

Compensation

• Home country living standards• Allowances– Relocation– Food– Education

• Spousal Assistance

Expatriate Failure

• Definition

• Family adjustment– Differences in living arrangements

• Problem with responsibilities

Repatriation

Job-related Factors

• Career AnxietyPost-assignment employmentOut of Sight, Out of MindChanges at home

• Work AdjustmentEmployment RelationshipRe-Entry PositionDevaluing the overseas experience

Job-related Factors

• Coping with new role demandsRole: set of behaviors that are assigned to a

particular position

• Loss of Status and PayKingpin effect

MNE Objectives

• Staff AvailabilityBoundaryless careers

• Return on InvestmentDifficulties of measuring ROI

• Knowledge TransferOne wayUnder utilized once at home

Social Factors

• Reverse Culture Shock

• Social Networking

• Family Adjustment

• Repatriation Plans

Reverse Culture Shock

• Reverse culture shock is the unexpected difficulty readjusting to one’s home country

• Individual Changes Values, beliefs, behavior Standard of living

• Environmental Changes Technology, economic conditions, social norms

Social Networks

• Unrealized expectations

• Difficulty re-establishing social networks Example: Japanese expatriates labeled “kokusaijin”

• Feelings of isolation

Family Issues

• Dual-career spouseLong furlough Difficulty re-entering workforce

• Children Education “Fitting in” with peers

Repatriation Programs• Assign a mentor

Eliminates “out of sight, out of mind” feeling Sets realistic expectations

• Provide counseling for entire family Career Cultural Education

• Grant an adjustment period Vacation Reduced workload

Current Affairs

• 6 Month Anniversary of Earthquake and Tsunami

• Economical Position

• Impact on Expatriate activity– Gaijin -> flyjin

Reference List• Acuff, F. L. (1993). How to negotiate anything with anyone anywhere around the world. New

York: American Management Association. • Andors, A. (2010, March). Happy returns. HRMagazine, pp. 61-63.• Axtell, R. E., & Fornwald, M. (1998). Gestures: The do's and taboos of body language around

the world. New York: Wiley. • Brookfield Global Relocation Services. (2011). Global Relocation Trends 2011 Survey Report.

USA• Common Customs of Japan. (n.d.). Retrieved September 8, 2011, from Teaching in Asia:

www.jobmonkey.com• Dowling, P.J., Festing, M., Engle, Sr. A.D. (2009) International Human Resources

Management. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning• Hill, Charles W. L. "Chapter 16: Global Human Resources Management." Global Business

Today. 5e ed. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2008. 508-30. Print.• Hurn, B. J. (1999). Repatriation - the toughest assignment of all. Industrial and Commercial

Training, 224-228.• Japan - Language, Culture, Customs, and Etiquette. (n.d.). Retrieved September 8, 2011, from

Kwintessentail: http://www.kwintessential.co.uk• Mochizuki, T. (2011, September 9). Japan Economy Worse Than Reported. The Wall Street

Journal. Retrieved from: http://search.proquest.com.flagship.luc.edu/docview/888071168?accountid=12163

• Mol, S., Born, M., Willemsen, M., & Van, D. M. H. (January 01, 2005). Predicting Expatriate Job Performance for Selection Purposes. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 36, 5, 590-620.

• Morrison, T., & Conaway, W. A. (2006). Kiss, bow, or shake hands: The bestselling guide to doing business in more than 60 countries. Avon, Mass: Adams Media.

Reference List • Noe, Raymond A. "Chapter 10: Special Issues in Training and Employee Development."

Employee Training and Development. 4th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2008. 357-95. Print.

• Perraud, P. (n.d.). Repatriating with family. Retrieved September 09, 2011, from FAWCO Alumnae USA: http://www.fausa.org

• Peltokorpi, V. (September 01, 2008). Cross-cultural adjustment of expatriates in Japan. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 19, 9, 1588-1606.

• Sandstrom, G., Pearson, D. (2011, March 16). Expat Workers Continue Japan Exodus. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703899704576204461491208284.html

• Sanchata, M. (201, March 23). Expatriates Tiptoe Back to the Office. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704461304576216301249128570.html

• Wright, T. (2008, May 27). 10 customs you must know before a trip to Japan. Retrieved September 8, 2011, from Matador Abroad: www.matadornetwork.com

• www.japan-guide.com• www.worldbusinessculture.com• www.ilo.org• www.bc.edu • http://www.howto.co.uk/abroad/japanese-people/the_cultural_values_of_japan/• http://factsanddetails.com/japan.php?itemid=624&catid=18