Japanese And Western Management Approaches: Is Convergence Occurring?

Abstract

Japans rapid economic growth in the 1970s and 1980s, and the success of a number of Japanese factories overseas, led to great interest in the Japanese managerial system and some specific techniques used by Japanese companies. A plethora of books and articles were written about the value of (or threat from) Japanese business-government cooperation, the Japanese employment system and management-labor cooperation, the avoidance of excessive competition, the wide use of long-term relationships and planning, and the emphasis on growth rather than short-term profits. There was also much written about specific Japanese techniques including the use of quality circles, continuous improvement, total quality management, flexible production, and just-in-time and lean production. Many European, Canadian, and U.S. companies adopted some of the most widely publicized Japanese techniques, often in substantially modified form. Important aspects of production and logistics were revolutionized. Some companies also used modified Japanese approaches in attempting to improve management-labor relations.In Japan, the economic problems from the 1990s to the present, and the success of some foreign firms, led to increased interest in Western management approaches. There was growing concern that the traditional Japanese ways of doing business were inadequate to cope with the changing international and domestic environments. During the past decade, there has been wide discussion in the business press of the need for adopting selected Western methods. A number of Japanese companies have announced that they are changing their traditional employment practices, and mergers and acquisitions have become increasingly common. It thus might appear that Japanese and Western managerial philosophy and approaches are converging.While Japan and the West have each benefited substantially from the adoption of ideas and techniques from the other, basic differences remain in the values, beliefs, and objectives of business, government, and society. In this paper, these differences are discussed, and the degree of convergence is seen to be limited more to techniques than to the basic assumptions, objectives, and strategies that drive business.