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May 31

Top Tips for Doing Business in Japan

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector 1 Comment »

Japan has evolved over the last half century to become one of the world’s richest and most technologically advanced economies, well known for its exports of cars and electronic goods. In addition, a well educated population with an incredibly strong work ethic means that Japan offers a wealth of investment and market opportunities to international organisations.

Made up of over 3,000 islands, Japan has some of the most crowded urban areas in the world since the majority of people live on only a few of the islands. It is not surprising then that personal space is highly valued in Japan and gestures and facial expressions tend to be modest when doing business in Japan.

Japan Chris Pritchard i Top Tips for Doing Business in Japan

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As an island country, Japan’s population has remained extremely homogenous and you will find a strong sense of group identity when doing business in Japan. The distinction between private and public life is blurred where teamwork and ‘fitting in’ are much more important than individualism in Japan. That being said, the younger generation of Japanese starting to enter the business world are increasingly making efforts to stand out from the crowd in the way they dress, communicate and act.

During the tragic events that occurred in March 2011, the world also witnessed another Japanese value: the importance of maintaining face and dignity at all times. Most foreigners living and working in Japan at the time were struck by the calm nature and self-control displayed by the local population during and after the earthquake and the tsunami that led to a nuclear situation. The importance of face and dignity are values that can be found in almost every aspect of Japanese social and business cultures so you will often find that your Japanese counterparts will seldom display their emotions or feelings in order to keep face.

The following tips will help you improve your success when doing business in Japan.

  • Avoid causing loss of face at all costs. Don’t be confrontational or openly criticise or embarrass Japanese colleagues as they will lose ‘kao’, or face.
  • Be aware that Japanese business culture is hierarchical. Be sure you always greet the most senior people in the room before anyone more junior.
  • Don’t be afraid of silence as it causes less anxiety than in the West and is often used as a negotiating tactic.
  • Be aware of your body language and try to maintain a formal posture during meetings. Avoid slumping or crossing your legs as this could give a negative impression.
  • Make sure you take plenty of business cards with you and have your details printed in Japanese on the reverse when doing business in Japan.
  • Japan is a country with a high usage of technology which most of the population has access to. You can expect your Japanese colleagues to be comfortable with virtual communication, however as they are relationship focused you should always try to find time for face-to-face meetings.
  • Avoid physical contact or expansive gestures and facial expressions when doing business in Japan. Most Japanese are modest and reserved in their behaviour and value the space around them.
  • Address your business partners by their surname. To show even more respect, add ‘san’ after their surname. For example, Akira Kurosawa could be addressed as Mr Akira Kurosawa or Kurosawa San.
  • Offer your Japanese counterparts a small gift when meeting or visiting them. Your gift should be well wrapped but modest and not too personal. Don’t expect them to open it in front of you as this may cause loss of face to one of the parties.
  • Relationships and networks are a key part of Japanese business culture. Many international companies doing business in Japan find more success when they rely on a third party to help introduce them and build their reputation in the market.

Considering and respecting the top tips for doing business in Japan above is the first step towards building effective relationships with your Japanese counterparts. Participating in a cross cultural awareness training course such as Doing Business in Japan will give you a comprehensive understanding of this dynamic and fast-changing culture so that you can anticipate and manage cultural differences more effectively and build better business relationships.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2011

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Apr 12

Benefits of Doing Business in Japan

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources No Comments »

Towards the end of the 19th Century, Japan rapidly embraced western technological influences to become a centre of creativity and development. Following its defeat in WWII, Japan experienced tremendous economic expansion and growth and swiftly became the world’s most successful exporter.

JETRO – Japan External Trade Organisation reports that an increasing number of companies around the world are partnering with Japanese companies to develop products and services, create innovative technologies and create R&D projects. To this day, Japan remains one of the world’s leading industrial powers making doing business in Japan an excellent location for international companies. Some of the key benefits of doing business in Japan are outlined below.

Train station sack i Benefits of Doing Business in Japan

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Gateway to the Asian market
Not only does Japan offer a captive audience of 127 million citizens, it also offers an exciting yet stable business market open to trade and foreign investment. Globally competitive, especially in the fields of environment, healthcare, IT and automotives, Japan’s huge economy already boasts an established base of the world’s top companies. Doing business in Japan also has the added benefit of working in the showroom for the rest of Asia.

Highly educated workforce
The presence of over 600 universities in Japan means that university education is all but taken for granted. A result of this is a workplace where education is prized as an important quality. Prestigious university graduates are often given access to the most sought after jobs due to certain university names still being held in high regard. Other vital and valued qualities include experience, leadership, openness to new ideas and being hard working and personable. When doing business in Japan, foreign employees will often encounter high levels of expertise, knowledge and attention to detail.

Discerning consumers/customers
A highly educated and affluent population results in discerning consumers. The level of household expenditure, which is among the highest in developed nations, illustrates how Japan can act as a brilliant testing ground for new products. Lars Petersson, President and CEO of Ikea Japan states, “Japanese customers are very well educated, so they understand the difference between a product that’s high performance and low-cost, rather than the opposite.”

Strong work ethic
Japan is a predominantly collective society which places a huge emphasis on the group, meaning that each individual often feels a strong sense of belonging and responsibility towards their work place. Leadership is important, and a competent, hard working and personable superior is expected to be willing to sacrifice his personal time in order to listen to his staff and even tend to their personal matters. When doing business in Japan it is important to remember to address and consider the group rather than the individual. Existing relationships are valued so there is certainly worth spending time developing them initially.

Dedicated employees
In the Japanese corporate world, loyalty and cooperation are valued over aggressiveness and competitiveness. Japanese tend to take pride in their jobs and work long hours to demonstrate their dedication in hopes increasing their status in the company. This group of reliable employees, willing to work long shifts over unusual hours, is a huge benefit for international organisations doing business in Japan.

International organisations can profit immensely from the above benefits of doing business in Japan. Harnessing these benefits comes with the need to navigate the geographic, linguistic and cultural diversity of Japanese society. This requires a comprehensive understanding of Japanese business and social culture on all levels. International organisations employing people in Japan or working with Japanese on a regular basis should therefore have a series of Cross Cultural Awareness Training Japan programmes to ensure they develop the skills to successfully deal with the many cultural differences.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Apr 06

Becoming a Cultural Chameleon: Adaptability Skills Essential for Cross Cultural Success

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources No Comments »

Have you ever noticed how, in the many conversations you have with different people throughout a typical day, the topics of your conversations and your style of conversation change depending on who you’re speaking to?

If you were to pick a random topic, such as the weather or a recent film you have seen, and you discussed it casually with a few different people, you will most likely notice that even if your conversation covers the same topic, your style will vary depending on the other person’s position (your boss or work colleague), profession (lawyer, shopkeeper), relationship to you (relative, friend, someone you have just met on a street), age (a child, an older person) or culture (national, religious etc).

We tend to speak in different ways to different people, our work colleagues, family, friends or just strangers we meet on a street or in a supermarket. Our speech adapts and changes depending on our interlocutors. We may adapt our choice of language like the vocabulary or jargon we use, or our accent, dialect or intonation. At times you may find yourself imitating someone else’s accent or use of vocabulary to get closer to them and gain sympathy, especially when working across cultures. This is the central tenet of Communication Accommodation Theory, which was developed by professor of communication Howard Giles of the University of California Santa Barbara.

Definition Language kdow i1 Becoming a Cultural Chameleon: Adaptability Skills Essential for Cross Cultural Success

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Practical examples of this are when, for instance, we speak slowly when communicating across cultures so that our international counterparts can understand us, or how we use grammatically simple language with children (baby talk). In the same way, you can strategically choose to speak with a certain accent or use certain expressions in order to emphasise your membership of a group, or conversely, distance yourself from another.

The principle also covers non-verbal aspects of communication, such as posture and eye contact, which are especially important aspects of cultural awareness. For example, when two people speak one may seek eye contact while the other may wish to avoid it. In that instant, almost unconscious negotiation takes place as one has to adapt to the style of the other.

Most of these verbal and non-verbal adjustments are psychologically motivated and common among all people around the world. What differs is how we accommodate our language and behaviour to communicate with others across cultures more effectively and gain their appreciation, trust or acceptance.

Adapting to another person can come naturally and often imperceptibly in a mono-cultural environment, but if the interaction spans different cultures a certain degree of uncertainty comes into play, as the parties involved will very likely have different expectations of how communication should unfold. Cultural awareness training can help reduce this element of uncertainty and ensure you have the right level of cross cultural skills to communicate effectively across cultures.

Understanding varying levels of eye contact is just one example of this theory in action. Broadly speaking, western individuals associate a lack of eye contact with insecurity and even untrustworthiness at times. When a German manager meets a new member of his team, he will look him straight in the eye, accommodation assures his gaze in turn will be met. All of his German counterparts know this shows both mutual respect and that the new team member is confident and ready to meet the challenges of the new assignment.

Things are different when doing business in Japan, where respect for your superiors should be shown by not meeting their gaze. Accommodation means that a Japanese junior member of staff will not look his boss in the eye when he or she talks to him, and know that by doing this all expectations are met.

What happens when business relations bring the German junior team member into contact with the Japanese manager? Who, if at all, will accommodate their communication style when doing business with the other? What are the consequences of this not happening?

One way to eliminate any uncertainty that arises from this scenario is through cultural awareness training. By providing insight into your own culture and communication style, as well as those of the host country you are doing business in, it is possible to develop a level of cross cultural awareness that will help you to make the necessary cultural adjustments that come so naturally when communicating with someone from your own culture.

Confidence, awareness of what to expect and skills to react appropriately, all developed through cultural awareness training, can eliminate at least part of the uncertainty inherent in international business relations and lead to more economic success.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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