Japanese Management

Tradition and Transition

Arthur M. Whitehill

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• Print ISBN:
  9781032283357
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781000603033
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business generale
• Index: Business

First published in 1991, Japanese Management succeeds in filling a major gap by providing a thorough account of the evolution and day-to-day practices of management within the Japanese firm. The 14 chapters not only build the historical framework and modern cultural, economic, and social setting, but also effectively deal with the process of management. The final two chapters address some future challenges facing Japanese firms as they operate in the global business environment. This comprehensive book is a must read for students of business management.

Part one The imprint of history

Chapter one Shoguns and merchants

DOI: 10.4324/9781003296348-2

Imagine, if you can, an isolated island nation of about 25 million people enjoying an unprecedented 250 years of peace and prosperity. This is a highly sophisticated, vital country with a well-developed government bureaucracy, relatively advanced educational facilities, and many cultural refinements. Such was Japan in the feudal Tokugawa era from 1603 to 1868.

Perhaps even more difficult to visualize is the fact that this thriving, peaceful nation had no industry - no steel mills, no high-tech factories, and only the most primitive weapons of defence. Virtually sealed off from the rest of the world, Japan had developed a vibrant, yet increasingly vulnerable society. Under the leadership of Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the country was a tightly organized and managed hereditary dictatorship.

Guarding the status quo

Many clever devices were used to consolidate and perpetuate political power during the feudal period. For example, the Shogun divided the nation into more than 250 domains ruled by his vassal lords, or daimyo. To make sure all the daimyo remained totally dependent upon the Shogun, each was required to establish his family in Tokyo, known then as Edo, but he himself had to live during alternate years in his domain. In a sense, therefore, the families were hostages, whose well-being depended upon the daimyo’s proper behaviour and loyalty to his lord.

In addition, tight class distinctions were used to keep each person in his place (Yoshino 1968:3). Below the Shogun and his imperial household was the samurai, or warrior class. To them went the most generous benefits in education, status, and political power. A long step below the samurai were the peasant farmers, who enjoyed their considerable status largely because they were the only true producers of wealth from whom substantial taxes could be extracted.

Artists and artisans followed in the status hierarchy. Many of the treasured woodblock prints enjoyed today were created during the feudal period in a style known as ukiyo-e. Lovely courtesans, scenes from various stages on the Tokaido Road linking Tokyo and Osaka, and, of course, Mount Fuji from every conceivable angle, were favourite subjects for this art form. Such artists as Hokusai and Hiroshige provided an almost endless stream of more than 10,000 prints, which probably depicted the society of the times better than any other medium.

In the theatre, Kabuki drama shared popularity with the famous life-size puppets. Kabuki, more lively and understandable than the medieval Noh plays, offered the forerunner of the modern revolving stage to provide quick changes of scenery. And in the world of poetry, the seventeen-syllable haiku, which must be the most compact literature in the world, was much admired.

Finally, at the bottom of the social totem pole, were the lowly merchants, viewed as creating nothing and engaged only in the moving of goods from here to there. But the merchants’ time was soon to come. These experts in commerce developed a cohesive society of their own, a subculture that formed the embryo for Japan’s industrial explosion that was to follow the feudal era. Codes of conduct and supporting financial institutions were established which became increasingly important in the nineteenth century. As the power of the merchant class increased, their social status also gradually improved.

To meet this incursion of their traditional superior position, the Shoguns and samurai decided to follow that famous slogan of pragmatism - if you can’t beat them, join them. And in joining them they managed to control them, creating a close liaison between government and business that persists, in spirit if not in form, even today.

In many ways the Tokugawa period was one of growth - growth in education, in the arts, and in commerce. It was a time for consolidation and, perhaps most important, a time of peace. Though almost completely sealed off from the rest of the world, there were a few ‘approved’ leaks, notably with the Dutch and Chinese through the southern port of Nagasaki. Ultimately, it was through these communication channels that the seeds of doubt were spread concerning the long-term viability of Japan’s isolation policy.

The roots of modern management

In examining the origins of modern Japanese management it is important to keep one basic fact in mind. Although links surely can be established with the past, almost every business policy and practice for which the Japanese are justly famous today is of distinctly post-Second World War vintage. True, tap roots may extend deep into the feudal and even earlier periods. But present-day management is ‘modern’ in every respect, and mirrors the remarkable environment and events which have moved Japan from humility in defeat to intense national pride in the ‘economic miracle’ which is the envy of the world.

Yet the imprint of history is impressive and provides a perspective from which to view the Japanese management system which is unavailable from other sources. Therefore, it may be useful to look briefly at several aspects of the feudal period from which modern management is derived.

National identity

There were many reasons for the Japanese to develop a strong sense of national identity during the Tokugawa years. After a long history of civil wars, and the inevitable rise and fall of competing warlords, Japan welcomed the more than two centuries of peace under the Tokugawa clan. There was a sense of order and stability in society which, in spite of the dictatorial control, was reassuring and tended to promote a comfortable feeling of belonging.

Japan, for most Japanese, was the world - a world of one race, one language, and a firm but beneficent leader. Each person knew and accepted his proper place in this orderly society. A high level of literacy for the times, plus a knowledge of printing, made communication within the country extensive and effective in promoting a national identity.

Any communication outside the country, however, was discouraged in every possible way. For example, European Catholic missionaries were viewed as potential competing thought leaders from abroad. Therefore, Japanese citizens were prohibited from having any contact with them. Even the size of ships was limited so that ocean travel would be impossible. An extreme restriction forbade overseas Japanese, considered to be contaminated by Western culture, to return to their homeland.

With such an inner-directed society, homogenized and standardized as it was, a widespread feeling of national identity emerged quite naturally. As former US Ambassador to Japan Edwin Reischauer points out, ‘Peace and stability also permitted the Japanese to work over and perfect their own rich culture’ (Reischauer 1977: 70).

For all of these reasons, identity with and loyalty to the nation was extremely strong. And this national identity may be seen today as an important element in the well-oiled mechanism of Japanese management. When the good of the nation is at stake, Japanese business leaders will quickly rally to the cause. Statements of business ideology promoted by such management organizations as Keidanren, Keizai Doyukai, and Nikkeiren often have a strong nationalistic flavour. And, in fact, the recent drive to ‘restructure’ Japanese society owes much of its widespread acceptance to the willingness of all sectors of the populace to join in a common cause for the good of the nation.

Confucian doctrines

Although scholars continue to debate the validity of simply extrapolating Confucian doctrines to present-day Japan, there is little doubt that Confucianism underlies the thinking and behaviour of managers in subtle, yet important, ways. Three of the teachings of this most influential of Chinese philosophers are particularly relevant: unquestioned obedience to family; total loyalty to one’s superior; a reverence for education.

Constant obedience and fidelity to family, often referred to as filial piety, was at the core of Confucianism. Responsibility and respect between father and son, husband and wife, and among older and younger siblings, were considered essential. The family itself was at the very heart of society. Strict familistic norms were quite consistent with the vertical society of Japan’s feudal period. And they continue today to influence relations not only in the natural family but in the ‘corporate family’ as well.

The second Confucian doctrine of significance to management is total, unswerving loyalty to one’s superior. This precept was given strong support by the traditional samurai military code known as Bushido. Under this code, the samurai were encouraged - in fact ordered - to demonstrate full and constant loyalty to their lord. Those who ruled, and those who followed, were frozen in their respective roles. Authoritarianism and paternalism were constant companions at that time, and are by no means strangers today. Modern Japanese managers are, as we shall see throughout this book, benevolent yet firm - paternalistic yet demanding - in their relations with employees. Subordinates are expected to show their gratitude for such treatment in their total commitment and dedication to their superior and to the company.

Finally, the tremendous impact of the Confucian reverence for education and self-development cannot be overstated. The extremely high prestige accorded teachers and scholars in China transferred rather easily to the peaceful environment of Tokugawa Japan. Extensive reading, creative writing, and the pursuit of culture and art were highly regarded among a rather leisurely peacetime ‘warrior’ class. Today, Japan’s educational system has been criticized for its centralized, inflexible administration. But the proof of its effectiveness is in the almost totally literate population and in the impressive Japanese abilities in mathematics and science. To assure a quality education for their children is the number one goal of most Japanese parents. The extreme sacrifices that all family members make to achieve this goal truly are awe-inspiring.

Furthermore, the urge for self-development as an end in itself, rather than merely a means to an end, is a quality unmatched in any other nation of the world. The thousands of bookstores throughout Japan, open to the streets and always packed with readers, attest to the innate curiosity of people of all ages. Everybody can read, and it seems that they do read - on trains, at bus stops, in waiting rooms — whenever an opportunity arises.

Similarly, company-sponsored courses are extremely popular and are available for almost every interest from English to flower arranging, from engineering to poetry readings. For most Japanese, there is no need to see some material pay-off in the short-term future. This inner drive for satisfaction through self-development is rooted in Confucian values and affects many aspects of the modern Japanese management system.

Councils and group decisions

The tight organization and lengthy existence of the Tokugawa era continued and reinforced a traditional reliance upon collective organization and group identification. Even before the feudal period, reliance upon rice culture in Japan demanded collective action. In the small farming communities, family groups worked closely together and cooperated in the various stages of rice cultivation from planting to harvest.

The welfare of each individual depended upon the integrity of the family. And the prosperity of each family was possible only through close cooperation with other family units. Groupism, therefore, has been a fact of life existing from the earliest periods of Japanese history. This is in sharp contrast to the legacy of American frontier psychology, which puts so much stress upon rugged individualism.

Furthermore, the central Tokugawa administration was a huge bureaucracy in which authority was shared through many offices and at many levels. The Shogun delegated much of his authority to councils of daimyo who, in turn, delegated to councils of lesser officials. In the various domains throughout the country, the same general pattern of rule through delegation to numerous levels of bureaucratic offices was followed.

Groupism, as opposed to individualism, is one of the most significant differences between the value systems of Japan and the United States. The roots of Japanese collectivism, as described previously, reach deep into tradition and history. Again, we see a basic characteristic of Tokugawa Japan which is mirrored in the way organizations are structured and managed today.

Regional competition

Perhaps one of the great strengths of Japan has been the spur of competition among different industrial centres - notably between Tokyo in the Kanto region and Osaka in the Kansai area. This intense rivalry goes back to the early 1600s, when the Tokugawa samurai crossed swords with those loyal to Toyotomi in the famous Battle of Sekigahara. The victorious Tokugawa lost no time in establishing his capital in Edo (Tokyo) and the country’s political centre shifted from Kansai to Kanto. This was a change of major importance, since the capital for ten centuries had been Kyoto, just a short distance from Osaka.

In pre-Tokugawa days, Osaka was the commercial centre of Japan. With an excellent harbour, the city was the hub of merchant activity and the centre of Japan’s growing textile industry. Also, it was here that the big rice warehouses of the feudal lords were located. But as political power shifted to the new capital in Tokyo, so, gradually, did the focus of business activity move to the east. By the end of the Tokugawa period, Osaka’s monopolis...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title
• Copyright
• Original Title
• Original Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• Preface
• Part one The imprint of history
• Part two The modern setting
• Part three The process of management
• Part four Scenarios for the future
• Index