In Japan You Gotta Have Wa!

There are well over five hundred key words in the Japanese language that clearly define and explain the mindset and behavior of the Japanese in all of their business and political relationships—elements that foreigners must be aware of and know how to react to in order to deal and compete effectively with the Japanese. As is often the case in Japan’s yin-yang culture, many of these elements have both positive and negative sides—and while the Japanese are acutely aware of these contradictory factors they often must accept and deal with them because they have no choice. One of the most conspicuous of these negative elements is the still virtually absolute requirement for maintaining wa (wah), Japanese style harmony, among members of work units as well as with employees in other sections and departments of companies and organizations. Japanese wa is based on the concept that individuals should not say or do anything that would embarrass or hurt the feelings of others, including such things as praising and/or rewarding fellow co-workers for their personal accomplishments. This reason for this element is that bringing attention to the performance of one individual in a group contravenes the group-comes-first custom that has long been institutionalized and ritualized in Japanese culture.   This aspect of Japanese culture is especially rampant in education, where outstanding individuals who would like to eliminate obviously deleterious practices and replace them with better methods are typically outvoted by fellow teachers and administrators. Within the last year and a half when a number of corporate engineers and scientists insisted on being recognized and compensated for their outstanding technological breakthroughs and scientific discoveries their actions became national news and caused heated debates nationwide.   However, last fall a professional association took it upon itself to breach this cultural barrier by recognizing the accomplishments of one of its members, without any apparent negative feedback—a noteworthy change in Japanese behavior. In any event, the plus side of the traditional group-orientation of Japanese culture obviously outweighs the bad when taken as a whole—despite the ongoing frustration caused by individuals having to suppress their own feelings as well as forego obviously worthwhile measures on behalf of wa . One of the most important of the plus elements in Japanese culture is subsumed in the two words kiryaku j ūō (kee-r’yah-kuu juu-ohh), which means something like “being resourceful across the board”—that is, capable of reacting efficiently and effectively to changing circumstances of whatever kind. The underlying implication of this concept is that in order to be fully resourceful you must be aware of everything that is going on in your in your area of interest and in your   market—a factor that accounts for the obsessive and insatiable appetite the Japanese have for both domestic and international information. This means, of course, that the Japanese take the time and spend the resources to study and dissect things to an extent that is typically well beyond what is common among Americans and other nationalities—a factor that often gives them an advantage in devising their manufacturing and marketing strategies. It has been said that the worldwide intelligence networks of Japan’s famous trading companies [Mitsui, Mitsubishi, etc.] are more extensive and more successful in garnering valuable information than the intelligence arms of most major governments. This is the reason why many foreign businesspeople are caught up short when first approaching the Japanese about developing a relationship. Their Japanese counterparts often know more about the enterprises and industries of the foreigners who approach them than the foreigners themselves. This obviously can be both embarrassing and disadvantageous—and the obvious way to avoid these positions is to do your homework before you make your approach. Copyright © 2009 by Boyé Lafayette De Mente ____________________ Boyé Lafayette De Mente is a graduate of Jōchi University in Tokyo and Thunderbird School of Global Management in Glendale, Arizona. He is the author of more than 50 books on the business practices, cultures and languages of China, Japan, Korea and Mexico. For a list and synopses of his books go to: www.boyedemente.com .

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