Hierarchy in Japanese Companies
Hierarchy in a Japanese company One aspect of Japanese corporate culture that often is difficult for non-Japanese to understand is the importance of hierarchy. The status relationships among various different members of the organization is a key determining factor in how they interact with each other, and how they expect others to interact with them. […]
About Being a Foreigner Working in Japan
Being a Gaijin or Gaikokujin in Japan By D. McCaughan A foreigner living in Japan, like any expatriate experience, soon learns that working here has many behaviors that might seem strange “at home.” Not long ago I was in a meeting when . . . Differences Between Japan and Foreign Countries Of course there are […]
Changing Manners in Japan
Can Ads' Subtle Hints Elicit More Considerate Behavior in Japan? By Ryoji Shimada Depending on which dictionary you peruse, a variety of definitions can be found for the word “manner.” Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English for example defines the word first as “the way in which something is done or happens.” The second definition is […]
Impressions about Japan and Japanese People
Source: Dentsu Inc. survey of 9,212 valid respondents, ages 20-59, in the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, India, U.K., France, Germany, Russia, USA, Canada and Australia. In July of this year, the Dentsu ad agency released the results of its survey on “Japan Branding,” conducted in 16 foreign countries […]
Making Made-in-Japan Porcelain: Noritake
As 66% of the land in Japan is covered by forest (mori in Japanese), Japan may rightly be called the foremost “forest country” among the world’s developed nations. Indeed, such forests even exist within Japan’s major cities. “Noritake no Mori (Noritake Garden)” is approximately 15 minutes by foot from JR Nagoya station. Covering an extensive […]
Interview with Ambassador: Muhammad Lutfi, ex-Indonesian Ambassador to Japan (now, Indonesian Ambassador to the United States as of September 14, 2020)
“We are at a critical juncture. We can cooperate together.” By Ryoji Shimada, staff writer “I want to be a single-handicap golf player. I want to ski down a ‘black’ (advanced) slope. And most importantly, I want to finish the Tokyo Marathon next year in under four hours,” said a smiling Ambassador Muhammad Lutfi on […]
How to Overcome Frustration over Traffic Congestion in Japan
More people are driving to work or traveling this year to avoid contracting the coronavirus. However, traffic jams are unavoidable. What do you do when you are stuck in a traffic jam? A “Survey of families during traffic congestion” conducted by car audio maker Fujitsu Ten found that when their car is stuck in traffic […]
Reasons for Visiting Fukushima Prefecture: Fukushima is SAFE!
Despite Fukushima Prefecture’s abundant nature, mineral hot springs, tasty foods and other “sightseeing resources,” the number of visitors has declined drastically due to rumors that circulated following the March 11, 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear plant accident. In defiance of this trend, travel agency Club Tourism International has energetically promoted travel to northeast Japan. The […]
Japan’s National Sports Festival: Kokutai --- the World’s Largest?
This year of 2021 marks 109 years since the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, the first games in which a team from Japan participated. With the ending of the Tokyo Olympics 2020, Japan’s own sports season begins. Autumn is the season most closely associated with sports in Japan, to the extent that it is referred to as […]
Japanese Kisetsukan: A Sense of Season Among Japanese People
Japanese Kisetsukan: A Sense of Season By K. Merks As an American living in Japan, one of the first things I noticed about Japanese culture is the attention paid to seasons and seasonal change. I come from central Texas, where the joke is the only seasons are Hot and Less Hot ― hardly inspirational. But […]