Tolerance of executive failure in American and Japanese organisations

The attainment of organisational goals requires that organisations manage the kinds and frequency of executives' failures. Although a number of economic, sociological, and organisational theories offer guidance in explaining tolerance of executive failure and its impact on performance, little empirical work has been done exploring the dynamics of the phenomenon. This lack of research becomes especially bothersome because the careful management of failure may be a major difference between Japanese and American management styles. The present study was undertaken to begin the systematic examination of executive failure in Japan and the United States. In a study of American and Japanese executives, only economic theory and convergence theory were supported. Japanese and American executives enjoy equal tolerance of their failures, but tolerance varies in terms of economic conditions and the degree of the failure. Japanese organisations appear to manage low level failures well and serious failures poorly. Americans are better at managing serious executive failures, but are poor at handling low level failures.     

Gender‐Compensation Differences Among High‐Level Executives in the United States

Bertrand and Hallock (2001: 3) present compelling evidence that female executives in the United States earned 45 percent less total compensation than their male counterparts for 1992–1997. We complement their results by analyzing data over a longer time period and, more importantly, contend that most of the unexplained gender difference in total pay among executives was due to gender differences in the portion of variable pay, in particular a different cash payout from stock option exercises.     

Supplier relations and management: A survey of Japanese,Japanese-transplant,and U.S. auto plants

This article presents the results of a questionnaire survey sent to a sample of automobile manufacturers in the United States and Japan (including Japanese-managed plants in the United States) during the spring of 1990. The data support observations that Japanese and U.S. practices tend to differ in key areas and Japanese suppliers perform better in dimensions such as quality (defects) and prices (meeting targets, reducing prices over time); and that Japanese-managed auto plants established in the United States have, in general, adopted Japanese practices and receive extremely high levels of quality from Japanese as well as U.S. suppliers. These findings provide evidence that Japanese practices and performance levels are transferable outside Japan and suggest that considerable improvements are possible for U.S. suppliers supplying U.S. auto plants. In addition, the survey indicates that U.S. firms have adopted at least some practices traditionally associated with Japanese firms, apparently reflecting some convergence toward Japanese practices and higher performance levels in supplier management.     

Organizational and environmental effects on innovation: A comparison of two countries

Significant changes in science and technology are the result of a complex interaction of environmental and organizational factors which are further contingent upon situational factors that may be culture specific. Numerous authors maintain that there are significant differences between Japanese and American organizations. These differences, it is proposed affect the innovativeness of organizations in both countries. The United States can be considered the leading innovator among industrialized nations as measured by its net exports of knowledge-intensive goods. However, the R & D trade balance, reflecting US export strength in technology-based manufactured goods, although increasing from 1960, has recently declined, while Japan has continued to increase its share of high-technology products. In this article factors are identified that affect the process of innovation within organizations and US and Japanese organizations are analyzed to clarify the contributing and inhibiting factors. Suggestions for improving the innovative climate within each country are offered.The author wishes to thank Professors Azumi, Nakamura, and Patrick, and the other members of theUniversity Seminar on Modern Japan, Columbia University for their suggestions on an earlier version of this paper in 1984.     

The Role of the Senior HR Executive in Japan and the United States: Employment Relations, Corporate Governance, and Values

Based on an original survey of senior human resources (HR) executives, this paper provides empirical data for a comparison of HR management structures and practices in Japan and the United States. In both countries, the headquarters HR function has shrunk and employment decisions have become more decentralized in recent years. However, because the pace of change has been more rapid in the United States, the gap with Japan has widened. Significant differences persist in other areas, such as the HR executive's role in strategic decisions, perceived power of the HR function, executive values, and the consequences of these values for organizational outcomes and corporate governance.     

Inventive efficiency: How the U.S. compares with Japan

This study argues that inventive (R&D) efficiency may be an important factor in the competition for global market shares and goods and services. The authors compare R&D efficiency for 14 industrial groups in the United States and Japan using multiple indices of inventive efficiency. Findings show interesting differences in inventive efficiency across industrial groups and between the United States and Japan. United States food, textile, chemical, rubber, metals, fabricated metals, and other miscellaneous manufacturing industries appear to be relatively more efficient in inventive efficiency than their Japanese counterparts. In contrast, Japanese paper, petroleum, machinery, and scientific equipment industries display greater inventive efficiency than their United States counterparts. The electrical equipment, transportation, and stone industries in the two countries appear to be equally efficient. The implications of these differences are discussed.     

Competitive forces and strategic choice decisions: an experimental investigation in the United States and Japan

Managers operate in a complex, uncertain environment and tend to form simplified models in order to cope with this environment and make competitive strategic decisions (i.e., cost‐leadership, differentiation, or focus). In this study, we use an experimental design to examine the strategic choice decision‐making process in firms located in the United States and Japan. We develop several main‐effect propositions regarding managerial selection of competitive strategies, depending on the competitive forces (buyer power, threat of substitutes, threat of new firm entry, and high intensity of rivalry) they are facing. We propose a main effect due to country of origin: Japanese managers prefer a cost‐leadership strategy more than American managers do. We also propose several interaction effects regarding cross‐national differences in strategy selection between Japanese and U.S. managers. To test our propositions, we collected experimental data from 316 U.S. executives and 459 Japanese executives. We assessed relative impacts of the competitive forces on strategic decision‐making using a multilevel regression analysis. The research findings indicated that high buyer power and high substitution threat were associated with a preference for cost‐leadership strategies, and Japanese managers were significantly more likely to prefer a cost‐leadership strategy than U.S. managers. We also found that, under conditions of high buyer power, U.S. managers were less likely than Japanese managers to enter a market with a differentiation or focus strategy. We found little support for other interaction hypotheses, suggesting points of similarity between U.S. and Japanese managers. We conclude with a discussion of theoretical and managerial implications of our results. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Transaction costs and capability factors in dual or indirect distribution channel selection: An empirical analysis of Japanese manufacturers

This study focuses on manufacturers' selection of dual or indirect channels. Although several previous studies based on transaction cost theory investigate transaction cost factors in choosing dual or indirect channels mainly in the United States, this study examines transaction costs and capability factors for such a choice in Japan. The relationships are tested with survey data from Japanese industrial goods manufacturers (n = 429). Compared to previous studies, this study presents three important findings. First, unlike previous studies, two transaction cost factors—asset specificity and behavioral uncertainty—do not exhibit the relationships predicted by transaction cost theory. Interestingly, asset specificity is negatively related to the use of dual channels. Second, two capability factors not assessed in prior studies—market orientation capabilities and differences in channel members' capabilities—exhibit significant positive relationships with the selection of dual channels. Third, capability factors are found to be more important than transaction cost factors in explaining dual or indirect channels in Japan. This study also discusses the influence of the Japanese channel context on the results.     

Research on the interface factor in the development and utilization of new technology

AbstractThe interface factor in the development and utilization of new technology is analyzed with questionnaire surveys. The interface factor is found to determine R&D performance in a study of large manufacturing companies in the United States and in a study of computer utilization performance in commercial banks in the United States. A comparison of the interface factor in the functioning of R & D in the United States and Japan suggests that interface problems may be less serious in Japan. Company experience is reported which indicates that the interface function can be controlled by management policies, procedures and practices. The need for greater attention to the interface factor by executives and by researchers on R & D management is a conclusion which follows from the findings presented in this paper.     

Research on the interface factor in the development and utilization of new technology

The interface factor in the development and utilization of new technology is analyzed with questionnaire surveys. The interface factor is found to determine R&D performance in a study of large manufacturing companies in the United States and in a study of computer utilization performance in commercial banks in the United States. A comparison of the interface factor in the functioning of R & D in the United States and Japan suggests that interface problems may be less serious in Japan. Company experience is reported which indicates that the interface function can be controlled by management policies, procedures and practices. The need for greater attention to the interface factor by executives and by researchers on R & D management is a conclusion which follows from the findings presented in this paper.     

Localisation of Japanese subsidiaries in Southeast Asia

The success story of Japanese firms, both in their home country and their overseas subsidiaries, has been the focus of comparative management research in the 1970s and early 1980s. Several scholars attributed the impressive productivity gains in Japanese industries to the basic principles of Japanese management. Further, they advocated the adoption of these principles by American and European businesses to solve employee morale and productivity problems. However, in recent years, the validity of the “happy worker” hypothesis in explaining the effectiveness of Japanese management has been seriously questioned. In fact, the results of several empirical studies indicate that Japanese firms are facing manpower management problems both at home and in their overseas subsidiaries. The main purpose of this article is to identify and discuss the Japanese management problems of overseas subsidiaries, based on several empirical studies of Japanese overseas subsidiaries undertaken by the authors of this article and other scholars during the last 17 years (1968 to 1985). These studies are:

Localisation Problems of Japanese Subsidiaries Overseas: A Comparative Study in Southeast-Asian Countries.

A comparative study of American, Japanese and local firms in Taiwan.

A comparative study of American, European and Japanese multinationals' subsidiaries in Brazil, Peru, India, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.

A comparative study of American, German, and Japanese multinations in the United States, Western European countries, Australia, and Japan.

A comparative study of upper-level Japanese and American managers of subsidiaries of Japanese firms in the United States.

A comparative study of subsidiaries of American and Japanese multinationals in Singapore.

An intensive case study of a Japanese subsidiary in Australia.

     

A comparison of budgetary control systems in American and Japanese manufacturing firms

This article examines and compares some variables considered important in budgetary preparation and performance evaluation by American and Japanese executives of manufacturing firms. The literature asserts that American executives employ management styles and performance evaluation criteria that tend to overemphasise short-term goals, while Japanese executives prefer management philosophy and performance evaluation criteria that emphasise long-term goals. The survey research method is employed to gather evidence to test hypotheses pertaining to such an assertion. The research results provide empirical evidence that supports most of the assertions in the literature.The author expresses his sincere gratitude to Drs James Don Edwards of the J M Tull School of Accounting — University of Georgia, Ato Ghartey of Southeastern Massachusetts University, R S O Wallace of Exter University and annonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions.     

Management practices of Taiwanese firms: As compared to those of American and Japanese subsidiaries in Taiwan

The management practices of local Taiwanese firms were evaluated by Negandhi in 1973 as the least developed as compared to those of the American and Japanese subsidiaries. Since then, the local Taiwanese firms have undergone a phenomenal change. In comparison to the American and Japanese subsidiaries, the current management practices — organisational structure, decision making and human resource management of the local Taiwanese firms are a mixture of those of the American and Japanese subsidiaries. The local Taiwanese firms have adapted very well to the impact of the West (the United States) and the East (Japan) and contributed greatly to the economic prosperity of Taiwan.The author wishes to thank the Council for Economic Planning and Development, Republic of China (Taiwan) for financial support.     

Equal Employment Opportunity and the "Managerial Woman" in Japan

Over the past three decades, women have represented an increasing proportion of newly employed four-year college graduates, in Japan. We analyze the determinants of female representation among these new recruits in terms of the supply of female four-year college graduates, the desire of Japanese women to participate in the paid labor force, shortages of male four-year college graduates, and the impact of the Equal Employment Opportunity Law (EEOL) that went into effect in April 1986. Multivariate regression analysis reveals that the supply of female four-year college graduates and the EEOL account for the rising proportion of women among university-educated recruits into the paid labor force. We go on to explore the enhanced, but still limited, career opportunities that have opened up to Japanese women under the EEOL, and we relate their progress to the recent debate over the use of the "mommy track" in managerial hierarchies in the United States.     

Book Reviews

In light of the changes occurring in the European Common Market in 1992, it is particularly timely to review two books that contrast new product development practices in the United States with those in Europe and other countries. Both books are based on academics' research but are intended to provide practical insights for practitioners. The first review is of a book that summarizes an extensive study of the world auto industry. This book, which does offer many practical lessons, compares industry practices in the United States, Europe and Japan. The second review, by Chris Panton, examines a book that contrasts product development practices in American and British firms. Our reviewer finds that this book primarily offers an effective summary of conventional wisdom but fewer practical insights.     

Culture and the management of time: A comparison of Japanese and American top management practice

Data was collected from CEO's and upper-level managers in Japan and the United States by survey and by structured observation in order to investigate patterns of time utilization as functions of culture. The results showed similar patterns between the Japanese and the Americans with regard to the percentage of time spent working alone as opposed to working with others. Different patterns were found for the two cultures with regard to the length of activities.     

Increasing Convergence Between U.S. and International Securitized Property Markets: Evidence Based on Cointegration Tests

This article examines the degree of interdependence among the securitized property markets of six major countries and the United States. Long-run results indicate that, over a period beginning January 1990 and ending August 2007, the property markets of Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States are tied together, implying that from the perspective of the U.S. investor the markets of the Netherlands and France provide the greater diversification benefits. Further, the United States and Japan are found to be the sources of the common trends, suggesting that the two larger property markets lead the five (cointegrated) markets toward the long-run equilibrium relationships.     

A cross-cultural study on the leadership behaviour of Chinese and Japanese executives

In recent years the People's Republic of China has focused on economic development. The State called on scientists to contribute to the implementation of economic reform and leadership reconstruction. In the Institute of Psychology, Academia Sinica, a research group conducted a cross-cultural study on the leadership behavior of Chinese and Japanese executives. The performance maintenance (PM) theory of leadership which was widely adopted in Japan, has been introduced into China. The findings of the Chinese study conducted in 53 factories among 16260 respondents are compared with the results from the Japanese study by J. Misumi of Osaka University.The author is Professor of Psychology in the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Science and Secretary-General of the Chinese Psychological Society     

THE CHOICE BETWEEN MERGERS/ACQUISITIONS AND JOINT VENTURES: THE CASE OF JAPANESE INVESTORS IN THE UNITED STATES

This paper investigates the determinants of the choice between two alternative methods of pooling similar and complementary assets: the merger/acquisition and the greenfield equity joint venture. Two theories of the determinants of that choice are tested on a sample of Japanese investments in the United States. The results show that equity joint ventures are preferred over acquisitions when the desired assets are linked to nondesired assets because the U.S. firm owning them is large and not divisionalized, when the Japanese investor has little previous experience of the American market and hence seeks to avoid postmerger integration problems, when the Japanese investor and the U.S. partner manufacture the same product, and when the industry entered is growing neither very rapidly nor very slowly. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Insights from Senior Executives about Innovation in International Markets

Innovation and the internationalization of business are two of the most important factors determining business success today. However, very few empirical studies have examined these factors together. This study uses a discovery-oriented approach to examine innovation in the international marketplace. The study's findings are based on interviews with 64 senior executives including many current and former CEOs and presidents of multinational companies. The interviews were conducted in five countries over a period of several months. These findings provide insights into the thoughts of senior executives on innovation in international markets. Several novel insights that have implications for management practice and future academic research were discovered. Among these findings, executives stressed the importance of managing and disseminating knowledge throughout their companies during all stages of new product development. They highlighted several limitations in achieving this objective as well. Another finding is that firms adhere to several mechanisms that limit competition. In Japan, a well-recognized business hierarchy helps to form the market share goals of firms introducing new products. Companies in some categories seem to have an understanding that they will not introduce new products unless they are suitably differentiated from existing products. Other companies have bought out competitors to reduce competition. A third finding is that companies make concerted efforts to use standardized brand names and positioning. They find these efforts most suited to image-based products and children's products. Finally, the country-based management structures of most companies make it very difficult to cross-subsidize new products across countries.