Japanese Company Personnel Policies Going Global

[Mulboyne]

Asahi: Japanese firms adopt a global appearance
With overseas markets increasingly seen as the key to their survival, Japanese companies are adopting a more "international" look at home involving changes that would have been unheard of years ago. Long-held practices in hiring have been scrapped, as have limits on positions available to non-Japanese at the companies' head offices in Tokyo and other Japanese cities..."Judging that a more global use of human personnel is necessary, we decided not to use Japanese-language abilities as a requirement for employment," said Seiichiro Suzuki, head of Toshiba's personnel center...According to a labor minitry-commissioned survey conducted by the Fujitsu Research Institute on about 800 companies from September through October last year, nearly 40 percent of those companies have hired foreigners with high-level knowledge and skills, including engineers, in recent years. But 58 companies have suspended their employment of foreigners, showing that language barrier and corporate culture clashes remain a potential problem. In a country where company loyalty remains relatively strong, 25 percent of those companies said they stopped hiring foreigners because previous hires had left for other companies offering better working conditions. In addition, 20 percent said they lacked supervisors who could work effectively with the foreign employees. But the trend has been to expand hiring of non-Japanese as the domestic market shrinks and the declining birthrate is expected to lead to a huge shortage in demand in future years...Meanwhile, Internet shopping site operator Rakuten Inc. regards 2010 as the year to develop into a truly global company. In February, Rakuten began distributing papers written in English instead of Japanese at its Monday morning executive meetings, a policy that soon covered meetings attended by all employees. And in March, the dozens of participants at the executive meetings were required to speak in English...more...

Related FG Thread: Panasonic Wants YOU

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

But 58 companies have suspended their employment of foreigners, showing that language barrier and corporate culture clashes remain a potential problem.

I love Japanese GrowBall-Ization...

[Neo-Rio]

In a country where company loyalty remains relatively strong, 25 percent of those companies said they stopped hiring foreigners because previous hires had left for other companies offering better working conditions

...meaning that most companies who won't hire foreigners are slave-drivers who want to own their employees.

[sublight]

...meaning that most companies who won't hire foreigners are slave-drivers who want to own their employees.

Yeah, funny how a)they view it as a betrayal rather than as a simple fact that people with growth potential will want to be commensurately compensate as they grow, and b)it's everyone else's fault but their own.

The sure sign of a truly dysfunctional company.

[Samurai_Jerk]

...meaning that most companies who won't hire foreigners are slave-drivers who want to own their employees.

Yeah, God forbid they should do something crazy like improve working conditions.

[gkanai]

If the average Japanese salaryman spoke credible English, this could be plausible. As it is, they don't, so it's laughable.

[Mulboyne]

We already have the earlier 2008 thread on Panasonic's recruitment policies but a new J-Cast report (Japanese) has shed some more light on the company's plans.

It points out that more Japanese companies are searching for growth outside Japan and are becoming more active in recruiting foreign talent. Unsurprisingly, Rakuten, Lawson and Fast Retailing get a mention but Panasonic - the lone manufacturer - is also singled out. 2010 recruitment called for 1,250 graduate trainees with 750 places marked out for non-Japanese. In 2011, the company is looking to take on 1,390 trainees with at least 1,100 foreign graduates. Panasonic insists that the remaining 290 places may not all be filled by Japanese recruits.

The electronics giant aims initially to increase overseas business to 55% of its total sales, up from 48% currently. By 2018, it hopes this figure will be 60%. Whether this ratio is achieved purely through growing overseas sales or seeing a decline in the domestic market, Panasonic has concluded that foreign graduate employees are currently more valuable.

One employment consultant quoted says that that small and mid-sized companies began looking overseas for recruits around three years ago but large companies have only really started in earnest this year. The article wonders whether this trend is going to make it harder for Japanese graduates to find jobs in the future.

[Yokohammer]

The article wonders whether this trend is going to make it harder for Japanese graduates to find jobs in the future.

One would hope that over time foreign staff would filter into the domestic divisions and Japanese staff would filter into the expanding overseas divisions, which would sort of balance things out. The benefit for society would be a more international atmosphere overall, which might help to break down the xenophobic barriers a bit.

Just looking for the silver lining ...

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

One would hope that over time foreign staff would filter into the domestic divisions and Japanese staff would filter into the expanding overseas divisions, which would sort of balance things out. The benefit for society would be a more international atmosphere overall, which might help to break down the xenophobic barriers a bit.

Just looking for the silver lining ...

You should be admired Yokohammer...your eternal optimism is indefatigable.
Sorry, experience has showed me that Japs are nothing more than racist cunts. This scenario will never eventuate.

[Yokohammer]

You should be admired Yokohammer...your eternal optimism is indefatigable.
Sorry, experience has showed me that Japs are nothing more than racist cunts. This scenario will never eventuate.

That's pretty heavy Hairdo.
Would I be correct in assuming you've had a bad day?

No hope no life. The only way is forward.
Think about how openly racist America and Australia were in the 50's for example. Things can and do change. Besides, I can't agree totally with your assessment of the present situation. It isn't really that bad.

[Mulboyne]

Japanese companies have moved to bring foreigners into their management ranks a few times over the last thirty years. To date, without much success.

There are a couple of reasons to be more hopeful this time. As the article points out, there's not much juice in the domestic market these days. Secondly, corporations have begun to include foreign executives on their boards and, by the look of some of these reports about salaries, are prepared to be more competitive these days.

Set against this, there remain doubts that companies really know what to do with their foreign employees beyond recruiting them. Globalization isn't just about quotas. It's also important to note that most Japanese companies are still very poor at making good use of the Japanese women in their workforce. If they recruit a decent selection of foreign graduates, there'll be a fair number of women in their ranks. They'll also need to change their thinking on that score to if their foreign experiment is to have a hope of succeeding.

[Yokohammer]

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

After spending the past couple of months sifting through the ranks of corporate management at major Japanese companies, I have to agree with you, Yokohammer. Of the dozens of bluechip firms I've viewed, only one has had either a woman or gaijin. (It was the same company and was a cosmetics company whose name starts with S) and it had both. Otherwise, there's not a single one...it's the same old jiji cunts that run everything, and always have. To be honest, it's hard to see too much changing....TIJ.

[gkanai]

Sony does have a woman on the board, but she's very much the exception to the rule in Japan.

As for Japanese companies using English in meetings in Tokyo, I'll believe it when I see it myself with my own eyes and ears.

[Tobacco Taro]

All the smart Japanese women I know work for foreign companies, where they actually get given stuff to do, have a chance of promotion, and don't have to spend their day making tea and being chased around the office by their boss like a Benny Hill sketch.

[Greji]

Sony does have a woman on the board, but she's very much the exception to the rule in Japan.

As for Japanese companies using English in meetings in Tokyo, I'll believe it when I see it myself with my own eyes and ears.

That's Glen Fukushima's wife, right? (At least, she used to be there)....

[Mulboyne]

FT: Toyota promotes non-Japanese managers in wake of problems

Toyota Motor yesterday fulfilled a promise to shift more responsibility to non-Japanese managers by promoting North Americans and Europeans to run factories outside Japan. The changes were part of the carmaker's response to recent quality problems which have damaged its reputation and forced it to recall more than 8.5m vehicles worldwide. Toyota officials concluded that poor communication between local managers and their bosses in Japan contributed to the crisis. In the US, especially, warnings from local managers about the outcry were either passed on too slowly or not at all. The promotions remove a layer of Japanese management between local bosses and top executives in Toyoda City, Toyota's headquarters in Japan.

The highest promotion went to Didier Leroy, a Frenchman who will become the first non-Japanese to head Toyota's sales and manufacturing operations in Europe. Mr Leroy is to take over as president of Toyota Motor Europe from July 1, replacing Tadashi Arashima. Carl Klemm is to replace Kenji Manabe as head of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Poland, one of Toyota's eight production centres in Europe. In the US, Chris Nielsen and Norm Bafunno are to take charge of Toyota assembly plants in Texas and Indiana, replacing Japanese bosses. Will James is to lead the company's Kentucky plant in place of Steve St Angelo, an American who had earlier been named Toyota's North American quality chief.

Twelve of Toyota's 14 North American manufacturing plants will now be run by non-Japanese staff. But Toyota will remain a thoroughly Japanese company at the top. All of its 38 board executives are Japanese, in spite of the fact that the company, the world's biggest carmaker since 2008, sells most of its cars outside Japan. Since taking over as chief executive a year ago, Akio Toyoda has spoken of localising Toyota's far-flung operations.

[Yokohammer]

FT: Toyota promotes non-Japanese managers in wake of problems

Sounds like they're setting themselves up to take advantage of the "I got it from a gaijin in Roppongi" excuse, car industry version.

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

Sounds like they're setting themselves up to take advantage of the "I got it from a gaijin in Roppongi" excuse, car industry version.

Well said, and so true. There's not a multinational in this cuntry that has the slightest interest in becoming truly globalized, right down to its management. They'll take what they can get from overseas, but that won't include personnel unless they're really desperate. Even then, it'll still be mostly cosmetic change.

[Mulboyne]

[Mulboyne]

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Gadgetwear has this video where Hiroyuki Tamiya, of Toyo Keizai HR Online, says the trend of companies hiring overseas graduates may become a concern for Japanese students. 11% of companies in a recent survey said they already recruit overseas students and 21% said they expect to do so in 2011. Last year, 6% of companies with no overseas presence employed foreign students, and this is expected to rise to 12% next year. Tamiya says this points to a growing trend of hiring such students to work in Japan rather than overseas. Not all of these foreign recruits will have studied in Japan. Tamiya notes that firms are also recruiting directly from campuses abroad, including the likes of Beijing University. In March 2010, 60.8% of Japanese students found work on graduation and that figure has now declined for two years. Tamiya says that the overall number of foreign hires is currently still too low to have a major impact but they will make a difficult graduate employment market even more competitive in the future.

Separately, the Toyo Keizai reports that 50 board members at 27 listed Japanese firms are Chinese (28 ), Korean (17) or Taiwanese nationals (5). This is an increase from last year's 33 at 23 companies. There are 3,672 exchange-listed companies so these numbers are still low but Toyo Keizai believes merit-based promotions are opening the way for more foreign executives. It's worth pointing out, however, that the three companies with most foreign board members have, in two cases, appointed them as a result of overseas tie-ups while the third was started by a Chinese national and now has significant ownership by a Chinese firm. That would suggest promotion isn't the main route to the board room for foreign executives so far.

[Mulboyne]

Similar points made here:

Asahi: Japanese students being left out in trend of international hiring

A 22-year-old junior at a private university in Tokyo thought he had the right strategy to land a job in Japan's harsh labor market.

Having learned about Chinese politics and economics in a university seminar, he sought to observe Japan from a foreign perspective. He spent a month studying English at a university in the United States, where he also gained experience by volunteering at a food factory.

Last spring, he studied at a university in China on a short-term basis and returned with a keen interest in international politics and thoughts of becoming an exchange student abroad for a full year.

But he then heeded the advice of a senior at his school: "By the time you come back (from overseas), people around you may have secured tentative job offers. Will you be able to start looking for jobs then?"

He remained in Japan, where he now has to deal with the growing trend among Japanese companies to hire foreigners and Japanese students who have studied abroad.

"Was giving up on studying abroad the right thing to do? I still regret it," the student said.

With Japan's domestic market expected to shrink because of the low birthrate and graying society, Japanese companies are expanding into overseas markets. Hiring people with experience abroad is simply part of their global strategies.

Japanese students who remain in Japan are finding themselves in a seemingly no-win situation. If they study abroad, they will miss the early recruitment drive by companies in Japan. But if they stay at Japanese universities, they find themselves taking a backseat to foreign students here in gaining employment.

In addition, companies view Japanese university students as vulnerable to adversity and overly eager for job security.

"Unless there is an increase in overall job quotas at Japanese companies, (the trend of hiring internationally) will lead to cuts in jobs for Japanese students," said Hitomi Okazaki, managing editor at the Rikunabi job information website.

According to a survey by Disco Inc., a recruitment service firm, on 200 companies in Japan with 1,000 employees or more, about 40 percent plan to hire foreign students studying in Japan in fiscal 2011.

Meanwhile, the number of Japanese who spend a year or more studying overseas is decreasing, partly due to the earlier recruiting activities.

While 83,000 Japanese studied abroad in 2004, the figure declined to 75,000 in 2007.

About 80 percent of Panasonic Corp.'s new employees among graduates in fiscal 2011 are expected to be people who attended schools overseas or foreigners who studied at Japanese universities.

The ratio is 50 percent at Fast Retailing Co., which runs the Uniqlo casual clothing chain.

Internet shopping mall operator Rakuten Inc., which strives to become "the world's No. 1 Internet company" and plans to expand operations to 27 countries from the current six, exemplifies the move toward international hiring.

During a recent training session in Tokyo, 38 new employees--six Japanese who studied at overseas universities and 32 foreigners who graduated in Japan or abroad--discussed in English how "winner" companies abroad attract talent from around the world and generate creativity.

The foreign hires included those from China, South Korea, Thailand, Russia and Mexico.

The new recruits had been divided into five teams by nationality and assigned different themes, such as "surging China," "Samsung's success" and "cultural diversity."

The emcee of the session was Su Xiaochen, a 22-year-old graduate of Yale University in the United States. He was born in China but lived in Japan and the United States because of his father's work.

Su represents an ideal new worker at Rakuten, according to Yoshiaki Ohnishi, a Rakuten executive in charge of hiring.

Su is trilingual and majored in economics and electronic engineering at Yale, where he debated with students from around the globe on a daily basis.

Su said he didn't even know the name of Rakuten. But he decided to accept the job offer to improve the environment for trading goods and services through the Internet in developing countries.

"I wanted to do the kind of work that can help narrow the gap between the rich and the poor in the world," Su said.

Rakuten, which eventually plans to generate 70 percent of its trading volume abroad, will hire about 80 foreign new graduates next spring.

While Su impresses Rakuten executives, the 22-year-old student at the private university in Tokyo is busy attending corporate job seminars.

Although he hopes to land a job that suits his needs, he does express frustration at the current situation for Japanese students.

"While companies say they are looking for excellent students, they force us to adjust our schedules for them," he said. "I feel that I am being deprived of opportunities to study and broaden my horizons."

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

Is there any malady in Japan where foreigners aren't at fault?
Good lord, the numbers these articles are talking about are minute compared to any other industrialized nation.

[Bucky]

Bucky Junior, bi-lingual (E & J) and a graduate of the University of Washington in Seattle, landed a job at Morgan Stanley in Tokyo and his US Education and bi-lingual ability were specifically cited as reasons for his hire.

[Samurai_Jerk]

Bucky Junior, bi-lingual (E & J) and a graduate of the University of Washington in Seattle, landed a job at Morgan Stanley in Tokyo and his US Education and bi-lingual ability were specifically cited as reasons for his hire.

Foreign investment banks have always hired people like that. This article is talking about Japanese companies. SDH is right that it's such a small percentage of hires that to worry about it is laughable. It's also usually people with specific technical skills that are lacking in the local population like IT engineers.

[Mulboyne]

Rakuten introduce sixteen new employees from India. Mikitani says he expects foreigners to hold senior management positions within 5-10 years.

[Mulboyne]

Takeda, one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies, says it will require all new graduate employees from 2013 to have a minimum TOEIC score of 730 (out of a maximum 990). Roughly 10% achieve that score. Some South Korean companies have used TOEIC scores to decide who gets promotion within the company but the hurdle is only 450 - high enough to require study but not sufficient to guarantee any working ability in the language.

Source (Japanese)

Separately, Sony announced their intention to increase foreign graduate employment to 30% of the total by 2013, specifically targeting the recruitment of engineers from Asia.

(Source)

[Mulboyne]

NEC has an overseas sales division in the Tokyo head office. The company has just announced that it intends to raise the number of foreign employees in the department to 30% within three years. The staff total is currently 300, all Japanese, so that means 90 foreigners. The new staff will be taken from the company's overseas subsidiaries.

I suppose I'm still slightly taken aback that NEC currently has no foreigners at all in this division.

Source (Japanese)

[Mulboyne]

The Sankei has a piece on how Japanese graduates are continuing to face strong competition from overseas graduates (meaning foreigners who have studied in Japan) in the domestic job market.

Panasonic, Dainippon Screen and Sanrio are specifically mentioned as companies who want to employ larger numbers of overseas graduates but the trend is broad. Recruitment services company MyNavi surveyed 1,757 firms and 10% said they were looking at foreign graduates. The figure was up to 27.1% for listed companies. That's higher than the 19% said to be also looking for Japanese students who have studied overseas which, the Sankei believes, indicates that employers don't just want language skills.

A MyNavi spokesman says overseas students are typically regarded as more assertive and more motivated. They point out that Japanese students often visit employment seminars together and end up going to the same booths to see the same companies, despite the fact they probably don't share similar ambitions. Overseas students scout out the companies they want to hear from and ask more questions.

In 2013, nearly a third of all companies surveyed expect to employ overseas graduates, or are looking at doing so. For listed companies, this number is as high as 58.6% which, if it follows through into actual recruitment, will have a big impact. Manufacturers are most interested but non-manufacturers, particularly retail and food service companies, are also prominent.

In part, firms are responding to a future where fewer Japanese graduates will be coming to the market as the effects of low birthrates start to be felt. However, the message from this Sankei piece seems to be that Japanese graduates may need to up their game if they want to secure the best posts.

Source (Japanese)

[Samurai_Jerk]

It'll be interesting to see if these people will really be treated the same as Japanese employees in the long run. Will they get the same benefits as a Japanese seishain (permanent employee) and move up the corporate ladder at the same rate?