Contemporary Japan

ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rcoj20

Mutual learning between Japanese managers and

foreign subordinates: Enablers for middle-up-
down management under role definition flexibility
at Japanese headquarters

Kenta Koyama

To cite this article: Kenta Koyama (2022) Mutual learning between Japanese managers
and foreign subordinates: Enablers for middle-up-down management under role
definition flexibility at Japanese headquarters, Contemporary Japan, 34:1, 87-105, DOI:
10.1080/18692729.2022.2028227

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/18692729.2022.2028227

© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa

UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis
Group.

Published online: 15 Mar 2022.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 5748

View related articles

View Crossmark data

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=rcoj20
CONTEMPORARY JAPAN
2022, VOL. 34, NO. 1, 87–105
https://doi.org/10.1080/18692729.2022.2028227

Mutual learning between Japanese managers and foreign

subordinates: Enablers for middle-up-down management
under role definition flexibility at Japanese headquarters
Kenta Koyama
Faculty of Communication Studies, Tokyo Keizai University, Tokyo, Japan

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

The number of foreign workers at Japanese companies has Received 21 April 2020
increased in recent years. Whereas this trend has been pro­ Accepted 22 September 2021
moted by the policies of the Japanese government, Japanese KEYWORDS
companies face many difficulties in cross-cultural management. Japanese human resource
This study aimed to reveal how Japanese managers can modify management; cross-cultural
their mindset and behaviours to adopt middle-up-down man­ management; cultural
agement for their foreign subordinates. Nine factors were synergy; inclusive leadership;
coded from the interview surveys with ten pairs of Japanese middle-up-down
managers and their foreign subordinates. Given the nine fac­ management; role definition
tors, a hypothetical conceptual framework was developed flexibility
based on the three-step cultural synergy model. This concep­
tual framework offers some new perspectives to cross-cultural
management theory. First, the homogeneous culture of
Japanese companies could be replaced by cultural synergy
and inclusive leadership to apply middle-up-down manage­
ment with role definition flexibility to foreign subordinates.
Second, cultural synergy and inclusive leadership could be
more effective in Japanese than Western human resource man­
agement. These findings need to be fully examined in future
research.

Introduction
The number of foreign workers has increased significantly in Japan since around 2010.
According to the statistics by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (2019), the number
of foreign workers was 1,460,463 in 2018, increasing from 486,398 in 2008. This is a result of
the policies of the Japanese government that have strived to increase the number of foreign
workers. These policies have mainly focused on two separate targets: highly-skilled foreign
professionals (kōdo gaikoku jinzai) and specified skilled workers (SSWs, or tokutei ginō).
According to the report of the Council for the Promotion of Acceptance of Highly-Skilled
Foreign Professionals (2009), highly-skilled foreign professionals were defined as below:
The quality, unsubstitutable human resources who have a complementary relationship
with domestic capital and labor . . . [and] the human resources who are expected to
bring innovation to the Japanese industries, to promote development of specialized/

CONTACT Kenta Koyama koyama@tku.ac.jp Faculty of Communication Studies, Tokyo Keizai University, Postal
Address: 1-7-34, Minami-cho, Kokubunji, Tokyo 185-8502, Japan
© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any med­
ium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.
88 K. KOYAMA

technical labor markets through friendly competition with Japanese people and
to increase efficiency of the Japanese labor markets. (Council for the Promotion
of Acceptance of Highly-Skilled Foreign Professionals 2009, 4; Original in
Japanese. English translation was quoted from the website of the Immigration
Bureau of Japan.)

This definition extensively emphasises “innovation through friendly competition”.

Friendly competition could be understood as interaction or mutual learning between
international professionals and Japanese employees. Therefore, highly-skilled foreign
professionals are not expected to act as the supplementary workforce for the
Japanese labour shortage, but as promoters of innovation at Japanese companies.
Other government documents have reflected this concept as well. One example was
the Growth Strategy 2017 (Mirai tōshi senryaku 2017), which stated, “the Government
will positively accept excellent foreign professionals [. . .] thereby accelerat[ing] inno­
vation and improv[ing] the productivity of the entire Japanese economy” (Nihon
keizai saisei honbu 2017, 105).
SSWs comprise the other target of the policies on international workers, which
was a new status of residence begun in April 2019.1 The government announced
a new policy to promote SSWs to cope with high labour shortages, particularly in
small- and medium-sized enterprises (Gaikoku jinzai no ukeire/kyōsei ni kansuru
kankei kakuryō kaigi 2019). Therefore, these new foreign workers are expected to
offer more immediate contributions to specific jobs, unlike highly-skilled foreign
professionals, for whom innovation is more emphasised.2
This study focuses only on the highly-skilled foreign professionals who work for
Japanese companies, as the category of SSWs is too new to be analysed properly.
Additionally, many Japanese companies face difficulties in managing highly-skilled
foreign professionals, and many limit or abandon the recruitment of foreign profes­
sionals. A survey showed that the greatest challenge for Japanese companies that
aim at recruiting highly-skilled foreign professionals is the inadequate capacity to
manage them (DISCO 2018). Therefore, it is especially important to consider
a solution for how to manage foreign professionals in order to help Japanese
companies become more innovative as well as more globally inclusive. Toward this
end, this paper examines how Japanese managers can modify their mindset and
behaviours and apply role definition flexibility and middle-up-down management to
their foreign subordinates.

1
SSWs are classified into two types. SSWs(i) can get limited jobs in 14 industries such as painting jobs in the industrial
machinery industry, and carpentry jobs in the construction industry. SSWs(ii), who have more advanced skills than
SSWs(i), can work only in construction, shipbuilding, and the ship machinery industry.
2
Technical intern trainee (ginō jisshu sei) is another major category of foreign workers in Japan. The Technical Intern
Training Program was established in 1993 to contribute to developing countries by accepting people from these
countries and transferring skills through work experience (for a maximum of five years of residence in Japan). Although
labour regulations are applied to the trainees except for the initial lecture-based training period, the main purpose of
this program is to train people from developing countries (MHLW2017). There are 308,489 trainees as of the end of
October 2018 (MHLW 2019). There are various criticisms of the program including that technical intern trainees face
illegal or unethical situations such as infringement of labour-related legislation, working outside the prescribed working
hours, and name lending (Watanabe 2010).
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 89

Literature review
Japanese HRM and internal internationalisation
During the first phase of the research on postwar Japanese human resource management
(HRM), many researchers revealed how Japanese HRM was different from HRM in Western
countries (e.g. Abegglen 1958; Dore 1973; Lincoln, Olson, and Hanada 1978). Abegglen
(1958) pointed out lifetime commitment, seniority-based wages, and enterprise unions as
the three pillars of “traditional” postwar Japanese management.
Researchers in the next phase shed light on the components of Japanese HRM that
were also found in Western organisations (e.g. Ouchi 1981; Pascale and Athos 1981; Peters
and Waterman 1982). Ahmadjian and Schaede (2015) noted that Japanese HRM studies
contributed to modern management theory, identifying key concepts of Japanese HRM,
such as organisational socialisation, organisational commitment, and organisational cap­
abilities. Japanese HRM was also transferred to Western organisations in terms of practical
management. New United Motors Manufacturing Incorporated (NUMMI), which was the
joint venture of Toyota and General Motors, was a well-known example of the transfer of
Japanese HRM components outside Japan (Adler 1993).
Since the bursting of the Japanese bubble economy in the early 1990s, researchers
have been interested in the changes in the characteristics of Japanese HRM. Many studies
showed that long-term employment until the retirement age and seniority-based pay­
ment were rather weakened, yet at the same time, still applied especially to core employ­
ees (seishain) at larger Japanese companies (Yanadori 2018; Sekiguchi 2013; Morris,
Hassard, and McCann 2006; Endo, Delbridge, and Morris 2015). Several statistics sup­
ported these perspectives. According to governmental statistics in 2017, more than 70%
of respondent companies set the retirement age at 60 years for their employees (MHLW
2017). This trend was affected by the Act on Stabilization of Employment of Elderly
Persons (Kōnenreisha no koyō no anteitō ni kansuru hōritsu). While setting a mandatory
retirement age is legal in Japan, the act prohibits companies from setting a retirement age
younger than the age of 60 (which is related to the age of pension eligibility). The same
governmental statistics revealed that 60% of respondent companies counted age or
employed years when they determined the base salary of their employees, whereas
40% evaluated performance. These trends suggest that traditional postwar Japanese
HRM was still functioning.
Traditional Japanese HRM also emphasises fresh college graduate recruitment.
Japanese companies with more than 300 employees still recruited more fresh college
graduates than people who had working experience at other companies. Among the
newly recruited employees by those companies in 2017, the ratio of fresh graduates to
experienced workers was approximately 60% (Recruit 2018).
Altogether, these statistics showed that most companies still followed to some
extent the traditional Japanese HRM even after 2015, although several scholars pointed
out that distinctive and unique components of Japanese HRM have been eroded. On
the other hand, several studies suggested that Japanese multinational corporations
(MNCs) faced challenges in transferring traditional HRM practices to their local sub­
sidiaries (James and Jones 2014; Yanadori, (2018); Conrad and Meyer-Ohle 2017).
Conrad and Meyer-Ohle (2017) proposed that managing foreign fresh graduates in
headquarters (HQs) might be a solution for Japanese MNCs to transform traditional
90 K. KOYAMA

Japanese HRM practices into more applicable ones in local subsidiaries. Sekiguchi,
Froese, and Iguchi (2016) described internal internationalisation as the situation in
which non-Japanese employees participate in managerial decision making in the HQs
of Japanese companies. Therefore, given the recent national policy trends to increase
highly-skilled foreign professionals in Japan, it is important to consider how traditional
Japanese HRM will shift when dealing with internal internationalisation. Several studies
revealed processes and challenges for foreign employees to adapt to Japanese work­
places (Conrad and Meyer-Ohle 2017; Huang, Yang, and Sekiguchi 2020; Liu-Farrer
2020; Sekiguchi et al. 2019). Nevertheless, little is known about the learning process of
Japanese supervisors to manage their foreign subordinates. This study focuses on the
interaction between Japanese managers and their foreign subordinates to consider
possible avenues of change in Japanese HRM.

Role definition flexibility and middle-up-down management

Sekiguchi, Froese, and Iguchi (2016) pointed out that traditional postwar Japanese HRM
had led to the creation of homogeneous organisations. The reasons why Japanese HRM
requires homogeneity could be attributed to role definition flexibility and the Japanese
middle-up-down management style. First, Japanese HRM avoids clearly stated job
descriptions and embraces a much simpler and broader job classifications than Western
HRM (Morishima 1995; Kono and Clegg 2001; Pudelko 2005). This flexibility of role
definition aims at decentralising decision-making. Ishida (1985) compared frontline
employees in Western and Japanese companies and noted that Japanese frontline work­
ers had more competencies, more motivation, more shared information about their
organisations, and more commitment to them. Additionally, Japanese frontline employ­
ees exercised greater agency in solving problems at their workplaces and thinking of and
creating solutions by themselves (Ahmadjian and Schaede 2015; Froese, Sekiguchi, and
Maharjan 2017; Ishida 1985; Ichniowski and Shaw 1999). In other words, frontline employ­
ees in Japanese companies could exercise much greater autonomy in their jobs than
those in Western companies.
Second, Japanese managers play important roles. As Nonaka and Takeuchi (1995)
mentioned, “middle managers are the key to continuous innovation”, noting the
Japanese “middle-up-down” management model (Nonaka and Takeuchi 1995, 127).

In the middle-up-down model, top management creates a vision or a dream, while middle
management develops more concrete concepts that front-line employees can understand
and implement. Middle managers try to solve the contradiction between what top
management hopes to create and what actually exists in the real world. (Nonaka and
Takeuchi 1995, 129)

Japanese HRM also encourages managers to develop the autonomy of their subordinates.
Japanese managers stimulate “training in decision-making” and “learning from failure” to
develop their competencies and skills (Kono and Clegg 2001). Managers tend to ask their
subordinates about their opinions, plans, and proposals so that employees can make
decisions by themselves. When employees fail or make mistakes, they are not repri­
manded extensively by their managers, but instead, they are asked to revise their plans
to avoid similar failures or mistakes in the future.
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 91

The role definition flexibility and middle-up-down management in Japanese HRM

require a certain level of homogeneous organisation to make frontline employees work
autonomously. If frontline employees share an organisational mission, strategy, and
corporate culture, it becomes easier for managers to ensure the autonomy of frontline
workers. Traditionally, assimilation has been a solution to these requirements. The func­
tions of Japanese HRM, characterised by the employment of fresh graduates, long-term
employment until retirement age, job rotations across divisions within a company, and
long working hours have been effective enablers of employee assimilation. It resulted in
homogeneous organisations dominated mainly by male Japanese employees.
Hence, Japanese HRM has embraced autonomy among homogeneous employees with
a specific demographic, at the cost of diversity. On the other hand, highly-skilled foreign
professionals at Japanese companies demand more specified job descriptions (MHLW
2018). Given the conflict of role definition flexibility and middle-up-down management
between highly-skilled foreign professionals and their managers, it is worth considering
how to overcome the conflict from the perspective of cross-cultural management. Cross-
cultural management could be crucial to make role definition flexibility and middle-up-
down management applicable not only to Japanese employees but also to highly-skilled
foreign professionals.

Cross-cultural synergy and inclusion

Some scholars in cross-cultural management have proposed that the research focus
should be shifted from a distance approach to an interaction approach (Shenkar 2001;
Luo and Shenkar 2011; Adler and Aycan 2018). The distance approach – famously utilised
by Hofstede – aims to measure the differences in national cultures by using a specific set
of dimensions. Hofstede (1980) initially identified four dimensions to distinguish national
values and, subsequently, two additional dimensions were developed, resulting in six
dimensions (Hofstede, Hofstede, and Minkov 2010). Using these six dimensions, Hofstede,
Hofstede, and Minkov (2010) ranked how strong or weak each dimension was in a certain
country.
The Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness Research Program
(GLOBE) is another well-known research programme that adopted the cultural distance
approach (House et al. 2013). There are also several other research studies from the
perspective of cultural distance. For example, the World Values Survey (WVS) also analyses
how each country differs in terms of values and beliefs. Originally developed by Inglehart
as the European Values Study (EVS), he extended it to a worldwide survey (WVS), which
also analyses how each country differs in terms of values and beliefs. WVS collects data
every five years, and the latest data collection was the seventh round (WVS-7, 2017–2020).
WVS-7 covers 80 countries, measuring 14 themes. Schwartz (2006) also analysed 73
countries using the seven originally developed dimensions.
The cultural distance approach has been challenged recently. Shenkar (2001) criticised
several hidden assumptions of the approach, and noted that one of its hidden assump­
tions was spatial homogeneity: “Measuring distance from one national culture to another,
the (Cultural Distance) index assumes uniformity within the national unit” (Shenkar 2001,
525). Adler and Aycan (2018) also criticised the distance approach, pointing out that
studies utilising the distance approach “assume that culture at the national level is
92 K. KOYAMA

homogenous” (Adler and Aycan 2018, 309). More importantly for the present study, it is
quite likely that highly-skilled foreign professionals do not represent the national cultures
of their home countries, partly because they are workers who have chosen to leave their
home country and work in Japan for an extended period. Therefore, the cultural distance
approach may be insufficient to analyse the management of highly-skilled foreign
professionals.
Following the criticisms of the cultural distance approach, the interaction approach has
been proposed as a new perspective. This approach focuses on the encounters of people
from different cultures. Shenkar (2001) proposed the so-called friction metaphor instead
of that of cultural distance, and defined cultural friction as “the scale and essence of the
interface between interacting cultures” (Shenkar 2001, 528). Shenkar (2012) emphasised
the importance of cultural interaction research, and building from this, Tung and Stahl
(2018) suggested that cross-cultural interaction research should not regard culture as
a static feature, but rather should focus on the context or dynamic process in which the
cultural perceptions of individuals change.
In line with the cross-cultural interaction approach, cultural synergy (Adler and
Gundersen 2007) offered insights into how individuals modify their mindset and beha­
viours through cross-cultural interaction to make innovations. Cultural synergy consists of
three steps. The first step is to describe the situation. What should be described is
a “problem situation” (Adler and Gundersen 2007, 114). When individuals from different
cultures work together, it is natural for problems to occur. Interestingly, cultural synergy
emphasises recognising such a problem as the first step for innovation.
The second step of cultural synergy is to interpret the situation. In this step, individuals
from different cultures “attempt to understand the underlying assumptions that lead
people from other cultures to behave as they do” (Adler and Gundersen 2007, 114). Thus,
the second step could be called a mutual learning phase.
The third and final step is to increase cultural creativity. In this step, two questions are
important. The first question is, “What can people from one culture learn from people of
another culture to enhance their effectiveness and productivity?” (Adler and Gundersen
2007, 115). The second question is, “How can we combine and leverage our various
cultures’ ways of working?” (Adler and Gundersen 2007, 117). Individuals from different
cultures aim to change their ways of thinking through their interactions, and they attempt
to co-create a solution to their problem.
Therefore, the three-step process of cultural synergy results in a highly creative solu­
tion to the problems that occurred in the first step of cultural interactions. Adler and
Gundersen (2007) noted that “culturally synergistic solutions are novel and transcend the
behavioural patterns of each individual culture” (p. 117). Cultural synergy is based on the
interaction approach, focusing on the process of dynamic change of individual cultural
perception, and emphasising the positive effect of cross-cultural interaction. Hence,
cultural synergy provides a new theoretical viewpoint in cross-cultural management.
Additionally, inclusion can be a key concept for cultural synergy. Shore et al. (2011)
theoretically distinguished inclusion from assimilation. While assimilation is the state of
minority employees with low uniqueness and high belongingness, inclusion means that
minority employees retain both high uniqueness and high belongingness. Mor Barak
(2017) proposed inclusive leadership based on the conceptual framework of Shore et al.
(2011), and proposed four behaviours to enhance uniqueness and belongingness through
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 93

inclusive leadership, with two behaviours related to uniqueness and two behaviours
related to belongingness. “Recognises each individual’s unique talents” and “promotes
seeking out different perspectives” both enhance uniqueness. “Creates a shared sense of
purpose and common goals” and “motivates everyone to participate” both enhance
belongingness (Mor Barak 2017, 228).
As Japanese companies are generally homogeneous in terms of the educational,
socioeconomic, linguistic, and cultural backgrounds of their employees, foreign employ­
ees tend to be assimilated into existing organisational norms and culture. Nevertheless, if
Japanese managers carry out inclusive leadership and their foreign subordinates utilise
their uniqueness in their jobs with a sense of inclusion, problematic situations are more
likely to occur. Regarding those problems as the first step of cultural synergy, if both
parties can handle cultural synergy adequately, they can generate innovative outcomes.
This means that Japanese managers would apply role definition flexibility and middle-up-
down management to their foreign subordinates as well.
Despite the importance of cultural synergy and inclusive leadership, empirical studies
that investigate their role in the Japanese organisational context are limited. Thus, this
study analysed the interactions between highly-skilled foreign professionals and their
Japanese managers at the HQs from the viewpoint of cultural synergy and inclusive
leadership.
As role definition flexibility and middle-up-down management are crucial for Japanese
managers, managers need to modify their mindset and behaviours by engaging in
cultural synergy processes with their foreign subordinates. Following the cultural synergy
process, Japanese managers can recognise the problems of their conventional manage­
ment style, learn from the viewpoints of their foreign subordinates, and create an effective
management style for their foreign subordinates. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to
reveal how Japanese managers can modify their mindset and behaviours and apply role
definition flexibility and middle-up-down management to their foreign subordinates.

Method
This explorative study used a qualitative survey. The participants were identified through
the following three steps. Firstly, the author asked several HR departments of large
Japanese companies for an interview, and seven companies accepted the request.
Secondly, the author asked the companies’ HR departments to select their foreign
employees in the early stage of their careers who met the following criteria: (1) being
hired immediately after graduation, (2) being between one to six years into their employ­
ment, (3) having a Japanese manager. Thirdly, the HR department asked the selected
foreign employees and their managers if they were willing to participate in the research.
Each company offered one or two pairs of Japanese managers and their foreign sub­
ordinates for this study. Thus, semi-structured interviews with ten pairs of Japanese
managers and their foreign subordinates were carried out at seven large Japanese
companies in 2016 (see Table 1).3
3
This sampling method may be affected by the selection bias of the HR departments. Nevertheless, considering that it is
extraordinarily difficult to get pairs of Japanese managers and their foreign subordinates without the assistance of HR
departments of Japanese companies, the author believes that this was the best way to carry out this initial and
explorative research.
 94
K. KOYAMA

Table 1. List of informants of Japanese managers and their foreign subordinates.

Years of
Main language Final academic employment
Sex of Japanese to communicate Origin of foreign background of foreign of foreign Sex of foreign
Pair Industry manager with each other subordinate subordinate subordinate subordinate
A Building equipment Male Japanese China Graduate school in Japan 4th year Female
manufacturer
B Information technology Male English Indonesia Undergraduate course outside 2nd year Male
Japan
C Information technology Male English Spain Graduate school outside Japan 1st year Female
D Information technology Female Japanese China Undergraduate course in 6th year Female
Japan
E Chemical manufacturer Male Japanese Taiwan Graduate school in Japan 3rd year Female
F Food manufacturer Male Japanese Indonesia Undergraduate course in 3rd year Male
Japan
G Chemical manufacturer Male Japanese China Graduate school in Japan 4th year Female
H Food manufacturer Male Japanese China Undergraduate course outside 1st year Female
Japan
I Information technology Male Japanese New Zealand Graduate school in Japan 3rd year Male
J Information technology Male Japanese Malaysia Graduate school in Japan 2nd year Male
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 95

The interviews were conducted separately so that each foreign subordinate was
able to speak freely without any concerns of sharing information with his or her
manager and vice versa. Each interview lasted about 60 minutes. The interview was
recorded only if the interviewee provided consent. Recorded interviews were tran­
scribed with personal information anonymised. Inductive codes were generated
from transcripts. Reading all the transcripts, codes were derived to find commonal­
ities across the informants. This study attempted to develop a hypothetical con­
ceptual framework, integrating the codes obtained with the components of
traditional Japanese HRM, such as role definition flexibility and middle-up-down
management.

Results
Nine factors were coded from the transcripts. Factors 1 to 5 were mindset and behaviours
of Japanese managers, and Factors 6 to 9 were about their foreign subordinates.
Transcripts were translated into English by the author, except the transcripts of foreign
employees who spoke English.

Factor 1: Engaging in high-context communication (by Japanese managers)

Factor 1 refers to a key feature of the conventional Japanese management among
highly assimilated employees. Because of homogeneity, managers do not tell their
subordinates everything, especially more ambiguous aspects, such as their future
career paths or the purposes of their jobs. In this study, Japanese managers tended
to avoid or were not confident about articulating these ambiguities to their foreign
subordinates.

Our HR department seems to expect that she (Foreign subordinate B) will be rotated to any
positions, such as sales or engineering, although I do not agree with it. (Japanese manager B.
Translation by the author.)

It may be difficult for him (Foreign subordinate C) to have a clear goal or purpose for his job
because it is unfortunately impossible for me to tell him clearly what to do in the short-term,
for example, in two months or three months. Although I am trying to set a goal for him as
much as possible, I am not confident that it is satisfactory information for him. (Japanese
manager C. Translation by the author.)

Even without adequate information from their managers on their future career paths
and the purposes of their jobs, Japanese subordinates can do their jobs sufficiently.
This might be because they are used to the high-context culture, or because they
can rather obtain information from other sources, such as documents written in
Japanese posted on the in-house bulletin boards and informal talks in Japanese
among Japanese colleagues. Therefore, Japanese subordinates can work without
seeking more detailed advice from their managers. This situation makes Japanese
managers concentrate more deeply on high-context communication even with their
foreign subordinates.
96 K. KOYAMA

Factor 2: Recognising the feelings of foreign subordinate (by Japanese managers)

Japanese managers explained that they had begun to think about the feelings of their
subordinates after a few months. This attitude was not present at the beginning. They
identified the importance of recognising feelings from their problematic experiences with
foreign subordinates.

After all, I sense his (Foreign subordinate F’s) strong reluctance when I assign a job to him that
is different from his skills. On many occasions, he has asked me how the job related to his
future from a professional perspective. Finally, I was convinced that he was very dissatisfied.
(Japanese manager F. Translation by the author.)

I am very conscious that I do not try to impose the viewpoints of Japanese employees on her
(Foreign subordinate H) when I sense that there is something different in her sensitivity or
ways of thinking. When she tells me something that seems wrong to me, I instinctively want
to convince her otherwise because her opinion is bothersome. However, after thinking about
her perspective carefully, I sometimes realise that my decision may not be correct. So, I am
quite conscious of listening to her before imposing my viewpoints. (Japanese manager H.
Translation by the author.)

After recognising the difficulties of high-context communication with their foreign

subordinates, Japanese managers changed their attitudes to consider their subordi­
nates’ feelings. Recognising difficulties in high-context communication can be regarded
as the first step of cultural synergy. Then, understanding their subordinates’ feelings
can be regarded as the second step of cultural synergy. Therefore, the first and second
steps of cultural synergy are key triggers for Japanese managers to change their
behaviours.

Factor 3: Realising the importance of diversity (by Japanese managers)

Through interactions with their foreign subordinates, Japanese managers realised that
diversity was quite important for their business success. Then, they began to question
their conventional management style.

I do not know whether this is because she (Foreign subordinate G) is Chinese or is in

a completely different position from her background as a researcher. She often asks me
simple questions such as “Why should I do this?” So, in that sense, I get quite stimulated by
her and learn new perspectives. (Japanese manager G. Translation by the author.)

Usually, I can do the job of my subordinate by myself although I do not do it. But, in his case
(Foreign subordinate I), I may not be able to do his tasks. When there are about 10 people
who are native English speakers, I cannot understand and summarise what they say freely
(but he can do it). It may be because of him that I can manage a subordinate who possesses
skills that I do not possess at all, and instead of having him fully under my control, I leave him
to make his own choices. To be honest, until this, I had thought that I could do the job of any
subordinate by myself if I wanted to. (Japanese manager I. Translation by the author.)

Realising the importance of diversity is a mindset change for Japanese managers, which
can be followed by behavioural changes. Once they recognise the importance of diversity,
they might be able to change their communication and management styles to accom­
modate those of their foreign subordinates.
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 97

Factor 4: Making communication explicit and proactive (by Japanese managers)

Once they realised the importance of diversity, as explained in Factor 3, some managers
changed their communication style, making it more explicit and taking more time for
proactive communication with their foreign subordinates.

Unlike Japanese employees, he (Foreign subordinate F) often asks me “Why should I do this?”
or “What is that task for?” So, it takes more time to reach an agreement with him, compared to
Japanese employees. In the case of Japanese employees, many of them do their jobs even if
I just say, “Do this, please”. He cannot do so at all. He always asks one or two questions, for
example, “What is that task for?” When I assign something to him, there is always a reason. So,
I began to explain it straightforwardly to him. (Japanese manager F. Translation by the
author.)

If I work only with Japanese colleagues and subordinates, it is enough to just say, “Please do it”.
I feel like she (Foreign subordinate G) has trained me to explain using more appropriate words.
(Japanese manager G. Translation by the author.)

We, Japanese people, tend to speak ambiguously. So, to a foreign subordinate, I try to explain
things that I do not talk about with Japanese subordinates. Once he (Foreign subordinate J)
understands and agrees with his assignment, he behaves positively about it. So, he needs to
be convinced that his current assignment is related to his future career. (Japanese manager J.
Translation by the author.)

The use of explicit and proactive communication to allow their foreign subordinates to
understand their jobs adequately is a behavioural change of Japanese managers.
Therefore, this behavioural change can be regarded as the third step of cultural
synergy.

Factor 5: Assigning roles related both to organisational development and to the

uniqueness of the foreign subordinate (by Japanese managers)
Japanese managers assigned their foreign subordinates to tasks based on their strengths
or unique perspectives. The Japanese managers considered the uniqueness of their
foreign employees beneficial to the development of their organisation.

His (Foreign subordinate I’s) great advantage is that he can speak both English and Japanese.
Initially, I expected him to work with IT knowledge. But he cannot make any proposal
document by himself because he does not yet have adequate knowledge and experience
in IT. So, I tell him some points on IT, then he writes a proposal document in English. Also, he
summarises an English document sent from overseas and shares it with me in Japanese. But
this is not just a translation. He needs to understand technical IT terms for appropriate
documentation. So, considering that he is still in his third year at this company, he is doing
very well. (Japanese manager I. Translation by the author.)

I try not to ignore her (Foreign subordinate H’s) uniqueness. I tend to follow the old ways that
I have learned at HR divisions or the old ways of this company. But she does not. It is great
that she can speak out when she feels something is strange. I found that the key is this feeling
of strangeness. (Japanese manager H. Translation by the author.)
98 K. KOYAMA

Assigning appropriate roles to their foreign subordinates is also a behavioural change for
Japanese managers. This management style aims to integrate organisational develop­
ment and the uniqueness of foreign subordinates. Therefore, it can be regarded as
another factor in the third step of cultural synergy.

Factor 6: Experiencing a sense of exclusion (by foreign subordinates)

In this survey, foreign employees revealed that they had initially experienced a sense of
exclusion. A reason for this sense of exclusion was that communication in the workplace
was only in the Japanese language. On the other hand, even those who were fluent in
Japanese also felt excluded. Thus, a management style based on homogeneity with little
focus on the uniqueness of subordinates results in their feeling of exclusion.
I think the root problem [is] I feel left out, and then when I think what is the problem behind
this, it is the communication. If I don’t understand what is going on, even though I am being
pulled, I don’t feel comfortable with that.

[. . .] I want to know their culture in the meeting, for example. But since they are in Nihongo
(Japanese), I don’t know what they think and what they have in mind. So, I don’t get this . . .
I want to know their soft skills of management, learn from that, but since [I only speak] a little
bit of Nihongo, I don’t think I can learn at some point, at some level. (Foreign subordinate B.)

Compared to Japanese employees, foreigners have a disadvantage even if they are good at
speaking Japanese. I have the potential to become less efficient at work than Japanese
employees. Then, I still feel great anxiety about how Japanese employees include me.

[. . .] My current job needs skills that I am not good at. Half of the skills required are things I am
not good at. So, I know these skills are necessary, but that I am weak in them. I feel like “Is it
really good even though I do not have enough skills for the job?” I want to do the job, of
course. But I cannot fully commit to my job because I think there is a more appropriate person
for it than me. (Foreign subordinate E. Translation by the author.)

As these comments show, initially Japanese managers do not care about the loneliness of
foreign employees who work in homogeneous work environments at Japanese compa­
nies. This attitude of Japanese managers makes foreign subordinates feel excluded.

Factor 7: Experiencing a sense of inclusion (by foreign subordinates)

Once foreign employees began to feel that their managers and colleagues accepted
them, they could experience a sense of inclusion.
Although I was very anxious, my current colleagues accept me a lot. I think I am an open
person. On the other hand, the Japanese are very shy. So, I often say things that they may
regard as verbally inappropriate. But they kindly accept me. I am quite surprised and glad that
they accept my uniqueness. (Foreign subordinate E. Translation by the author.)

It is vital to me that Japanese managers and colleagues accept my values and abilities. For
example, I said many things at the new employee training. I think I have a good influence on
others. First of all, the division head accepted my proposal document. He seemed to acknowl­
edge my position, and recognised my difficulty in contacting the other manager directly.
Then, he asked the manager to listen to me carefully. (Foreign subordinate H.Translation by
the author.)
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 99

Once Japanese managers recognise the emotions, values, opinions, and suggestions of
their foreign subordinates, the latter can feel accepted by their Japanese colleagues.
Japanese managers do not need to accept all opinions of their foreign subordinates.
Instead, it is important to consider the emotions, values, opinions, and suggestions of
their foreign subordinates so that they can achieve a sense of inclusion.

Factor 8: Committing to the organisation (by foreign subordinates)

Foreign employees are committed to their organisation with high motivation. However,
this attitude was not present from the beginning and began to emerge when their
managers explained the strategies and values of their projects.

[The name of a service] has recently become one of the most important keywords within
this company. It was released at the end of last year, and it is expected to be a more
competitive service internationally. I strongly agree with the strategy for the service. It
was quite difficult for me to join the project from the beginning. But, upon hearing from
my manager and senior colleagues that it was a rare and valuable experience,
I discovered that the project was quite interesting. By actually experiencing the project
for myself, I found something that I would not have had I not joined it. I also felt that
some tasks were interesting, and others were bothersome. Anyways, this project seemed
quite innovative, reflecting the willingness of our company to compete overseas. So,
I was very interested in this project. (Foreign subordinate D. Translation by the author.)

I would like to contribute to the global efforts of this company. But “the global efforts” are too
ambiguous. I am often asked how I will be doing that. Currently, I need to think about what
I can do as an HR person. (Foreign subordinate H. Translation by the author.)

Once foreign employees began to feel included at their workplaces and acquire informa­
tion about the purposes and strategies of their jobs, they showed their commitment to
their organisations. As mentioned in Factor 1, Japanese managers tend to engage in high-
context communication even with their foreign subordinates. Therefore, it is vital for
Japanese managers to explicitly explain the purposes and strategies to their foreign
subordinates so that they can commit to their organisations.

Factor 9: Redefining one’s own career vision as a change agent (by foreign
subordinates)
Foreign employees redefined their future career vision to become a change agent at their
companies. Although they were not completely satisfied with the current situations of
their companies, they were also not disappointed with the future potential of their
companies. They were keen to personally contribute to making their organisations
more globally competitive.

I joined this company because I want to change it. I am curious about how I can change this
company. But I am still in a lower position, and it is difficult to say how I can change the whole
organisation at this moment. So, I am trying to make my colleagues in my division or my team
understand my ideas. (Foreign subordinate F. Translation by the author.)
100 K. KOYAMA

I want to be a bridge between Japan and China for our company. I am very happy
to have many business trips overseas. I also want to create workplaces where not
only Japanese employees but also foreign employees and local staff at overseas
subsidiaries can fully commit to our company. I feel like this is one of my missions
at this company. (Foreign subordinate H. Translation by the author.)

Foreign employees interpreted their career vision as that of being change agents. This
career vision included the attribution of high value to their uniqueness and high
commitment to their organisations. They felt that their uniqueness would help them
offer different perspectives from Japanese employees. Therefore, they did not want to
be assimilated to Japanese employees. Simultaneously, they also did not want to be
isolated. They were keen on committing to their organisations as change agents, who
provide different values and suggestions from Japanese employees. This redefined
career vision of foreign employees could result in future business innovation for their
organisations.

Discussion
This study aimed to propose a hypothetical framework for future research, revealing how
Japanese managers can modify their mindset and behaviours and apply role definition
flexibility and middle-up-down management to their foreign subordinates. Nine factors
were created from the interviews with ten pairs of Japanese managers and their foreign
subordinates. Considering the nine factors, a hypothetical conceptual framework was
developed based on cultural synergy (see Figure 1).
The hypothetical framework was based on the three-step cultural synergy model with
the double dialectic processes of both Japanese managers and their foreign subordinates.
The first step is the problem or friction. Foreign employees experience a sense of exclu­
sion because their Japanese managers engage in high-context communication with an
assumption of homogeneity. At this stage, problems and frictions occur because both
Japanese managers and their foreign subordinates have different standpoints and do not
try to understand the viewpoints of the other.
The second step is mutual learning. Japanese managers begin to recognise the feelings
of foreign subordinates and realise the importance of diversity. This change in the attitude
of Japanese managers results in foreign subordinates experiencing a sense of inclusion.
The foreign subordinates, in turn, understand the strategies and values of their projects,
and they begin to commit to their organisations. In this phase, Japanese managers and
their foreign subordinates learn each other’s views.
The third step is geared toward organisational development. Japanese managers
change their communication styles to more explicit and proactive ones. They offer
assignments aiming at both organisational development and individual uniqueness
to their foreign subordinates. This can be regarded as inclusive leadership to
enhance uniqueness and belongingness, and as middle-up-down management char­
acterised by integration between organisational visions and individual behaviours.
On the other hand, foreign employees redefine their career visions, aiming to
become change agents. At this stage, both Japanese managers and foreign subordi­
nates change their behaviours, aiming to co-create a solution for organisational
development.
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 101

Figure 1. Hypothetical conceptual framework (Double dialectic model). Source: Author

This conceptual framework offers new perspectives to Japanese HRM literature.

Traditionally, it was considered that Japanese HRM needed homogeneity to carry out
middle-up-down management under flexibly defined roles. Nevertheless, this study
found that homogeneous culture could be replaced by cultural synergy and inclusive
leadership to apply middle-up-down management with role definition flexibility to
foreign subordinates. To achieve this result, Japanese managers need to recognise
the feelings of their foreign subordinates, realise the importance of diversity, make
communication explicit and proactive, and assign roles related both to organisational
development and the uniqueness of the foreign subordinates. On the other hand,
this framework may not apply to SSWs as they work with more specified roles. The
expectations for SSWs may be more immediate contributions to specific jobs than
innovation.
Additionally, role definition flexibility can be an advantage for cultural synergy and
inclusive leadership because both concepts assume that assignments should be mod­
ified based on the subordinate’s perspectives and uniqueness. Paradoxically, the find­
ings of this study can apply not only to foreign subordinates but also to Japanese
subordinates.
In Western management, people from any background can be hired if they have
adequate abilities for certain jobs. This process works because job descriptions include
specific requirements, such as skills, knowledge, and experiences. Thus, the integration of
individual strength and organisational productivity can be considered to occur at the
recruitment stage.
On the other hand, there are not clear job descriptions in Japanese HRM. Thus, it is
quite difficult to integrate individual strength and organisational productivity in the hiring
process of Japanese companies. Given more flexible roles post-recruitment, traditional
102 K. KOYAMA

Japanese HRM required homogeneity to integrate both. Instead, cultural synergy and
inclusive leadership could be another integration solution. Through cultural synergy and
inclusive leadership, each subordinate can become a change agent for the organisation’s
development. Therefore, cultural synergy and inclusive leadership can potentially be
more effective in Japanese HRM than Western HRM. This insight needs to be examined
in future research.

Limitations and future research

Although this study developed a new hypothetical framework for cross-cultural manage­
ment, it was based on findings from the interviews with only ten pairs of managers and
foreign subordinates. Therefore, future research that undertakes both qualitative and
quantitative surveys with a larger sample is necessary to verify the proposed framework.
Additionally, the foreign subordinates who participated in this study had worked at
their companies only for a few years. This made it difficult to generate a code of the actual
organisational development with foreign employees. To analyse their influence on orga­
nisational development, future research should include more experienced foreign
employees, although it takes time for many foreign employees to develop enough skills
to achieve impact on organisational development.

Acknowledgments
I am particularly grateful for the assistance provided by HR departments, Japanese managers, and
foreign employees who agreed to cooperate in the interviews.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Funding
This study was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Numbers JP 15K17125 and JP 18K12851.

Notes on contributor
Kenta Koyama received his Ph.D. from Keio University, Japan. His specialities include cross-cultural
management, organizational behaviour, and career development. He has also been served as
committee members of several governmental projects related to foreign workers at Japanese
companies.

ORCID
Kenta Koyama http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4151-9303
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 103

References
Abegglen, J. G. 1958. The Japanese Factory: Aspects of Its Social Organization. Glencoe, Ill: Free Press.
Adler, N. J., and A. Gundersen. 2007. International Dimensions of Organizational Behavior. 5th ed.
Mason: Cengage Learning.
Adler, N. J., and Z. Aycan. 2018. “Cross-cultural Interaction: What We Know and What We Need to
Know.” Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior 5 (1): 307–333.
doi:10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-032117-104528.
Adler, P. S. 1993. “The ‘Learning Bureaucracy’: New United Motor Manufacturing. Inc.” Research in
Organizational Behaviour 15: 111–194.
Ahmadjian, C. L., and U. Schaede. 2015. “The Impact of Japan on Western Management: Theory and
Practice.” In The Routledge Companion to Cross-Cultural Management, edited by N. Holden,
S. Michailova, and S. Tietze, 99–107, London: Routledge.
Conrad, H., and H. Meyer-Ohle. 2017. “Overcoming the Ethnocentric firm?–Foreign Fresh University
Graduate Employment in Japan as a New International Human Resource Development Method.”
The International Journal of Human Resource Management 30 (17): 1–19. doi:10.1080/
09585192.2017.1330275.
Council for the Promotion of Acceptance of Highly-Skilled Foreign Professionals. 2009 Accessed 9
August 2021. “Gaikoku kōdo jinzai ukeire seisaku no honkaku-teki tenkai o [Futher implementa­
tion of policy on acceptance of highly skilled professionals].” (Report No.). https://www.kantei.go.
jp/jp/singi/jinzai/dai2/houkoku.pdf
DISCO. 2018. “Gaikokujin ryūgakusei/kōdo gaikoku jinzai no saiyō ni kansuru kigyōchōsa
[Survey for companies on recruitment of foreign students and highly skilled professionals]
Accessed 9 August 2021.” https://www.disc.co.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/global_
kigyouchosa_201812.pdf
Dore, R. P. 1973. British Factory, Japanese Factory. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Endo, T., R. Delbridge, and J. Morris. 2015. “Does Japan Still Matter? Past Tendencies and Future
Opportunities in the Study of Japanese Firms.” International Journal of Management Reviews
17 (1): 101–123. doi:10.1111/ijmr.12039.
Froese, F. J., T. Sekiguchi, and M. P. Maharjan. 2017. “Human Resource Management in Japan and
South Korea.” In Routledge Handbook of Human Resource Management in Asia, edited by
F. L. Cooke, and S. Kim, 275–294, London: Routledge.
Gaikoku Jinzai No Ukeire/kyōsei Ni Kansuru Kankei Kakuryō Kaigi. 2019. “Gaikoku jinzai no ukeire/
kyōsei no tame no sōgō-teki taiōsaku ni tsuite [Enhancement of comprehensive policies for
acceptance and co-existence of foreign workers] Accessed 9 August 2021.” https://www.kantei.
go.jp/jp/singi/gaikokujinzai/kaigi/pdf/jujitsu_honbun.pdf
Hofstede, G., G. J. Hofstede, and M. Minkov. 2010. Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind:
Intercultural Cooperation and Its Importance for Survival. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Hofstede, G. 1980. Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-related Values. London:
Sage Publications.
House, R. J., P. W. Dorfman, M. Javidan, P. J. Hanges, and M. F. S. de Luque. 2013. Strategic Leadership
across Cultures: GLOBE Study of CEO Leadership Behavior and Effectiveness in 24 Countries. Thousand
Oaks: Sage Publications.
Huang, L., Y. Yang, and T. Sekiguchi. 2020. “Attractiveness of Japanese Firms to International Job
Applicants: The Effects of Belongingness, Uniqueness, and Employment Patterns.” Asian Business
& Management 19 (1): 118–144. doi:10.1057/s41291-019-00068-0.
Ichniowski, C., and K. Shaw. 1999. “The Effects of Human Resource Management Systems on
Economic Performance: An International Comparison of US and Japanese Plants.” Management
Science 45 (5): 704–721. doi:10.1287/mnsc.45.5.704.
Ishida, H. 1985. Nihon kigyō no kokusai jinji kanri [International human resource management of
Japanese company]. Tokyo: Nihon rōdō kyōkai.
James, R., and R. Jones. 2014. “Transferring the Toyota Lean Cultural Paradigm into India:
Implications for Human Resource Management.” International Journal of Human Resource
Management 25 (15): 2174–2191. doi:10.1080/09585192.2013.862290.
104 K. KOYAMA

Kono, T., and S. Clegg. 2001. Trends in Japanese Management: Continuing Strengths, Current Problems
and Changing Priorities. New York: Springer.
Lincoln, J. R., J. Olson, and M. Hanada. 1978. “Cultural Effects on Organizational Structure: The Case
of Japanese Firms in the United States.” American Sociological Review 43 (6): 829–847.
doi:10.2307/2094624.
Liu-Farrer, G. 2020. Immigrant Japan: Mobility and Belonging in an Ethno-nationalist Society. Ithaca,
NY: Cornell University Press.
Luo, Y., and O. Shenkar. 2011. “Toward a Perspective of Cultural Friction in International Business.”
Journal of International Management 17 (1): 1–14. doi:10.1016/j.intman.2010.09.001.
MHLW (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). 2017. “Heisei 29nNen shurō jōken sōgō chōsa [General
survey on working conditions in 2017] Accessed 9 August 2021.” https://www.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/
itiran/roudou/jikan/syurou/17/
MHLW (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). 2018. “Kōdo gaikoku jinzai ni totte Miryoku aru
shurō kankyō o seibi suru tame ni [For preparing work environment which is attractive for highly
skilled foreign professionals] Accessed 9 August 2021.” https://www.mhlw.go.jp/file/04-
Houdouhappyou-11655000-Shokugyouanteikyokuhakenyukiroudoutaisakubu-
Gaikokujinkoyoutaisakuka/486174.pdf
MHLW (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). 2019. “Gaikoku-jin koyō jōkyō no todokede matome
[Summary of submission of employment status of foreigners] Accessed 9 August 2021.” https://
www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/newpage_03337.html
Mor Barak, M. E. 2017. Managing Diversity: Toward a Globally Inclusive Workplace. Los Angeles: Sage
Publications.
Morishima, M. 1995. “The Japanese Human Resource Management System: A Learning
Bureaucracy.” In Human Resource Management on the Pacific Rim: Institutions, Practices, and
Attitudes, edited by L. F. Moore, and J. P. Devereaux, 119–150, New York: De Gruyter.
Morris, J., J. Hassard, and L. McCann. 2006. “New Organizational Forms, Human Resource
Management and Structural Convergence? A Study of Japanese Organizations.” Organization
Studies 27 (10): 1485–1511. doi:10.1177/0170840606067513.
Nihon keizai saisei honbu. 2017. “Mirai tōshi senryaku 2017 [Growth strategy 2017] Accessed 9
August 2021.” https://www.kantei.go.jp/jp/singi/keizaisaisei/pdf/miraitousi2017_inttv_prgrm.pdf
Nonaka, I., and H. Takeuchi. 1995. The Knowledge-creating Company: How Japanese Companies
Create the Dynamics of Innovation. New York: Oxford University Press.
Ouchi, W. G. 1981. Theory Z: How American Business Can Meet the Japanese Challenge. Reading, MA:
Addison-Wesley.
Pascale, R. T., and A. G. Athos. 1981. The Art of Japanese Management. New York: Warner Books.
Peters, T. J., and R. R. H. Waterman. 1982. In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America’s Best Run
Companies. New York: Harper & Row.
Pudelko, M. 2005. “Japanese Human Resource Management: From Being a Miracle to Needing One?”
In Japanese Management: The Search for a New Balance between Continuity and Change, edited by
R. Haak, and M. Pudelko, 184–212, London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Recruit. 2018 Accessed 9 August 2021. “Chūto saiyō jittai chōsa [Survey on recruitment of mid-
career workers].” https://www.works-i.com/research/works-report/item/180627_midcareer.pdf
Schwartz, S. H. 2006. “A Theory of Cultural Value Orientations: Explication and Applications.”
Comparative Sociology 5 (2): 137–182. doi:10.1163/156913306778667357.
Sekiguchi, T., F. J. Froese, and C. Iguchi. 2016. “International Human Resource Management of
Japanese Multinational Corporations: Challenges and Future Directions.” Asian Business &
Management 15 (2): 83–109. doi:10.1057/abm.2016.5.
Sekiguchi, T., N. Takeuchi, T. Takeuchi, S. Nakamura, and A. Ebisuya. 2019. “How Inpatriates
Internalize Corporate Values at Headquarters: The Role of Developmental Job Assignments and
Psychosocial Mentoring.” Management International Review 59 (5): 825–853. doi:10.1007/s11575-
019-00401-x.
 CONTEMPORARY JAPAN 105

Sekiguchi, T. 2013. “Theoretical Implications from the Case of Performance-based Human Resource
Management Practices in Japan: Management Fashion, Institutionalization and Strategic Human
Resource Management Perspectives.” International Journal of Human Resource Management
24 (3): 471–486. doi:10.1080/09585192.2012.703414.
Shenkar, O. 2001. “Cultural Distance Revisited: Towards a More Rigorous Conceptualization and
Measurement of Cultural Differences.” Journal of International Business Studies 32 (3): 519–535.
doi:10.1057/jibs.2011.40.
Shenkar, O. 2012. “Beyond Cultural Distance: Switching to a Friction Lens in the Study of Cultural
Differences.” Journal of International Business Studies 43 (1): 12–17. doi:10.1057/jibs.2011.42.
Shore, L. M., A. E. Randel, B. G. Chung, M. A. Dean, K. Holcombe Ehrhart, and G. Singh. 2011.
“Inclusion and Diversity in Work Groups: A Review and Model for Future Research.” Journal of
Management 37 (4): 1262–1289. 37. doi:10.1177/0149206310385943.
Tung, R. L., and G. K. Stahl. 2018. “The Tortuous Evolution of the Role of Culture in IB Research: What
We Know, What We Don’t Know, and Where We are Headed.” Journal of International Business
Studies 49 (9): 1167–1189. doi:10.1057/s41267-018-0184-2.
Watanabe, H. 2010. “Concerning Revisions in the Foreign Trainee and Technical Intern System.”
Japan Labor Review 7 (3): 43–67.
World Values Survey. WVS WAVE 7. Retrieved 23 July 2019, from http://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/
WVSContents.jsp
Yanadori, Y. 2018. “HRM Research on Japanese Organizations in the Twenty-first Century: Review
and Emerging Research Topics Nakano, T .” In Japanese Management in Evolution, 293–311.
London: Routledge.