Japanese Corporate Culture

Decision-Making
Class Codes:
CB42119, CM42102, CD42102

Class 1
Chiaki Suematsu
April 11, 2024
chiaki.suematsu.d2@tohoku.ac.jp
 Decision-Making
● When you are the leader of an
organization or a group, you have to
make decisions.
● Questions:
● In Japan how do they make decisions?
● Are the ways they decide the same as
those of the rest of the world?
● For the future what should you know?
 Goal of the Course
● Understand the basic principles of consensus
decision-making.
● Through the understandings you are
expected to work as an effective facilitator
who feels comfortable in leading discussions
carried out by Japanese people and in
conducting meetings in your home country.
● Namely, you can conduct group discussions
effectively.
 Course Contents
● Lectures
● Group Discussions
● Case Studies
● Presentations
● Grade:
● The final group presentation and group written
assignment will account for 30% and 20% of the
final grade, respectively.
● The 3 to 4 individual assignments and the overall
class participation will contribute to 30% and 20%,
respectively. (Graduate students will have more
assignments.)
 Textbooks

● Ruth Taplin, Decision-Making & Japan: A Study

of Corporate Japanese Decision-Making and
Its Relevance to Western Companies,
Routledge, 1995
● Sam Kaner, Facilitator’s Guide to Participatory
Decision-Making, Jossey-Bass Inc., 2007
● Copies will be posted in the Google Classroom.
 Grades and Schedule
● Class Participation
● Missing more than three classes will be
regarded as no class participation.
● The instructor grades your statements in
the classes.
● Schedule
● Depending on the number of the enrolling
students, one more class may be
dedicated to the final presentation. Will
announce the revision some time in May.
 Instructor Brief Experience
● Engineer in Japan 1980-1989
● Studied at US Business School 1989-1991
● Managed a small US Subsidiary
1991- 2004
● Worked in Japan 2004-2005
● Managed mid-sized US subsidiaries
2005-2009
● Chairman of Neighborhood Association
2012-2022
 The TA/Supporter
TA: Ms. Jessica Lane Rose
Supporter: Mｒ. Nicola Kawawa

They will join and guide your group

discussions when necessary.

Graduate students taking CD42102 or

CM42102, please notify me at this time.
 Corporate Decision Making
Simple Case 1

● Assume you work for a limousine company

which offers transportation services to
customers. It needs to replace 20 limousine
cars.
● The objective is to increase profits.
● There are four departments, which report to
General Manager: Maintenance Dept,
Operations Dept, Sales Dept, Finance Dept.
 Limousine Cars

Source: Wikipedia, “Limousine”

 The Limousine Company
Organization Chart

President

General
Manager

Maintenan
Operations Sales Finance
ce
Dept. Dept. Dept.
Dept.
 Corporate Decision Making
Simple Case 1

● How are you going to decide the model?

● What kind of car would each department like
to have from their view points?
Maintenance Dept.
Operations Dept.
Sales Dept.
Finance Dept.
 Corporate Decision Making
Group Discussion

Unfortunately, no car satisfies the needs of all

the departments.
● The President has authorized the General
Manager to decide. He believes the new car
will increase the profit immediately.
● How are you going to decide?
 Corporate Decision Making
Group Discussion
Form groups consisting of 5 members(close to 5
as much as possible).
● Assign the roles: General Manager and four
managers representing each department.
● The General Managers report to the President
of the company. (Some department managers
may have to answer specific questions.)
● Conduct the group discussions and report your
decisions to the instructor(President).
Maintenance Dept, Operations Dept, Sales Dept, Finance Dept
 Available Cars
(The cars are not related to the pictures.)
Item/Models Car 1 Car 2 Car 3 Car 4
Style (5 the best) 5 1 3 3
Interior Space 2 5 3 2
Interior Luxury 5 1 3 2
Fuel Efficiency 1 1 3 5
Ride Quality 5 1 3 1
Drivability 5 1 3 2
Max. # of Passengers 2 5 3 2
Spare Parts Avail 1 2 3 5
Price (5 the lowest) 1 1 3 5
 Discussion Report

● The General Managers(GM) report the

decisions.
● Were the decisions made by the GM, the
consensus, the majority vote, or something
else?
 Self-Introduction
(If the time allows)

● Please introduce yourselves briefly while

covering the following:
1. Where you are from.
2. The biggest decision you have ever made as
a leader.
3. If not, the biggest decision about yourself.
 Decision-Making Process

● The definition of decision-making:

Decision-making is to determine and
choose the best alternative available to you
and the group.
● The questions are:
● What alternative, value, probability
● How
● Who
● When
 What Are Alternatives?
● List available alternatives.
● List attributes (related information) of the
alternatives.
● Value, probability, or operability are
necessary attributes.

Question to answer:
● Are attributes accurate, not arbitrary?
 The Reading Assignment

● Please start reading the 1st chapter of the

first textbook, Decision-Making in Japan,
which has already been posted in the
Google Classroom.

● Please fill in the form Jessica posted on

April 8 if you decide to take the course.