Japanese management advice repeats one rule for scolding: not in front of others. An article in President Online says that scolding is basically one-on-one. A career guide by Mynavi Agent says that being scolded in front of others hurts a person’s pride, even when there is a reason for it, and suggests a private room where voices do not carry.
Bad News Fast
In December 2023, Toyota chairman Toyoda Akio spoke about the certification scandal at Daihatsu. He said it came down to how employees are treated every day, and used an English phrase: “There is the phrase Bad News Fast.”
He then described what often happens to it in practice: “People are told, bring me the bad news. I was told that too, long ago. When I actually brought it, I was scolded.”
Five Minutes Early
Gofun mae kōdō means acting five minutes early. A first-year newsletter from a Japanese junior high school defines it as gathering at the place of an activity five minutes before it begins. It adds that in the adult world, too, the rule is considered “the key to trust.”
The newsletter also does the arithmetic. When one late person delays the start, the time lost is the delay multiplied by the number of people.
The Vocabulary of Standing
Shin’yō (信用): trust, credit. The Daijisen dictionary defines it as judging, from a person’s past actions and achievements, that the person can be trusted.
Menboku (面目): face. A person’s standing, position and honor in the eyes of the world and of the people around. The dictionary gives menboku o tamotsu, to keep face, and menboku o tsubusu, to crush face.
Mentsu (面子): face, standing. The dictionary gives mentsu ga tsubureru, face is crushed, and mentsu ni kakawaru, face is at stake.
Interim Report
A Japanese training company’s guide to raising new employees divides reports into two kinds. The shūryō hōkoku, the final report, is required when a task is done. The chūkan hōkoku, the interim report, is made while the work is still in progress, to share how far it has gone or to confirm the method.
The guide says that the interim report lets the person who assigned the work see that it is moving. It can also stop a new employee who is heading in the wrong direction.
Botchan
In Natsume Sōseki’s novel Botchan, published in 1906 in the magazine Hototogisu, the narrator was born and raised in Tokyo. He takes a post at a middle school in a country town in Shikoku. His pupils write Tenpura sensei, Mr. Tempura, on the blackboard to make fun of him.
Floating Profit
The business principles of the Sumitomo group, Eigyō no yōshi, have two articles. The first says that Sumitomo’s business shall value trust, make certainty its rule, and so aim for lasting strength and prosperity.
The second allows the business to grow or shrink as the times change. But it shall never chase furi, floating profit, or act rashly.
Long-Term, Stable Procurement
In 2024, Toyota presented its purchasing policy at an event of the Japan Auto Parts Industries Association. The aim is to buy the best goods in the world, at the lowest cost, at the right time, and chōki anteiteki ni, in a long-term and stable way. One section is titled “Mutual prosperity based on mutual trust.”
Main Bank
Japanese companies often concentrate their borrowing, their deposits and their transfers at one bank, the mein banku, main bank. A business guide describes a tacit understanding. When the borrower falls into difficulty, the main bank watches over it warmly.
The guide also notes a limit. This support may end when the trouble comes from the borrower’s own poor management.
The Vocabulary of Regular Custom
Tokuisaki (得意先): a customer who always buys from one, or a partner one trades with as a matter of course. A dictionary gives torihikisaki, trading partner, as its synonym.
Kongo tomo yoroshiku onegai itashimasu (今後ともよろしくお願いいたします): we ask for your continued favor from now on. A business magazine explains that the phrase expresses a relationship that will continue over a long span.