The HRMS of Japan组织设计与人力资源(清华大学,王一江)

The HRMS of JapanYijiang WangTsinghua University

I. The Context

1. Japan’s competitive advantageOne of the most successful in international marketplace, a truly “export-driven” economy. (JP Begin, p.33.) Led the world in annual increases in productivity, averaging 6% in 195089 (1.9 for the US).

2. Source of Japan’s competitive advantage

1) factor conditionsJapan has a paucity of natural resources (except rainfall and coastal lines) Large pool of engineers by education R&D investment one of the highest among advanced nations – mostly private spending. 4

2. Source of Japan’s competitive advantage

Interventionist government (like Sweden and Germany) with - planning, - ownership, (telecommunication and railways have

been privatized) - restrictions on plant closings and restructuring - public resources to cushion economic change, and protection of domestic markets. - collective bargaining legislation patterned after the US, but labor legislation is not as extensive as in Germany and Sweden.

Cooperative labor relationship at enterprise level

2. Source of Japan’s competitive advantage

2) Demand conditionJapan has one of the largest home markets with demanding and sophisticated buyers.

3) Related and supporting industryClose supply-demand relationship a major factor for low cost, high quality output.6

2. Source of Japan’s competitive advantage

4) Firm rivalry

Firms compete on long-term basis to achieve employment stability Institutional ownership enables the longterm orientation. Large # of producers in auto, audio equipment, copy machine, semiconductor, is conducive to domestic competition and contributed to international success.

II. Japanese HRMS

1. Work systems

1) Lean production 2) 69% of workers in auto industry are in teams (17.3% in US) 3) Jobs are very demanding for workers, have a broad range of tasks, and give workers more autonomy. 4) Employees are authorized to stop the machine and expected to fix any problems on spot9

2. Development systems

1) External education

Over 90% of the population finishes the high school Vocational education is of secondary importance. 40% of high school graduates attend universities, which is necessary for a managerial career. Tokyo U contributes disproportionately to high level government and corporate executives.10

2. Development systems

1) External education

More emphasis on general education, engineering, and less on professional management training. Entrance to high schools and colleges is highly competitive. Semi-institutionalized relationship between schools and employers.

2. Development systems

2) Training within the firm

Community college equivalent in-house training institutions are highly developed. J-firms spend more than other countries per employee on training. Japanese auto plants, for examp

le, spend 370-80 hrs per year per worker on training, compared with 46 hrs for US and 173 for European plants. All new workers go through a one week to two month orientation.12

2. Development systems

2) Training within the firm

Much more is spent on production workers than managers. Note that most managers also started from the bottom. In-house training is more emphasized. Training contents are broad. A major purpose of training is to learn soft skills for team work.

2. Development systems

2) Training within the firm

On-the –job training is important. Senior workers and team leaders are responsible for bringing junior workers up to speed. Seniority in promotion ensures senior people’s willingness to share their K&S. Job rotation is extensively used for employee development. A survey indicated that in 1989 job rotation (0=none, 4=frequent) was 3.0 in J, 0.9 in the US and 1.9 for all Europe.14

2. Development systems

2) Training within the firm

Quality circle, group activities also contribute to training. Promotion is typically accompanied with more training. 43% of large firms use outside correspondence courses to improve the ability of workers to do their present jobs. Specialized external training institutions are also developing more quickly now. Government’s role is quite limited.15

3. Staffing

Japan has the most developed internal labor markets largely insulated from external labor markets. 1) Inflow

Hire high quality high school and college students at the beginning of their career. Enter at entry level. Screening of job candidates is strict, with extensive background checking and reliance on schools for information.16