大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 Contents Preface １．English as Lingua Franca １）English in Japan ２）English Learning ２．English in Business １）Foreign Companies ２）Japanese Companies ３）English Proficiency – How to measure ３．English and Culture １）Japanese Behavior and Its Roots — How English is used in relation to that ２）Differences in Customs ３）Interpretation Differences ４）Preconception ４．Conclusion
PREFACE
InJapan,manyfacetsofourdailylivesaredependentonforeign countries and vice versa, and this can be considered as a large-scale mutualglobaldependence.LargenumbersofJapanesenationalstravel abroad,whilemanyvisitorscometoJapanforstudy,business,orpleasure.一
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Recently,inadditiontoJapanese,instructionsortouristinformationsigns havealsobeenwritten inEnglish together withChinese andKorean. WeallliveinaninternationalenvironmentevenifweliveinJapan,and sometimes,weregretthelackofgoodlanguageskillstocommunicatewith foreigntravelers.However,suchdisappointmentandregretlastonlyfor thatmomentintimeandarequicklyforgotteninnotime.ManyJapanese understandthenecessityofEnglishcommunicationability,butdonotfeela pressingneedforit. ThereisnodoubtthatEnglishisacommonmediumforinternational communication.Inthebusinessfield,transactionshavebecomecross-border, and companies' activities have expanded from domestic to internationalmarkets.Improvementtotechnologyhasalsoaccelerated overseasactivities.Thistrendofglobalizationisnotonlylimitedtothe businessfieldsbutalsotoindividualsthroughchannelssuchastravelling andonlineshoppingfromoverseassites.Thesesituationsclearlyshowus thatEnglishcapabilityisofprimaryimportance.TheEnglishthatisrequired isneitherAmericannorBritish,butoneasacommoncommunicationtool, asalinguafranca,whichistheintentioninthispaper. Companiesrequirepeoplewiththeabilitytoworkeffectivelyinan internationalenvironment.Theyprefertohirebothnewgraduatesand mid-careerprofessionalswithadequateEnglishcapabilitiestosatisfytheir businessneeds,andthiswillcontinueandbecomemoreaggressiveinthe nearfuture.ThisdemandforEnglishproficiencyatJapanesecompaniesas wellasforeignoneshasbeenaroundforalongtimeandwillnoteaseany timesoon. Reflectingtheneedsinbusinessandsociety,acquiringEnglishskills havebecomeanunavoidablesubject.Effectivemutualcommunication is imperative when considering business transactions and the large numbersofpeoplewhoenterandleavethecountry.TheneedforEnglish communication hasbeen well recognized foralong time. What was
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 initially"nicetohave"hasnowbecome"needtohave"foralmosteveryone. Accordingly,learningEnglishhasbecomeoneofthemostcriticaland urgentaswellaspopularsubjectatschoolsandinbusinesses.Withlowor noEnglishcapability,companiesmaypotentiallylimittheirglobalgrowth andsuccessinaseverelycompetitiveworld.ThelevelofEnglishproficiency determinesthefutureofacompany. Eventoday,mostlearnersdonotseemtohavegreatsuccessdespite spendingagooddealoftimetostudyEnglish.Studentswhowishtolearn conversationtendtoputgrammarandvocabularyaside.Conversationis powerfulbutitdoesnotexistasanindependentskill.Effectivelanguage communicationiscomposedofgrammarandvocabularyinbothpassive andproductiveskills. However,oncewebecomefamiliarwithEnglish,wemaymisunderstand andcauseproblemspresumingourcommunicationability.Overconfidence inlanguageproficiencyeasilycausesmiscommunicationandmakesforan unpleasantatmosphere.Ourpreconceptionsmayalsocreateobstaclesin communication.Languagehasbeencultivatedinanenvironmentwhereit ismainlyused.WhenwespeakinEnglishwithNorthAmericans,ourwords areperceivedwithrespecttotheirculturalcontext,eventhoughwemaybe speakingEnglishwithaJapaneseunderstanding.SpeakinginEnglishisnot limitedtojustnativeEnglishspeakersbutalsoamongnon-nativespeakers, suchaswithotherJapanese,KoreansandMexicans.Whenwespeakwith someonefromadifferentculturalbackground,wemayhavedifferent interpretations,whichleadstoappreciationordisapprovaloftheother party.Wemustknowthedifferencesofculturetopracticeandbehave accordingly.Thoughitmaymakeperfectsensetosomeoneofthesame culturalbackground,itmaynotbethesametoanotherfromadifferent culturalenvironment.FluencyinEnglishdoesnotmeanthatapersonhas enoughknowledgeofdifferentculturesandconsequently,theabilityto respondappropriately.Thelackofculturaldifferenceawarenesscauses 三
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion criticalmisunderstanding.Itisriskytomakeajudgementfromourown perceptionorpreconception,whichcanonlybeappliedtoourownsociety. Communicationconsistsoflanguageandbehavior.Languagelearningisan indispensablefactoringlobalbusinessbutknowingbehaviordifferences anditsappropriateinterpretationarealsoimportant.Inaddition,logical andpersuasiveskills,whicharenottaughtaspartoflanguagelearning,are alsorequiredontopoflanguageskills,especiallyinabusinessenvironment wherecommunicationmaybemorecontroversial. TheauthorstartedhiscareeratanEnglishlanguageinstitute（British） inJapanwherehewasinvolvedinEnglishtestdevelopmentforJapanese businesspersonnel.SincethenhehasspenthisentirecareeratJapan-basedmultinationalcompanies（AmericanandSwiss）,andataU.S.based AmericancompanywhichwasacquiredbyaJapanesefirm.Through hisprofessionalcareer,hehashadmanyopportunitiestoobserveand experiencemistakes,beexposedtothedifficultiesinexplanationand theperceptiongaponthejob.Healsohashadmultipleopportunitiesto considerhowEnglishwasrequiredandhowitworked,aswellasother communicationchallengesandstruggles.
１．EnglishasLinguaFranca
NoonewilldenythatEnglishisthemostcommonandpowerful languageintheglobalenvironment.Comparingthepopulationoffirst languagespeakers,wecaneasilyfindthatthelargestoneisChinese, covering1,299millionpeople（mainlyinChina）,followedbySpanish with442millionspeakers,thenEnglishwith378million,andArabicwith 315millionpeople.Japaneseisalsousedby128millionpeoplewhichis rankedatninthbasedonpopulation1.WhileChinesehasthemostnumber ofspeakers,itislimitedbyitsgeographicalcoverage.Chineselanguage 四大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 traininghasbeenprovidedatmanyschoolsanduniversitiesandmany peoplelearnit.Suchinvestmentandeffortscanbeattributedtothefast-growingeconomyandincreasingbusinessopportunitiesinChina.The reasonbehinditisthatalargenumberofmanufacturingfacilitiesinthe U.S.,Japan,andEuropehavemovedtoChinatopursuealowercostof manufacturing,andtodevelopandexpandtheirdistributioninthelarge growingmarket.Accordingly,themainmotivationoflearningChineseis totargetthelocalbusinessesthere,notforcrossborderneeds.Similarly, Arabichasthethirdlargestnumberofspeakers,butitsusageisalsolimited geographically.AsforSpanish,thecountriesandregionswhereitisused arescatteredglobally.Whilethatisapositiveelementasagloballanguage, learningSpanishasasecondlanguageisrankedninthandrelativelyweak. Ontheotherhand,Englishisapowerfulinternationallanguageandhas greatinfluence.ThankstothestrongeconomicsuperpoweroftheU.S.and geographicalcoverageduetoformerterritoriesandcoloniesoftheUnited Kingdom,ithasbeenrecognizedasanofficialorquasi-official（second） languagein54statesandusedby2,107millionpeople2.Accordingly, Englishisthemostcommonandeffectivelanguagewhenwelookatthe internationalenvironmentasawhole. １）English in Japan AfterWorldWarIIin1945,Japanrebuiltherindustriesfromruinsin aremarkablyshorttime.Backthen,Japanesebusinessesenjoyedfavorable foreignexchange（FX）rates,i.e.,Japanesecurrencywasweak,andit workedfavorablyforexportingandunfavorablyforimport.However,the PlazaAccordin1985madetheFXrateflexibleandthatresultedinabout adoubleappreciationoftheJapanesecurrencyinayearwhichledto thebubbleeconomyinJapan.ItpromptedbusinessesinJapantomake enormousinvestmentsoverseasandacceleratedtheneedforlearning English.InspiteofthesevereFXratenow,Japanhasenjoyedastrongand 五
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion stableeconomywhichhasmotivatedmanyforeigncompaniesandpeople toenterthecountry. SincethedomesticmarketinJapancanonlybescaledbythatmuch, manycompanieshaveexpandedtheirbusinessoverseas.Also,Japanese peoplehave enjoyedtravelingabroadthankstoagood FXrate.Itis reportedthatnearly18millionJapanesetraveledoverseasandover27
millionforeignerscametoJapanin20173.ThereisnodoubthavingEnglish
capabilitiescancontributetoourliveswhereverwego.
In2017,therewereabout1.3millionforeignersworkinginJapan
which is 18% higher compared to the previous year4. These foreign
nationalshavefoundworknationwideandacrossallindustries.Wesee manynon-Japanesepeoplearoundus,suchasonthetrain,atstores, schoolsandhospitals.SomeofthemdonotspeakJapaneseandmostof usarenotabletocommunicatewiththemintheirlanguages.Ourcurrent supportonJapaneselanguageandeverydayassistancemaynotbeenough forthemtofeelcomfortableandliveeasilyinthiscountry.Majorityof theseforeignnationalsaremainlyemployedasunskilledworkers,but employmentofforeignworkerswillbeexpandedtomuchwiderjobranges includingtheprofessionalfield.ItmightbeatrendthatjobsinJapanmay notnecessarilybeperformedbyJapanese,andinthefuture,nationality maynotbeanimportantissueaslongasonehasthecapabilitytoprovide therequiredservices.WehavetorecognizethefactthatEnglishhasbeen taughtasasecondlanguageinmanycountries,andmanyforeignerscan communicateinEnglish.IfmanyJapaneseareabletouseEnglishasa commoncommunicationtool,notnecessarilybeingfluentbutsomehow communicable,itmayhelpmoreforeignerscometoJapanandbuildgood relationshipsinsociety.Japanesepeoplehavespenthugeamountsoftime onEnglishstudies,especiallyatschool.Ifweputsomemoreeffortinit, wewillbeabletoimproveourcommunicationabilitieswithotherEnglish speakersintheworld. 六
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 ２）English Learning WhatisthemotivationtolearnEnglishandhowisittaughtatformal education?InspiteoftheimportanceofEnglish,manystudentsdonot feeltheurgencytostudyanduseEnglish.Theymainlyspendtimeoniton examinationsatschools,entranceexaminations,promotion,orjobhunting. ThemotivationistogetahigherGradePointAverage（GPA）ashigher scoresofEnglishtestsaffectscareerdevelopmentadvantageously.Many studentswonderhowlongittakestobeabletocommunicateinEnglish effectivelywhilestudyingit. Itissaidthat3,000hoursisrequiredforaJapanesepersontoreach anappropriatelevelofEnglishskill,whilemuchfewerhoursarerequired forEuropeans.Thelanguagedistance5betweenEnglishandmostEuropean languagesisclosercomparedtotheonebetweenEnglishandJapanese. ManyJapanesebelievethattheyhavestudiedEnglishforatleastsixyears overthecourseoftheirformaleducation.AccordingtotheGovernment CurriculumGuidance,thefollowingunit-hoursareprovidedtoEnglishor foreignlanguagelearningasaguideline: 70unit-hoursatelementaryschool= 53hours 420unit-hoursatjuniorhighschool=350hours __525unit-hoursatseniorhighschool=437hours 1,015unit-hoursintotal =840hours Theguidancesaysthatone-unithourmeans45minutesatelementary school,50minutesatbothjuniorandseniorhighschools.Thisshowsthat weonlyspendalittleover800hoursstudyingEnglishformallyinschool. 800hoursisequivalentto100daysifwespend8hoursadaystudying. One-unithouris90minutesatuniversitywhichisequivalentto1.5hours. Ifuniversitystudentsspendtwo-unithoursaweekfor30weeksayear （1.5x2x30）,thatonlymakes90hoursayear.Evenifthestudentstudiesfor 180hoursovertwoyears,itbarelyreaches1,000hoursintotal.Learning Englishforsixyearsseemstobeanillusion. 七
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion Iftherequirementof3,000hoursiscorrect,weneedtotripleor quadrupletheamountoftimecurrentlyspentonstudyingEnglish.3,000 hoursisalmostequivalenttoonefullyearspending8hoursadayinan Englishenvironment.Itisobviousthatwehaveashortageoflearning hours.Anotherissuethataffectslearningiscapacity.Whenweleavethe classroom,wearesurroundedbyourlocallanguage.Ourendeavorsat learningEnglisharepauseduntilthenextlessonandourmemorystartsto getweaker.
Translating from English to Japanese and vice versa has been a traditionalteachingmethodatschool,andsomeclaimthatitprevents studentsfromeffectivelearning.Itisnotalwaysthecase.Intranslation exercises,basicgrammaticalknowledgeisrepeatedlyreviewedwitha selectionofrightwords.Thepurposeofdoingtranslationexercisesaspart ofstudyingistoreinforcethesetrulesofsentencestructure.Translation workitselfisnotthepurpose,butisanassistingtooltohelpusunderstand andbuildsentences. Recently,astrongdesiretobuildEnglishspeakingskillshascomeup, andthathasresultedinfocusingonEnglishconversation.Itisattractive forstudentsbecauseitismorevisiblecomparedtoreadingandwriting, andmakesthemlookniceandsmart.Parentswhorealizedthevaluealso encourageit.Whenpeopletravelabroad,itmustbefunandhelpfulif theycanmakeaself-introduction,orgoshoppinginEnglish.Itissaid thatlisteningaccountsfor46%ofourdailycommunication,and30%for speaking6.Accordingly,mostpartofourdailylifeisoccupiedbythese two,whichconversationiscomposedof.Atbusinessmealsorinformal meetings, conversation topics sometimes extend to a wide range of themessuchaspolitics,economy,history,religion,disasters,national priorities,andevenGreekMythology.Weareexpectedtoparticipatein thediscussionandexpressourownopinions.Eventhoughwemayhave goodconversationskills,effectiveconversationcannotbematerialized
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 withouttherequiredgeneralknowledge.Whatsupportsconversationisa combinationofknowledgeandwisdom,andthisincludesagoodgraspof generalknowledge.Dailyconversationisagoodstart,butnotenoughfor business.Therearebenefitsofconversationtrainingatjuniorhighorhigh school.However,ifweplacetoomuchimportanceonconversationskills andneglectgrammarandvocabulary,anyamountofhardworkwillnot bringaboutthedesiredresultofbeingacapableEnglishspeaker.Though manypeopleemphasizeonspeakingskills,noconversationiseffectively performed without listening capabilities. Conversation is a two-way communication,andsentencesareformedbygrammarandvocabulary.
Grammar is the general rule of language, in listening, speaking, readingandwriting.Anysentencethatdeviatesfromtherulefailstosend ameaningfulmessage.Grammaristheacademicsummaryofanalysisand categorizationofhowalanguageisbuilt.Itisnotanindependentsubject tolearningeneral,butavitaltooltounderstandandtocreatesentences. Thevolumeofvocabularyisalsoanindispensableportionoflanguage effectiveness.Ifwehavemanyalternativewordsinmemory,differentwords canbeusedtoclarifywhatisintendedtosayifthelistenerseemstobe confused.Inbusinessenvironment,readingandwritingabilitiesarecritical inadditiontoconversation.Tomakelanguageeffective,grammarand buildingvocabularyshouldneverbedisregarded.
２．EnglishinBusiness
ManyJapaneseareoftensurprised,evenshocked,tofindoutthattheir graspofEnglishisnotadequateforeffectivecommunication,especially whentheyleavethecountryforthefirsttime.Webecomeworriedabout whatwehadlearnedformorethansixyearsinschool.Oncewestartliving inaforeigncountry,evenasavisitor,westartfacinglanguagechallenges. 九Effect iv e Business Communicat ion Despitesayingandrepeatingwhatwesaidagainandagain,orusingother expressions,itdoesnotseemtotranslateacrossmanysituations.Itcanbe quitedifficultatthebeginningtoconveywhatwewanttoputacross.There isnocluewhattheproblemsare,whetheritisthepronunciation,accent, wordselection,grammaticalerror,behavior,orsomethingelse.Ithappens eventothosewithhighacademicEnglishscores.Thisiscalled"language shock"7.Togetherwithculturaldifferences,disappointment,frustration, irritation,depressionanddismaymaycomeup. ManycompaniesaskforEnglishproficiencyforbothcurrentandnew employees,regardlessiftheyarenewgraduatesormid-careerprofessionals. Itisnotlimitedtoforeigncapitalcompaniesoroverseasassignees,butlocal employeeswhoworkdomestically.Today’sbusinessarenaisaglobalone, andEnglishisa"must."Englishtrainingmaybeprovidedbythecompanies, butitiscostlyandtakestimetoreachtheexpectedproficiencylevel,and howlongittakesisunknown.Companiesarenotwillingtoinvesttheir limitedresourcesinthingstheyareuncertainabout.Itiseconomicaltohire peoplewithenoughlanguageskillsorwithhighpotentialtoreachacertain levelinarelativelyshortperiodoftime.Hiringtalentedpersonnelallows foranimmediatecontributiontothecompany.Fromthispoint,thoughit isstillchallengingformanycompanies,hiringnon-JapanesewithEnglish capabilitiesisandwillbeapossiblesolution.Inmanycases,employees maynotnecessarilybeJapaneseforthepurposeofnegotiatingbusiness transactionsoverseas.Thissituationsuggeststousthatwe（Japanese）do nothavetheluxurytobecomplacent. Therearemanybusinessopportunitiesoverseas.Whenstartingany businessoverseas,companiesneedtocontactandstartdiscussionswith thelocals.Theseincludetheauthorities,professionals,engineers,suppliers, potentialdistributorsandallintherelatedfields.Anyoverseasassignees wouldhavetobuildrelationshipswiththeselocalrepresentativesand developacommunicationnetworkinboththecountryandtheindustry. 一〇
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Then, it becomes necessary to decide on acommon language to use, otherwisebothpartieswouldhavetoenlistthehelpoftranslationservices. Thealternativesareeithertheirhomecountry’slanguageorthehost country’sorathirdone.
Regardless of the origin of the corporation, as far as worldwide operationgoes,itisrequiredtohaveacommonlanguage.Thisisnot onlyfortherelationshipwiththeofficials,itscustomersandsuppliers, butalsoforintercompanycommunication.Employeesatbranchoffices overseasneedtocommunicatewithoneanotherandworkasateam,and communicationisnotalwaysinitiatedfromtheheadoffice.Whenwe installanewreportingsystem,forexample,everyoneconcernedmust beinvolved.Cooperationandcoordinationarecriticaltoaccomplishthe task.Suchoccasionshappenatanyfunctionalgroupssuchasauditing, finance,IT,humanresources,salesandmarketing.Thesecooperationand mutualassistancearebasicrequirementsforglobalgrowthandsuccess. TheintentionofmakingEnglishasacommonandcorporatelanguageisto improvecommunicationefficiencyandtoacceleratetoworkacrossborders withease.Englishisthebestchoice,consideringitswidespreadusageand thelargenumbersofpeoplewhouseit. Today,apalm-sizedmachineisavailabletotranslatesentencesfrom onelanguagetoanotherintextandevenvoice.Thoughitisveryhandy, practicalandconvenientfortravelingorshopping,therearestillsome limitationsforbusinessuse.Thespeedoftheprogressoftechnologyand advancementshouldnotbeunderestimated,andwemayseeremarkable inventionsinthenearfuture.But,completedependencyonmachinesisstill questionableatthismoment.Machinestendtoonlybeabletotranslate wordsorsimplebasicsentencesintootherlanguages,butitisstillnot directcommunication. WhenwelistentoJapanesetranslation（fromEnglish）,weperceive thecontentinJapanesethroughthetranslator'sunderstandingandhis/ 一一
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion herwordselectioninourhomecountry’sculturalcontext.Whenwehear aspeechinourmothertongue,wecancapturethemeaningwithout anypause,asitcomesstraightintoourbrain.Translationneedsatime intervalbetweenthespeaker'sstatementandourunderstandingbecause anotherlanguageisinvolved.Duetoitsnature,translationhasacertain risktocreatesubtledifferencesandperhapsaperceptiongapwhichmay contributetomisunderstandings.Translationtakestime,andaconversation mayenduptakingatleastdoublethetimecomparedtooneinasingle language.Thisisconsideredneithereconomicalnorefficient.Today,speed isafundamentalelementinbusiness,andsinglelanguagecommunication mustbethefirstchoice.
If a Japanese executive speaks only Japanese, there is no other alternativebuttodependonatranslator.Theexecutivedoesnotunderstand whatissaidinthetranslatedlanguage.Translationweakensthedensityof messagesandpassion.ExecutivesoftenaskcasuallytheJapaneseexpatriate totranslatethemessage.Ifanexpatriatelookstohavegoodcommandof English,theexecutivesmaythinktranslationisaneasyjob.However,good performanceinacertainprofessionalareadoesnotmeanthatpersonhas competenttranslationabilitiesinanunfamiliarareaforexample,peoplein financetranslatingforproduction,orhumanresourcesforITtopics. TheEnglishneedsaredifferentdependingonthecompanysituation andstrategy,andhowitmakesanimpacttooperationalsovaries. １）Foreign Companies Oftenreferredtoasforeigncompanies,thesearetypically"Japan-based non-Japanesecompanies."AsurveybytheMinistryofEconomy,Trade andIndustry（METI）reportedthatoneofthetopfourfactorsinhibiting business expansion in Japan is the difficulty of securing personnel. Furthermore,thereasonsaresummarizedtothefollowingfourpoints: ① “BusinesscommunicationdifficultiesinEnglish”; ② “Highstandardsof
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compensationsuchassalary,etc.”;③ “Lackofmobilityinthelabormarket”;
and ④ “Recruitingandhiringcosts”8.Therewere3,217validrespondents
outof5,662firmsin2017,andthesumoffulltimeemployeesfromthese companiesnumbered519,000. Itshouldbenotedthattheparentcompaniesofonly23.9%outof 3,217firmswhorespondedareintheU.S.,whileAsiaaccountedfor25.7%, andEurope44.4%.Thisshowsthatthemajorityofthehomecountriesof mostforeigncompaniesdonothaveEnglishastheirfirstlanguage.Italso suggeststhatEnglishisrequiredatmostforeignorganizations,anditis acommonbusinesspractice.TheshortageofpeoplewithEnglishskills isaseriousobstacleforcompaniestorunbusinessesefficientlyinJapan. Thefourreasonsabovearemoreorlesslanguagerelated.Highstandards ofcompensationaredirectlylinkedtothedemandandsupplyofEnglish capabilities.Extraskills,notlimitedtolanguagebutwhatevertheyare, requireadditionalcompensationonthetopoftheregularsalarybecauseof itsextravalueinthelabormarket.Additionaltimeandmoneywereinvested toacquiretheextraskillsinadditiontoregularschooleducation.Ifthere isenoughsupply,theadditionalcompensationwouldbemuchsmaller. "Lackofmobility”mainlycomesfromthepracticeoflong-termemployment inJapan.Inaddition,thereisanegativeperceptionofforeigncompanies relatingtoradicallay-offpracticeswhichmaycreateanunwillingnessto changeoverfromJapanesefirms,andworryingorhesitatingtoentera workingenvironmentthatprimarilyusesEnglish,whichisdifferentfrom usingEnglishinaJapanesecompany.Thestructureofrecruitingandhiring costsisthesameasJapanesecompanies.However,sincehavingalanguage skillcreatesadditionalvalue,iteasilyraisestherecruitingagentfeewhich iscalculatedbasedonannualsalary.
Among local employees, Japanese is the most effective for daily operations.Incommercialdiscussionwithlocalcustomers,anyforeign languageisnotinvolvedregardlessofthetopic.Englishisrequiredwhen
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion theycommunicatewithexpatriates,corporateorregionaloffices,orvisitors whoareindispensableelementsinforeigncapitalcompanies. TheexamplesherearemainlyaboutoperationsinJapan,butsimilar situationscanbeobservedinothercountries.Therearetwocategories:one isacompanywhichstartedasawhollyforeigncompanyandtheotherone isacompanythatbecomesaforeignonebyacquisition.
a） Wholly foreign capital from the beginning
Inthiscategory,theabilitytocommunicateinEnglishiscrucial, especiallyforthoseinmanagementpositions.Discussionandnetworking withcorporateandregionalofficers,presentation,andmostday-to-day operationsarecarriedoutinEnglish.Withoutit,thepotentialsuccessin theircareerislimitedanddoubtful.DuetotheimportanceofEnglishand thecompatibilityofvaluestothecorporateatmosphere,interviewsat start-upoperationsandforsupervisorypositionsarenormallyconducted bythecorporateorregionalmanagerswhospeakEnglish.Consequently, mostemployeesarebilingual.Theycontacttheappropriatepeopleatthe overseasofficesdirectly,andtheyconsiderthemselvesasavitalmemberof theglobalbusinessteam.Everyoneunderstandsthelanguageandexchange insightsateachlevelintheorganization.Thereislittlelanguageprivilege oradvancementsincealmosteveryonehasanappropriatelevelofEnglish proficiency.
As the company grows and local managers start to interview candidates,theyputmorefocusonbusinessexperiencesandjobskills duringthescreeningprocess,whileappreciatingEnglishskills.Inthefast-growingpath,morehiringisrequiredandsometimesEnglishproficiency iscompromised.Thismaycausesomeoperationaldifficultiessuchasa slowingdowninworkprocessesbecauseofrelativelyweaklanguageskills whichrequireassistancefromotherpeople. 一四
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b） Japanese company acquired by foreign capital
Theemployeeswhojoinedthelocalcompanyandprobablythought thatEnglishwouldneverbeusedintheircareer,weresuddenlyinformed that the company was now a part of a global conglomerate due to acquisition.Theemployeesthenfacetherealitythatmanydiscussionsand documentswouldnowbeinEnglish.Thecompanydoesnotaskforallthe employeestocommunicateinEnglish,buttheymayfindthemselvesinan unexpectedenvironmentwheretheyhavetouseEnglishandconsequently, feelinconveniencedandfrustrated.Itisanunforeseeablesituationfor theemployee,andthereisnootherchoicebuttolivewithit.Somecases arestillinourmemory:NissanMotorjoinedRenault（France）umbrella in1999andindirectlyMitsubishiMotorin2016,Laoxwasacquiredby Suning（China）in2009,RenowninapparelindustrybyShangdonRui （China）in2010,SHARPjoinedHonHaiPrecisionIndustry（Taiwan）in 2016.TOSHIBAdivestedandwilldivestsomeofitsbusinessunitstosome foreigncompaniestostreamlineandfocusonselectedfields.Mergersand Acquisitions（M&A）arenotlimitedtolargecorporationsorcompaniesthat arestrugglingfinancially.Anyfirms,regardlessoftheirsize,havingleading edgetechnology,astrongpresenceinanichemarketandgoodbrand awarenessarealwaysgoodtargetsforcompaniesthathaveaggressive growthplansandenoughavailablecash. Manylocalcompanieswonderhowtheycangrowgloballyoncethey recognizethelimitationinthedomesticmarket.Sometaketheopportunity to become a part of a global enterprise outside of Japan and expect toincreasetheirproductsalesrevenuethroughtheexistingoverseas distributionchannelthattheoverseascompanyalreadyhas,andalso tobringthegroupproductsintothelocalmarkettoincreasetheirlocal sales.Theyexpecttoexpandtheirgeographicalcoverageandincreasethe salesvolume.Companiesmaylookforfinancialleveragetoimprovetheir businessperformance.Somecompanieshavealonghistoryintheindustry 一五
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion andpeoplewhohaveworkthereforalongtimewouldprobablyhavenever dreamedofEnglishbeingarequirement.Butoncetheybecomeapartof aglobalfamily,alargeamountofdiscussionandreportingtendstobein English,includingbudget,forecast,strategy,productdevelopment,logistics, eveninengineeringandhumanresources.Inaddition,anyresponsetothe questionsmustbeansweredinEnglish.Employeesareaskedperiodicallyor onanadhocbasistoparticipateinvideoconferences,phonediscussions, makingpresentations,sendingreportsinEnglish,andentertainingvisiting businessclientsfromoverseas.Somemayevenberequestedtovisitthe overseasoffices.ManyJointVenture（JV）companiesmayfallinthis category. Thelocalemployeesarenotfamiliarwiththisforeignenvironment,and suchabigchangecanhappenallatonce.Theyareatalossonhowand whattodo,notonlywiththelanguage,butwiththedifferentmanagement styleaswell.Typicalreactionsarethatitisthemanagement’sresponsibility todealwiththeoverseasofficesandvisitors,andthosetasksarenotthe employees'problems.Theyjustkeeponworkingasbeforeandnotdeal withthechangesandrequirements.Itresultsinaslowmovingprocessor aperceptionasbeingstagnantfromtheoutside.Thelocalmanagement mayreceivestrongpressuretohiremorepeoplewithsuitableEnglish skillsandaccelerateitshiringspeedandbusinessprocesschangesto alignwithcorporatedirections.Newhires,mainlymanagers,arearmed withEnglishbutwithlessindustrialorcompanyknowledge.Oneoftheir mostimportantrolesistotranslatethenecessarydocumentsintothelocal languageorsummarizethemtoletthelocalemployeesfollow.Translation orsummarizationworkconsumestheirtimeandcreatesanextraburden onthem.Becauseoftheirlanguagecapacity,theymayreceivefrequent invitations to overseas offices to discuss business issues, which are perceivedasaprivilegebytheotheremployees.Thismaysplitbilingual employeesfromthelocalnon-bilingualstaff.Englishcapabilitymight
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 becomeaseedofpolarizationintheorganization. Bybecomingasubsidiaryofalargeforeigncorporation,domestic practicesthathavebeeninplaceforalongtimemustbechangedand theforeigncorporate valueisincorporated intothelocaloperations. Japanisasocietywherepeoplehave（orareexpectedtohave）acommon understandingandvalue.Suchasocietyiscalled“highcontext”,whilea“low context”societyisonethathaslotsofdiversitiesamongpeopleinvalue anddetailedexplanationsarerequiredtoclarifytheintendedmeanings. JapanisclassifiedasahighcontextsocietyandtheU.S.iscategorizedas alowcontextone.Americancompaniestendtoprovidetheiremployees withverydetailedregulationsandoperatingmanualsinEnglish9.For example,aTravel&ExpenseManagementPolicyofanAmericancompany consistsof41pages,sayingthat"allemployeesareresponsibleforreading, understandingandcomplyingwiththispolicy."Thecorporatepolicyis applicabletoeveryoneandJapanisnotanexception.Thelocalemployees haverunthedomesticoperationintheirownwayfordecades.Typical reactionsinclude“Weknowwhattodo,anddon’ttellushowtodoit”,"Just tellustheobjective,thenwecanfigureitouthowtogoaboutdoingit,"“Why shouldwechange?”,"Wearedifferentfromthem"whichareunfortunately statedinJapanese,notinEnglish.Thesearenotlanguageissues,butculture related. Sincetherearealimitednumberofbilingualemployees,andtherest oftheemployeesneitherappreciatetheopportunitiesnorarewillingto participateinanyvideoconferenceorglobaltownhallmeetingscarriedin English,itleadstoalargevolumeofinformationgapbetweenthosewith Englishcapabilitiesandthosewithout.Havingampleinformationisakinto havingthepowertomakejudgementsordecisions.Betterdecisionscanbe madewhentheemployeeismoreinformed.Eventhoughlotsofinformation is shared with other non-bilingual employees, it comes via bilingual personnelanditisindirectlyobtained.Intentionallyornot,thegiven
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion messagesareselective.Accordingly,non-bilingualemployeesreceiveless informationthatsometimesmightcomewithabias,andbilingualprivilege mayhavestrongerinfluentialpower.Italsoacceleratestheformationof informalgroupsorpolarizationandlessercommitmenttothebusinessby non-bilingualemployees. Duetopoliticalandeconomicstability,thereareaggressiveinvestments toJapanfromoverseasanditwilllikelycontinue.Onceaninvestmentfrom overseasismaterialized,thecompanyperformanceisdisclosedgloballyand manyservicestotheinvestorsneedtobeinEnglish.AweaknessinEnglish isorwillbeabottleneckforglobalsuccesssoonerorlater. ２）Japanese Companies PlentyofJapanesecompaniesoperategloballyanddependonoverseas businessestoday.InthecaseofTakeda（TakedaPharmaceuticalCompany Limited）,67%oftheirsalescomefromoutsideJapan,andtheirCEOis notJapanese11.86%ofthesalesofHondaMotorisderivedfromoutside
ofJapan11,andabout55%ofAjinomotosalescomefromoverseas12.These
companieshaveoverseasofficesinmanycountrieswithlocalemployees. AsofOctober1,2017,thereare75,531officesofJapaneseaffiliated
companiesoutsideofJapan13.ThisnumberrepresentsonlyJapanesefirms.
Itiseasytoimaginetheextremelylargenumberofcompaniesthatoperate outsidetheirhomecountriesanduseEnglishasacommonlanguage.
a） Japanese companies in English speaking countries
The local employees in this category are mainly native English speakers.TheyarebornandbredinanEnglishenvironment,andhavea muchhigherlanguageadvantagecomparedtotheJapaneseassignees. Mostemployeesarelocallyhiredasitisconvenientandeffectivetowork inthelocallanguage.Thoughtheemployeesandpotentialemployeesare awarethatthecompanyisJapanese-owned,itdoesnotmeanthattheyare 一八
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 expectedtouseJapaneselanguage.WhenanexecutiveinJapansendsa messageinJapanese,itrequirestranslationtomakeitworkeffectively. Accordingly,theassignees,especiallymanagers,musthavesufficient Englishcommunicationabilitiesasthelocalemployeeshavemuchhigher languagecompetency.Inthisenvironment,therequirementisaccuracy, notsophistication.Thecontentsshouldbecrystalclear,withlittleroom forcausingmisunderstandings.EnglishusagewithJapanesementality orbehaviormaycausetroublesomeinterpretationssuchas"intentionvs. perception"issueswhichwillbedescribedlater11. Inmostcases,expatriatesfromtheparentcompanyoccupymanagerial positions.Thisisquitecommoninmultinationalcompanies,thoughrecently managementlocalizationhasbeenacceleratedforitscostandbusiness efficiency.Insomecases,eventhoughtheJapaneseexpatriates’English maynotbefluentenough,thelocalemployeesutilizetheirintelligence tointerpretwhatwasintendedtosay.Themessagesgivenaremostly relatedtobusinessperformance,forecast,policy,strategy,ormanagement philosophy.So,thecontentsareratherforeseeable,notextremelyunique nortoodifficulttounderstand.Also,thelocalemployees,especiallythose intheU.S.donothesitatetoaskquestionsifthestatementsarenotclear.In anycase,theimportantthingisclearexpressionandpersuasivenesssothat itcarriesenoughweightfortheemployeestofollowandexecute11. MostJapanesearenervousandhesitatetospeakinanotherlanguage, evenamongtheirfellownationals,andareworriedaboutlosingfaceif theymakelanguagemistakes.Localemployeesshowtheirsympathyfor hardshipofusingotherlanguage.Eventhoughitseemstobeacceptable forlocalpeopletospeakinJapaneseamongJapaneseatameeting,ithas tobeminimized.Whenlocalemployeeshearsomethinginanunknown language,theywonderwhatthediscussionsareabout.WritingJapanese charactersonthewhiteboardalsocreatesuncertaintytolocalemployees. Anyconversationinanunfamiliarlanguageleadstopotentialdoubtor 一九
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion suspicion.Interpretationoftheinteractioncompletelydependsonthe personwhohearstheconversationorseesthewriting,regardlesswhatever theintentionmayhavebeen.OnceitisagreedtouseEnglishasacommon languageintheoperation,itmustalwaysbethegoverningrule.
b） Japanese companies in non-English speaking countries
Business activities are not limited to English speaking countries. Lookingattheregionsofthe75,531Japaneseofficesoverseas,Asia
occupies 69%,Europe 8%,while North America only13%16.Inthese
operations,thecompanymanagementmustdecidewhichlanguageisto beused,i.e.,thelocalones,oranythirdlanguage（mostlikelyEnglish）. Japanesemaynotbeanoption.
AMexico-based Japanese company is an example. Their national languageisSpanish.IftheassigneesfromJapanhaveagoodcommandof Spanish,itisverymuchappreciatedandhelpful,butitisnotalwaysthe case.TherearemuchfewerJapanesewholearnSpanishcomparedtothose wholearnEnglish.Atmostschools,Englishhasbeentaughtasasecond languageinbothcountries.Peopleareencouragedtolearnitevenafter startingwork.Englishisthemostcommonlanguagetocommunicatewith middleanduppermanagementlevelsinnon-Englishspeakingcountries. Inthisenvironment,Englishisnotthehomelanguageforbothparties,and neitheronehasanylanguageadvantage.Bothparties'Englishdoesnot comeupwith"English"originalculturalbackgroundbutinfluencedfrom theirowncultureandpractice.BothpartiesuseEnglishwithacommon sentencestructureandwords.Inmostcases,Englishexpressionsmadeby JapanesecomeswithJapaneseculturalbackgroundandvalues,andthe otherpartywilllikelyunderstanditintheirculturalcontext.Itmaycreatea gapofunderstandingand/orunexpectedreactions.Also,itshouldbenoted thatinsomecountries,culturalpracticeslikerespectingthoseinhigher positionsandsenioritymayresultintheemployeesnotraisingquestionsto 二〇
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 clarifyatthemeetingevenwhensomethingisunclear,thisisquiteunlikein theU.S.whereemployeeswouldsoonerclarifyapointthanleaveitunclear. Englishusedinthisenvironmentissomewhatreserved.Itisnormally modestconversationbecauseofthelimitedcapacityofuniqueemotional expressionsandtheusageofslangs.Bothpartiesarerathercarefulsince thelanguageisnottheirown.EventhoughEnglishisusedasalingua franca,theinterpretationandbehaviorareformedbytheculturalrootsof eachrespectivecountry.
c） Japanese companies in Japan
Rakuten,afast-growinginternetservicecompany,announcedin2010 touseEnglishasacorporateofficiallanguage,andrequestedallemployees tolearnandimprovetheirskills,targetingtoreachaTOEIC11scoreof800 intwoyears18.ThismovetouseEnglishwasasensationalnewsforboth thebusinesssocietyandstudentswhoareinterestedinsuchayoungand energeticcompany.Rakutenhasofficesinover29countriesandregions, withabout15,000employeesfromover70countriesandregionsasof 201719.Theneedisobviousfromtheircharacteristicsofglobaloperations. Onceoperationsexpandacrossborders,itresultsinhavingoffices, suppliersandcustomerslocatedallovertheworld.Directcommunication viaacommonlanguageisabasictoolforglobaloperation.Thespeedof singlelanguagecommunicationismuchfasterandhighlightstheneedfor acommonlanguageacrossborders.Itisrequirednotonlyforbusiness transactions,butalsoforinternalcommunicationamongstthebranch offices.Communicationinthesamelanguageacceleratesthesenseof belongingoftheemployeesandunity21.OthercompaniesbesidesRakuten havealsoannouncedEnglishtobetheirofficialcorporatelanguage.Some havestartedtoimplementitatcertaindepartments,ortoapplyittoall employeeswithatransitionperiodofseveralyears. Englishabilityisrequirednotonlyforexistingoperations,itisalso 二一
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion vitaltomakeM&Aworkeffectivelyandsuccessfully.M&Aisaneffective strategyforbusinessexpansionoverseas.M&Asavestimetogrow,because oftheimmediateavailabilityofutilizingexistingresourcessuchasproducts, saleschannel,manufacturingcapacityaswellashumanresources.Many companiesincludingJapaneseoneshaveoverseasentitiesbyacquisition.
Companies do not alwaysdisclosetheirrequiredTOEICscoreor specifictarget,butitisageneraltrendtoacquireacertainlevelofEnglish proficiencyathiringorforaninternalpromotion.Havingahigherscore isconsideredanadvantageandEnglishabilitiesasahiringrequirementis nownothingspecial. Itiseasytosay,butdifficulttoexecute.Peoplerealizethatthere islittlenecessitytouseanotherlanguageaslongastheystayintheir country.Employeesmaynotfeeltheurgencyofacommonlanguagein dailyoperation.Itisachallengeformanagementtoconvincetheemployees otherwise and they are typically met with hesitation and resistance. However,thebenefitsofusingthesamelanguageasacommunicationtool areenormous.Everyoneinthegroup,wherevertheyareintheworld,can directlycontacteachother.Itmakesiteasiertolearnandadaptthebest practiceinothercountriesintothelocaloperation,whichsavestime.It isnotonlyforthecompanyneedsamongglobalbusinessesbutalsofor overseascustomerswhoarenotnecessarilybasedinEnglishspeaking countries.Havingacommonlanguageisconvenientforthem.Convenience isabusinessrequirementanditprovidesapowertomoveforward.Once mostemployeesobtainEnglishcapabilities,itwillacceleratethespeedand effectivenessofthecompanyasawholetoplayastrongerroleintheglobal market. Tobesuccessfulandgrowglobally,onesolutionistoletallemployees beabletodirectlycommunicateacrossborderswithoutanyintervention. Itmaysoundroughbutthisisaneffectiveandquickwaytodeployglobal operations.Becausetherearesomanylanguagesworldwide,itmakessense 二二
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 toagreetouseonecommonlanguageinbusiness,whichisEnglish.Itis truethatmanyJapaneseinmultinationalcompaniesareassignedtoan officeinathirdcountryandnotwheretheheadofficeislocated.Itmeans thatnationalityisnolongeranissueandinstead,thosewithEnglishand professionalskillscanbeutilizedanywhereintheworld. ３）English Proficiency – How to measure Manyschools,universities,businessorganizationshaveadoptedTOEIC tomeasureEnglishproficiency.Therearealargenumberoftest-takers everyyearandtheconsequentaccumulateddatabasehasmadeitthede factostandardEnglishtest.TOEICisatestofgeneralEnglishlanguage proficiency–theoverallabilitytouseEnglish21.Itwasdevelopedtomeet theneedsoftheEnglishworkingenvironmentandthequestionsinthe testarebuilttoincorporatemanysituationsthatmeetglobalbusiness circumstances22.Before2006,therewerecommentsthatthescoredid notproperlyindicatetheotherrealms,i.e.,speakingandwriting,andthe EducationalTestingService（ETS）addedspeakingandwritingteststothe TOEICtestprogramtomakeitmorewell-rounded23.Itisobviousthatany scoreofoneortwoskillsdoesnotrepresenttheotherskilllevelandis notasubstitutionforothers21.Manystudieshaveshowngoodcorrelation betweenthefourskills:speaking,reading,listeningandwriting.Oneof theanalysesreporteda0.76correlationscoefficientbetweenthelistening andreadingskills（amongpassiveskills）,0.66betweenlisteningand speaking,0.59betweenlisteningandwriting21.Ahighcorrelationdoes notensurea100%matchbutsuggestshighprobability.Therearemany academicstudiesaboutthecorrelationbetweenthefourskills26.Passive skills（listeningandreading）areafoundationofproductiveskills（speaking andwriting）21.Accordingtotheprovencorrelationsbetweenpassiveand productiveskills,aTOEICscoreseemstoindicateproficiencyinEnglish overall. 二三
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion Thereissomeguidancetosuggestthatitcanbeassumedthattest-takerswithscoreswithinacertainrangehavetheabilitytoperforminan Englishenvironment.However,thetestscoreisobtainedinatestingroom, notunderrealbusinessconditions.Inabusinessenvironment,thingsare notassimpleasbeingshownthesentencesinthetestandcorrespondence aremadeincomplicatedsituations.Accordingly,evenifthetestscoreis high,thepersonneedsalotofexperienceinrealsituationstobeableto handlethesituationadeptly.Inaddition,languageproficiencyisapart ofcommunication,andtomakecommunicationeffective,logicaland persuasiveskillsasmentionedearlierarerequiredontopoflistening, reading,speakingandwriting. Languagefluencydoesnotmeanculturalsensitivity.Languageisbut justoneportioninglobalcommunication.BesidesEnglishasacommon language,wemustbecarefulabouttheculturaldifferencesamongpeople fromdifferentcountries.Therearemanythingswhichmayworkfine in one environment, but can be totally unacceptable or questionable inotherenvironmentswithdivergentnormsandpractices.Oneofthe drawbacksofusingthesamelanguageindifferentculturalenvironments is that miscommunication and misunderstanding can happen easily, unintentionallyandunconsciously.Effectivecommunicationisformedby languageandbehaviortogether.Ourbehaviorreflectslanguageusageand culturaldifferenceswhilepreconceptionmayleadtomisinformationor conflicts.
３．EnglishandCulture
WelearnedEnglishasaforeignlanguage,mainlyAmericanEnglish. WhenweuseEnglishasalinguafranca,thereisanotherimportantaspect toconsider.Itisculture.Languagehasbeendevelopedbasedonculture 二四大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 andsimilarly,Englishisalsoinfluencedbytheculturewherethepartiesof communicationhavegrownup.Manylanguagesexistaroundtheworld, andaresurroundedbyvariousenvironments.WhenJapaneseuseEnglish, itisnormallyusedwithJapanesecultureinmindandanon-Japanese recipientislikelytoperceivethestatementwiththeirculturalbackground oradifferentassumption.Thoughitmaybeacommonmutuallanguage, thereisalwayspotentialforagapbetweenintentionandperception. １）Japanese Behavior and Its Root-How English is used in relation to that Japaneseareexpectedtomaintainharmonyinsociety,whichisa wisdomorientedfromlivinginarelativelysmallcountry.Harmonyisakind ofbalanceandsometimesmeanscompromise.Japanesenormallydonot prefer“absolutecorrect”nor“onlyonecorrectanswer"insociety.Thereare severalanglestolookatanissueandconsequently,theremustbeseveral answers.ThereisaJapaneseproverbthatsays,"Everyonehashisownidea andtaste."Theconclusionwhichwereachmustbealwaysrelative.Itallows fora"yesandno"typeofresponse.Thoughitseemscontradictoryonthe surface,thisisnothingstrangefromaJapanesepointofview. WhenJapaneseareasked"Doyouthinkyoucandoit?",sometimes theresponseis,"Ithinkso."Itisgrammaticallycorrect,butitsendsa somewhatnegativemessageofhavingalackofconfidenceornotbeing tooenthusiasticaboutthetask.Inthiscontext,theword"think"retains roomofuncertaintyorvulnerableconfidence.Ingeneral,overconfidence is not highly appreciated in Japanese society and if a person shows robustconfidence,itlookshaughtyandimpertinent.Consequently,while expressionstendtobesofterandconservative,theresponseinothersocial contextsneedtobemuchclearerwithpositiveattitudessuchas,"Yes,Iam confident,"or"Yes,IamsureIcandoit,"ifhe/shereallybelievesso.Modest explanationsarepreferredinJapanesesociety,insteadofdirectandstrong wordings.Keepingawayfromdirectwordingcomesfromculture,which 二五
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion preferseverythingtoberelativeandtoavoidconflict. Confrontation Avoidance AvoidanceofconfrontationisafundamentalcharacteristicofJapanese people.Conflictordisagreementinfrontofpeopleortoseniorsisnot consideredgood behaviorand not recommended.Confrontationin a meetingisperceivedasroughandrude.Peopletendtoavoiddirectquarrel anddisagreement.Consequently,negativecommentsaresentindirectly. ThesearetypicalpracticesinJapan,whileitmaynotappropriateinother cultures.Herearesomeexamples. “Yes,but...”isafrequentresponse.IntheJapanesecontextitmeans, “Iunderstandyourpoints,butIhavesomeconcerns.”Oncewesay"no",the reasonsshouldbeexplainedandfightingdiscussionmayoccur.Debatehas notbeenwellpracticedatschools,sinceitisadiscussionwithconflict.This approachofnon-confrontationpromptsJapanesespeakersofEnglishto say"yes"toavoidharddiscussion."No"isconfrontationalwhichJapanese generallytrytoavoid.So,"yes"doesnotnecessarilymeanagreement but"Iamlistening"28.Suchstatementsmakenon-Japaneseconfusedand frustrated,sinceitsoundslike“Iagree,butIdisagree.” Respondingtoacertainrequestwith"itisdifficult"ismostlikelya negative,oradecliningmessage.“I’llthinkaboutit”or"Letmethinkabout it"isanotherwaytosuggestanegativeresponse.Itisanexcusetoavoid immediateconflictandtoearntimetothinkaboutpersuasivereasonsor justificationforrefusal.Thespeakerinstinctivelyrespondsnegativelyin mind,butforsomereason,timetoconsiderisneeded,ortodemonstrate respecttothequestionorcomments.Especiallyinanenvironmentwith thoseinhigherpositionsorrespectedpeople（suchasteachersandbosses） orclients,adirectnegativeresponseisnormallyavoided.Straightrefusal ordisagreementmaybeperceivedasapersonalattackoraninsult.Itis acustomtoshowrespecttothemandnotcausethemtolosetheirface, 二六
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 damagingbothprideandimage29,infrontofotherseventhoughthis behaviorisacceptableandencouragedinothercultures.Insteadofraising objection,Japanesesendamessagethatwearelisteningandpaying attention.Itisawell-behavedmanner,thatallowsthesituationtocooldown inaJapaneseenvironment,butdoesnotworkinothercultures.Itmaybe interpretedasthespeakernothavingenoughconfidenceorcapabilityto expresshis/heropinion. "Saywhatyoumeanandmeanwhatyousay"isanAmericanadage. Americansbelievethatthemosteffectivewaytoresolveaconflictisto confronttheissues31.Oncedefiningtherootofdisagreement,conflict istoberesolvedconstructively.InU.S.businessenvironments,people areencouragedtohaveconstructiveconflict.Participantshavevarious aspectsanddifferentinterests.Conflictsarenothingunusual.Discussion isanalyticalandobjective.Accordingly,clearstatementswithreasoning areencouraged,butjustdiplomaticopiniondoesnothelpany.Through seriousdiscussion,peopletakemanyaspectsintoconsideration.Thisleads tobettersolutions,whichwillresultinhighorganizationalperformances31. InJapanesecircumstances,conflicteasilybecomesemotionalandevolves intopersonalattacksorcriticisms,whichlingerlongafterthatmoment.The otherpartymaytakeitpersonallyandnotobjectively. ItistruethatJapanesearequietanddonotspeakoutatmeetings, whileAmericanorChinesepeopleexpresstheiropinionsaggressively. Thereareacoupleofreasons:wearenotwelltrainedtospeakinpublic; wethinksomeoneelsewillsaysomething,notnecessarilyus.Theseare trueeveninaJapaneseenvironment.Inaddition,inanEnglishspeaking environment:wehavelessconfidenceinlanguageandworryabouthow toexpressouropinioninEnglish;ittakestimetoreactbecauseweoften thinkaboutthetopicsinourmindsinJapanesefirstbeforereplyingin English;interruptionisnotappreciatedduringameetingorwhensomeone isspeaking;andlisteningfirstiscommonpractice.Evenwhenweare 二七
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion encouragedtospeakup,manystillkeepquiet.Thisbehaviorpatternmay changesincedebateexercisehasbecomepartoftheschooleducation,but willtaketimeuntilfullyutilized.Beingquietdoesnotprovideanything butcreatesaperceptionthattheparticipantsmaynotbeinterestedinthe subjectsordoesnotunderstandtheconversationatall. Atsmallformalmeetings,suchaswithcustomersorseniorpeople, Japanesenormallydonotinterruptwhilesomeoneistalkingevenifwemay havecommentsorquestionsinmind.Wethinkthatinterruptioncauses stoppageoftalkinganddisturbancetothemeeting32.Whenthespeaker hasfinishedtalkingorwhentheyencouragetheparticipantstoraise questions,thatisthesignalallowingotherstospeakup.Untilsuchatime, allattendeesareexpectedtobequietandfocusonlisteningtothespeaker whoissupposedtocontrolthestage.Insomeothercountries,aquestion orcommentcanberaisedanytimeevenwhilethespeakeristalking.They thinkitisnecessarytoclarifyanyunclearpointsbeforegoingfurther.Ifthe audienceisnotclearaboutanypointsandmakingadditionalexplanations wouldbehelpfulforclarification,itmakessensetostopatthatpointand clarify.Otherwise,havingtoreturntothepointafterpassingthroughand explainitforclarificationisawasteoftimeandcanbeconfusing.Ifthe participantscomefromdifferentculturalbackgrounds,andareusinga commonlanguage,eitherpartyorbothmaybefrustratedorembarrassed duetothetimingdifferenceofsteppingin.Asking"MayIinterrupt?", or"MayIaskyouaquestion?"whilesomeoneistalkingmaybeagood solution. ClarkepointedoutthedifferencesinlearningstylesbetweenJapanese andAmerican."The（the）styleoftheJapaneseistolisten,observe,and thenrepeatwhatwasdemonstrated,whileAmericanslisten,clarifythe informationthroughquestioningthetrainer,observe,clarifywithmore questions,andthenrepeatwhatwasdemonstrated."33 "Tatemae"and"Hon-ne"31areothersymbolicones."Tatemae"meansa 二八
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 niceopinion,politicallycorrectordiplomaticresponsewhichisexpressed inpublicorinfrontofseniorpeopleincludingcustomers.Becauseitsounds niceandcomfortable,thespeakerdoesnothavetoworryaboutwhatis said,andhowitisperceived.Ontheotherhand,"Hon-ne"isanhonest opinionwhichmaycauseconfrontationifstateddirectlyandopenly."Hon-ne"isusuallysharedamongcolleagues,friendsorinoff-lineconversations. Both"Tatemae"and"Hon-ne"areexpressedwithappropriatesentence structureandwords.Statingtwodifferentorsometimesoppositeopinions areusuallythoughtofashypocriticalwhichthencreatesaperceptionof dishonesty. "Nemawashi"isalsowell-known.Theword"Nemawashi"camefrom planting,diggingaroundtherootswhentransplantingatreeorflower. Whenwefailthisprocess,theplantwillnotgrowafterbeingtransplanted. Itcan,inasense,beinterpretedas"goodpreparation."Beforeanimportant meetingtomakeabigdecision,forinstance,peoplemakeeffortstohave aninformaldiscussionwiththekeymanagersandreachaconsensusin advance.Thepurposeistohavetheminvolvedandunderstandthepoints priortotheformalmeeting.Itcanbeunderstoodasabuying-inprocess. Itisawaytoletthetopicgothroughsmoothly.Bydoingso,serious argumentsorsevereconfrontationisavoided,andthemeetingisheldfora formaldiscussionandapprovalistobemadewithoutdisturbance. "Ringi"isasimilarpractice."Ringi"issometimestranslatedas"internal decisionrequest."Meyercallsit"HierarchicalbutUltra-Consensual31 ."Ringi-shoisacirculatingpaperforinternalapproval.Insteadofhavingaformal meeting,aproposalispreparedinwritingandispassedtothemembers ormanagersforreviewandapproval.Eachoneisrequiredtoputtheir personalsealtoshowagreementandwithcommentsifnecessary,and passittothenextperson.Questionscanberaisedinwritingorevenby callingtheproposertoclarify.Additionalinformationisattachedtothe paperforbetterunderstanding.Thebenefitsofthisistogettheagreement 二九
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion relativelyeasily,becauseitisprocessedonepersonatatimeandbrings neitherdisagreementnordisturborinfluenceothers.Sometimesittakes timetogothroughbecausepeoplemissthepaperinthepileonthedesk. Thedisadvantageofthisisthedifficultytofindthepersonwhoisultimately responsible.Sinceeveryoneputstheirpersonalseal,itlookslikeeveryoneis responsible,butthereisapotentialriskthatnoonetakesit.Itmaylooklike awasteoftimepassingthedocumentaroundcomparedtohaveameeting, sinceeveryonehastospendtimetoreadthepaperseparately,andfinallyit isunclearwhoholdstheresponsibility. Inahighcontextcountry,peopledonotnecessarilyexplaindetails. Theycangraspthemeaningofmessagesevenifitisnotclearlyworded. Peopleareexpectedtounderstandeachotherbasedoncommonlyshared knowledgeandvaluestogetherinaclosedculturalenvironment36.The vaguenessdoesnotcomefromitslanguageuniqueness,butitispartofthe culturewhichhasbeencultivatedoveralonghistory.Japaneseprefervague expressionswhicharesoftandmodest.ItiscommoninJapantoexpect peopletoreadbetweenthelinesorbeintuitive（readtheair）31.Thehidden meaningbehindwordsaresupposedtobecapturedwithoutanyfurther clarification.Asfarashavingacommonunderstandingandpracticesin ahighcontextenvironment,itworksbutnotalways.Perceptiongapis possibleevenwithinJapan.Forexample,insomeregions,aninvitationto amealisnotsupposedtobetakenatfirstoffer38.Itonlybecomesareal invitationaftertheofferhasbeenrepeatedthreetimes.Interpretationof themessagesdependsontheguessingabilityintheregionorinthegiven environment. Consideringtheseculturalfactors,someJapanesebehaviormaybe understandablefornon-Japanese. ２）Differences in Customs Ifwebelieveourwayisappropriateandcommonwhereveritis,itmay 三〇
大正大學研究紀要
第一〇四輯
causeunexpectedresults.Wearesurprisedtoseemanydifferences.
a） How to call a person
Wearetaughttocallpeoplebytheirfirstnamesinwesterncountries, especiallyinmanyEnglish-speakingcountries.Wecallthemevenwith theirshorternamessuchas"Ginny"for"Virginia",“Beth”for“Elizabeth”, "Bill"insteadof"William","Ed"for"Edward",regardlessiftheyarefriends, colleagues,bosses,CEOortheChairperson.Weassumeitisacommon practiceinwesterncountries.However,whentravelingtosomeEuropean countries,itisneithercommonnorappropriateinabusinessenvironment andcallingsomeonebytheirfirstnameisrudeandembarrassing.Theyare calledwiththeirappropriatetitlesofDoctor,Professor,Mr.,Mrs.,orMiss. toshowrespect.Customsaredifferent. Ontheotherhand,atmostJapanesecompanies,seniorrankingpeople arecalledbytheirjobtitlewiththeirlastname,like"TanakaManager", oronlythejobtitlewithouttheirlastname.InJapan,firstnamesareonly usedinverycloserelationshipssuchasamongfamilyorclosefriends.If someoneiscalledbytheirfirstnameatacompany,itisembarrassingfor thatperson.Theonlyplaceswherecallingsomeonebytheirfirstnameat abusinessisfoundwillbeatrelativelysmallforeigncompanies.Instead, "san"iscommonlyused,whichissimilartoMr.,Mrs.,orMs.,andputtingit aftertheirlastname,"Tanaka-san"regardlessofgenderandage.Though callingby"familynameandsan"hasbecomepopular,traditionalJapanese firmsstillusethefamilynameandjobtitlewhenreferringtootherstaff. InWesternwriting,ithasbeenaformalmannertoputtitlessuchas Mr.,Mrs.,Mr.&Mrs.,orMs.beforethenameontheenvelopes39.Uptoquite recently,Ms.hasbeencommonlyusedforwomen,despitetheirmarital status.Itseemstobenotascommonnow.Thesetitlesarecurrentlyomitted onenvelopesinmanyofficialandpersonalletters.Aswethoughtthese titlesshowsrespect,itlookedrudewhenwesawnameswithoutatitlefor 三一
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion thefirsttime.However,thestatedinformationaboutgenderormarital statusonenvelopesdoesnotserveanypurpose,andsuchindicationmay causediscriminationorpotentialcrime.Consideringthecurrentsocial move,itisappropriatetoomit.InJapan,however,adding"sama"usingthe Chinesecharacterafterthefamilyorfullnameisnormalpractice."Sama" showsrespectanddoesnotrepresentgendernormaritalstatus. Jobtitlesusedtobegenderseparatedandthathasnowchanged.For example,aChairmanisnowreferredtoasa"Chairperson".Theimportance isthefunction,andgenderhasnothingtodotothejob.Otherexamples include,policeofficerinsteadofpoliceman,cabinattendantinsteadof stewardorstewardess,serverinsteadofwaiterorwaitress.Itisageneral trendnottodistinguishthejobnamesbygender.Wedonotpaymuch attentiontotheseinJapan,butourunintentionalusemayembarrass people.
Another interesting expression of title was observed during the PresidencyElectionCampaignandtheInauguralAddressintheU.S..When DonaldTrumpasapresidentialcandidatecalledHillaryClinton"Secretary" asanothercandidatewithoutusingtheword“former”atapublicdiscussion eventhoughshewasnot,atthattime,inthepositionof"SecretaryofState" anymore.AttheInauguralAddress,thenewlyelectedPresidentTrump startedhisspeechbysaying"ChiefJusticeRoberts,PresidentCarter, PresidentClinton,PresidentBush,PresidentObama,fellowAmericans,and peopleoftheworld"withoutattaching"former"tothepresidentialtitles. Theseformerpresidentsparticipatedintheceremony,buttheywereno longerpresidentsatthatpoint. b） Job Application ItisnormallyrequiredtosubmitapersonalhistoryoraCurriculum Vitae（C.V.）forajobapplication.Therearesomemajordifferencesbetween Japanandwesterncountrieswhenitcomestosubmittingpaperwork.Inthe 三二
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 regularJapaneseformat,therearespacestowritedownthedateofbirth, andgender.Ageinformationsuchaswhethertheapplicantisover16years old,maybenecessaryfromlegalstandpoint,butwhyistheexactdateof birthrequired?Also,whyisgenderinformationneeded?Somemaysaythat genderisusefulinformationforthenatureofthejob.Forinstance,loading workatthedocksmaynotbesuitablephysicallyforwomen.However,itis notnecessaryforthecompanytoworry.Instead,theapplicantsareableto choosewhethertheywanttoapplyforthejobornotafterconsideringthe jobdescription.Companiesneedtoopentheirdoors,andanyinformation whichmayresultindiscriminationshouldnotberequested.Wemaythink itisnothingwrongtothinkaboutthephysicaldifferencebygender,butit maycauseseriousproblemsandweneedtopayenoughattentiononthese mattersinJapanoratJapanesecompaniesoverseas. Inaddition,inJapaneseregularpersonalhistoryformat,thereisa spaceforaheadshot.ThisisnotappropriateatleastintheU.S.forjob applications.Thejustificationofputtingaphotomightbeforidentification atpaperexaminationandinterview.Havingaphotoonapersonalhistory documentdoesnotprovidethecompanywithanyvaluableinformation intermsofskillsthatcanbeperformed.Candidatescreeningshouldbe judgedsolelyonprofessionalexperience,skillsandproventrackrecord. Thishasbeenalongpracticebutonethatneedstobechanged.Itcauses problemsifwecarelesslyaskthesameinothercountriesornon-Japanese peopleinJapan.
Another difference in C.V. is the order of sequence of events. In theJapaneseformat,itnormallystartswithacademicbackgroundand professionalexperiencefollowsandtheorderischronological.Ontheother hand,inawesternC.V.,professionalexperiencecomesfirstandthengoes toeducationalhistory.Inaddition,itisinreversechronologicalorderwhere themostcurrentoneisontop.Fromthecompany’spointofview,themost importantinformationiswhattheapplicanthasdonerecentlyandwhatthe 三三
Effect iv e Business Communicat ion companycanexpectimmediately.Thelatestinformationprovidesthehiring managerwiththecurrentabilitywhichmightbeapplicabletothecompany. Suchinformationshouldcomefirst.Havingtheacademicbackground comefirstlikeintheJapaneseformatmeanslittle,especiallyformid-careeremployment,becauseformaleducationmayhavebeenmanyyears ago.TheC.V.isadocumenttoshowthepotentialvalueoftheapplicant. IntheJapaneseformat,applicantswriteonlythenamesofdepartments andcompaniesinmanycases,buttheseinformationindicateonlythe belongingsanddoesnothelpinmakingapositiveassessment.Submittinga JapanesestyleC.V.inothercountriesdoesnotworkeffectivelynormakea goodimpression. c） Cash Management Asitissaid"CashisKing,"andcashmanagementisaveryimportant elementinbusiness.Givingagiftofcashisachallengingone.Itisa normalpracticeinJapantogiveagiftofmoneyinaspeciallydesigned envelopeonhappyandsadoccasionssuchasbirth,marriageanddeath ofemployeesandtheirimmediatefamilymembers,aswellasofbusiness partners.Theissuewasraisedduringaudit.Thoughitisanormalpractice inJapaneseeyes,givingcashwithoutreceiptisincrediblefromanAmerican management standpoint anditmaybeperceived asaninappropriate transactionlikefraud.Whilebothpartiesunderstoodtheobjectiveand agreedtoshowcelebrationorsympathy,therewasaconflictonhowto manageit.Afteralongdiscussion,theagreementwastopresentagift orafuneralwreathinthecaseofcondolenceswithintheupperlimit thecompanyhasset.Thesetupperlimitwastobethesameasthecash paymentwhichwasdonepreviously.Thenthecompanycanreceivethe receiptforthegiftsaswellasshowourcongratulationsandsympathy.In eithercase,giftcouponsarenotallowedasitcaneasilybechangedinto cash.Thepointwastoreachamutualunderstandingandthinkofasolution 三四
大正大學研究紀要 第一〇四輯 fromthere.Itwasaculturalchallenge. Relatedtocash,paymenttermsinJapanarequestionedbyAmerican managements.PromissorynotesareatypicalformofJapanesepayment practice.Itissimilartoacheck,butitisnotusuallychangedintocash untilthematuritydatecomestoterm,andunlessthenotereceiveragrees toacceptadiscountfromthefacevaluestatedonthenote.Theperiod tillreachingtomaturityisratherlong,forexample90daysoreven180 days.FromanAmericanpointofview,apromissorynoteisjustapieceof paperuntiltheduedatecomesandthebuyerwhichissuedthenotemight bebankruptbeforethematuritysincethe"waiting"periodissolong.In thatcase,thesellermaynotgetthemoneyandhastoacceptalargeloss. Thoughthesellerrecordstheamountassalesrevenue,itisstillinreceivable accountandnotcash.FromaJapaneseview,issuingapromissorynoteisa commonpaymentpracticeandfailureofpaymentmeanstolosefaceinthe businessworld.WeoftensaythatJapanisasocietybasedonmutualtrust. Butthisexplanationistoomuchspiritualandnotpersuasive.Thecommon goalwastoensureacashreceiptandthesolutionwastomakethewaiting periodshorterandacceleratecashpayment.
d） Hierarchy and Organization
AnAmericanCEOofaJapanesesubsidiarydoesnothavethesame interpretationonoperationalresponsibility,comparedtoaJapaneseCEO overseas.TheAmericanCEOthinksitisneitherappropriatenornecessary togetapprovalfromtheheadofficeaboutoperationalissuesorallyor toinformitinadvanceasacourtesy. TheCEOisresponsible forthe localbusinessandacceptstheconsequencesforbetterorforworse.The localissueistheCEO’sarenaandhe/shehashonorablepridetoleadthe operations.WhenacompanybecomesasubsidiarybyM&AandtheCEO remainsasis,theprideseemstobestrongercomparedtobeingaCEO assignedfromtheparentcompany.Onthecontrary,theJapaneseCEO 三五
