Doing Business Withjapan

The company LaJolla Software, Inc. is going into partnership with the Japanese company Ichi Ban. The joint venture is to distribute the "S-4" supply chain management software in Japan. The transition team from the Japanese company is flying to Silicon Valley, California to help organize and plan the new joint venture. The eight executives that make up the team will be staying until all of the details are worked out. Mosts of the team has never been out of Japan before and will be arriving in a few days. The marketing director of LaJolla Software, Inc. has been tasked with making the Japanese team welcome. He is also been told to find ways to reduce their anxieties, their fears and raise trust.

In this case there are primarily two things that may make things difficult to do business together, language and culture. If you can't speak to each other, you can't do business. If you can't understand each other, whether it is due to language barriers or not understanding the thoughts or actions of each other, again you can't do business. To address one, you need to address the other. In order for the marketing director to address the issues that he has been tasked with, he will have to look at these two issues closely. According to Betty Birner, culture and language have grown up together (n.d.)

Language is so much more than words; it is also a way of thinking and seeing and defining the world (n.a. 1998). Any language has its own syntax, idioms and slang. Our own language is a perfect example of this. Think of how the words cool, "the bomb", or bad are used. This could be very confusing for someone not used to the English language. What needs to be understood about this is that the Japanese will apply what they know to the words that we use. Avoid using idioms and slang as much as possible. Also avoid hand gestures and unusual facial expressions as they can distract your audience. Do not point or use the "ok" sign as these are signs of disrespect (Williams, 2008).

It is the Japanese that usually must speak English because English is the most common business language (Nishiyama, 1999). The problems occur when Americans don't understand what the Japanese mean by what they are saying or doing. It is common in Japan to nod, smile or give other affirmative responses during a conversation. It does not mean that they are agreeing with you, it just means that they are paying attention to what you are saying (1999). The Japanese do not like to use the word "no" (2008). They may say change the subject, say yes with an explanation or just not address the issue at all. Some of these things are based not just on the language, but also on the culture.

The Japanese prefer to do business with friends (1999). For this reason, it is important that the marketing manager finds ways to become friends with the Japanese delegation and to get the executives of LaJolla Software, Inc. to become friends with the delegation as well. In order to do this he needs to understand more about the Japanese and how they conduct themselves and how they socialize.

As a whole, the Japanese strongly believe in working as a group for the betterment of all. Because of this "we" not "I" belief system, theirs is a heirarchal system. When communicating with the Japanese, especially the first meeting, address the senior member of the group first. Then acknowlege each member in order of rank from highest to lowest.

The first meeting should take place at a restaurant for dinner. This is an informal way for the members of both sides to get to know one another. The Japanese like to get to know the people they are doing busines with personally. This gives