Japanese Negotiation Process

We are living in internationalized world, global trade keeps increasing and more companies from many countries around the world are going national at an astounding rate. This is reflection of strong economic growth around the world and globalization of the economy and corporations. Offcies are spread from one continent to another and travel is essential to business. This is the reason why “business travel is increasing,” states Hubert Joly, president and chief executive officer of CWT.

Nowadays in business world, you might well find yourself as an international manager in a foreign subsidiary of an American firm, facing on a daily basis all aspects of international management, or could travel to country such like Japan, negotiating export sales

This Japanese negotiation process is often perceived as dishonest negotiating by American, who put all the information on the table and expect negotiations to be straightforward (Graham and Sano). In addition, the Japanese put more weight on their trust of the other party rather than on the information on the table. This misapprehension can be explained by priority differences on making an agreement between the two cultures. While American negotiate issues point by point and reach an overall agreement, the Japanese make an overall agreement first, then get into details (March). When complications occur during a negotiation process, reactions of American and Japanese show a sharp contrast. March (168) summarizes their reaction differences as

This is because the United States and Japan have different cultures, languages, and negotiation styles. Although Japan is a Western industrialized nation, it is a country where people still maintain strong traditional beliefs that have been embedded in Japan for centuries. These include the traditional concepts of order, hierarchy, seniority, and social harmony, which in turn have formed the unique Japanese negotiation styles of step-by-step negotiation and consensus decision-making or the ringi system. With the expansion of Japanese business activities into the international arena, however, Japanese negotiators may adjust their tactics to achieve their objectives. While Japan and the United States are sure to develop their economic relationship further, the gaps and differences in culture, language, and negotiation style can be narrowed or bridged if negotiators actively seek to recognize, understand, and tolerate these differences. By being aware of each other's differences, the parties will be able to negotiate fair agreements and find workable