Cultural Understanding and “Lean” Operation 2013 Lean Network Annual Conference May 14 th 2013 Toshikata “Toshi” Amino Executive Vice President (Retired) Honda of America Mfg., Inc. Executive-in-Residence Fisher College of Business The Ohio State University

We Are Losing Lot of Money Because of cultural misunderstanding and poor communication We are creating big fat (waste) Without better and continuous efforts for cultural understanding and communication, we can not achieve real “lean” operation.

For Examples Because of poor communication between top management and human resources manager, company direction is not clear. HR manager hired too many new associates. Japanese president does not appreciate a value of lean activity because “Lean activity” is not a familiar concept for him. He denied small investment to reduce scrap.

Three Different Cultures Country culture American culture, Japanese culture, Mexican culture Corporate culture Honda culture, Toyota culture, Apple culture Individual personal culture (character, personality, chemistry)

We Mix Up Three We tend to mix up three cultures “It is Japanese culture” “No. It is Toshi’s personal character” or “It is American culture” “No. It is ABC Company’s corporate culture”

Cultural Differences in Work Place Japanese and American Japanese America Implicit Explicit (Homogeneous) (Diversity) “Your know me. I know you but You know what I am please explain thinking. I don’t need clearly. to explain to you in detail Do you have a manual about this?

Cultural Differences in Work Place Japanese and American Japanese American Consensus building You are my boss. among team members You decide. Let’s try to find the best Consensus solution among some building is alternative ideas time consuming

“Difference” does not mean “Wrong” There is a reason why we have difference. Listen and observe carefully to find out what is really a difference and why. Think about whether we can take advantage of difference. Combination of difference could be better. Example:Combination of consensus building and cow boy style decision making.

Personality Conflict (Chemistry Issue) “Personality” is often considered as a part of country culture but personality is more individual matter. We tend to see differences of country cultural through individual persons’s way of thinking and behavior. We generalize individual case and create a stereotype universal perception

Person to Person Understanding is More Vital Building trust and friendship with your new partner Better not believe your first impression. Patiently try to know your new partner by taking longer time intentionally to spend with your new partner. Go everywhere with him. Invite him to dinner, baseball game played by your child, golf etc. It is not too late to do so with your long time partner.

Difficulties for Your New Japanese Partner Language New life Family situation Not easy to understand about what is going on around him. Anxiety, difficult to sleep Stressful Be helpful for him. Please think that you are now in Japan with very little knowledge about Japan and no Japanese language skill

Golden Rules for Both Sides American and Japanese Be patient Don’t make a quick judgment with minimum information. Be in your partner’s shoes A smile is always a great bridge Be a part of your team. Don’t try to be a representative of American or Japanese group

Thank You for Your Listening Question please