Topic > Doing Business in Japan

There are certain rules of business etiquette that must be followed when doing business with Japanese people, especially those related to courtesy and good manners which are more formal than in South Korea. For example , exchanging business cards is an essential ritual after someone has been introduced and bowed to the Japanese. In the service industry, they already set the global standard for their excellent service (Kwintessential, 2018). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In a business meeting, seating position is determined by status, the person with the highest rank will sit at the head of the table while subordinates will sit on both sides of the table. It is important not to take the initiative during the meeting when it comes to sitting down, drinking or eating, wait for others to take the initiative and then follow their lead. Emotions, especially negative ones, are not expressed openly. Japan has an appropriate way of discussing and resolving differences indirectly, for example with private matters not involved in public debate. In the Japanese culture of collective relations, respecting and maintaining hierarchical relationships is very important in society and business. The importance of hierarchy in Japanese culture is based on the social ethics of Confucianism, in which people are ordered into vertical, hierarchical relationships, for example customer (higher) and seller (lower). A stable society depends on the proper maintenance of these hierarchical relationships. There are many hierarchical relationships in Japanese business culture, such as the relationship between customer and supplier, parent company and subsidiary, headquarters and branch, manager and subordinate, senior (a person who has joined the company previously), and junior. Everyone has different expectations from others in these relationships. (Ruth Sasaki, 1999). Edward Hall, in his work Silent Language, refers to a "high-context culture". The Japanese people are relatively homogeneous and share a long history of common values, a very standardized education system, and strong families that instill 8 assumptions. Since there is the same background, to communicate with each other it is not necessary to express everything explicitly. And feelings can be expressed with just a few words or through subtle nonverbal cues. There is a Japanese saying: "Hear one, understand ten." Even silence can have great meaning. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay If Japanese people communicate with people from other cultures, without a similar background, Japanese people tend to take on a higher meaning. level of understanding and communicate in a way that seems vague or ambiguous to foreigners and demonstrate a high need for contextual information to build this shared context.