[:en]Conversation with Nihon Michelin CEO [:ja]日本ミシュランタイヤCEOから学んだこと[:]
[:en]On October 19th, I conducted an on-stage conversation with Nihon Michelin CEO, Paul Perriniaux, at the Tokyo American Club for the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan and the French Chamber of Commerce. Here are a few of my takeaways.
[:en]It’s Never Because “This is Japan”[:ja]日本が企業問題の原因であることはない[:]
[:en]Address real root cause, and you can accelerate change in your business. Blame your ailments on Japan, and you will remain permanently stuck. It’s up to you. What is it about Japan that makes companies as they are? Below are a few statements from a company manager, many of which you might find familiar in your own experience in Japan.
[:en]Conversation with BMW Japan CEO[:ja]BMWジャパン代表取締役社長のインタビューから学んだこと[:]
[:en]On September 22nd, I conducted an on-stage conversation with BMW Group Japan CEO Peter Kronschnabl. This event, co-hosted by the American and German Chambers of Commerce, was attended by over one-hundred people on the fifty-first floor of Tokyo’s posh Roppongi Hills Club. While this event was off-the-record, I enumerate nine of my personal takeaways below from the conversation with the insightful, innovative and consummate international business leader, Peter Kronschnabl.
[:en]Japan, Rotten to the Core? No.[:ja]日本の企業文化が芯まで腐敗しているというのは間違いである[:]
[:en]When you hear of malfeasance in American companies like Equifax, Wells Fargo, Valeant, Countrywide Financial and Washington Mutual of subprime mortgage crisis infamy, and even Enron, no one questions whether or not something is rotten in the whole of American corporate culture. So, why should we think differently when it comes to corporate malfeasance in Japan?
[:en]Kobe Steel vs. Japanese Culture[:ja]神戸製鋼と日本文化[:]
[:en] Bloomberg invited me to discuss the current situation with Kobe Steel and my take on Japanese culture and the role it plays (or does not) with respect to what is happening inside of corporations in Japan. If you’d prefer to read this interview, the following transcript has been provided by Bloomberg:
[:en]Leader Versus Minion Behaviors [:ja]リーダーとそうでない人との違い[:]
[:en]Who on your staff is leadership material, and who is…perhaps not? Forget personality profiling and engagement survey results. None of these tests have ever been scientifically validated, and can tell you as much about a candidate for a higher level of leadership as reading the entrails of a slaughtered chicken.
[:en]Big Consequences of Tolerating Small Infractions[:ja]たとえ小さくとも、違反は大きな影響を及ぼすもの[:]
[:en] Illicit and unethical behavior should never be tolerated, even if the impact is small. For example, if a manager is padding company expenses for personal gain, you really have no choice but to fire the manager, even if it is for less than a few hundred dollars per year. That can be a hard decision to make when the manager’s performance is high, such as a top salesperson, but it is the right decision. It is a matter of judgement and leadership of the manager rather than a cost-benefit analysis of the infraction.
[:en]Using R&D to Make a Sale is like Eating Your Young[:ja]研究開発部を利用して営業を上げるのは、リソースの無駄遣いである[:]
[:en]I often see sales people offer highly valuable expert services from an R&D division to a customer for free in order to make a product sale, even when the customer would likely have been happy to pay.
[:en]Steven’s Trinity of Strategy Development Success[:]
[:en] Steve shares his ideas on how to develop a successful strategy, and explains how they work together. [:]
[:en]Implementing Your Strategic Direction[:]
[:en] Steve shares ways that organizations can successfully implement their strategic direction. These include having great communication among your organization, at all levels, hold people accountable, provide resources, celebrating victories early and often and use informal meetings as opposed to just reports and statistics to keep a clear eye on your progress. [:]
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