Cross Culture
Improving the efficiency of Japanese-American Seating Inc.
Students: Shi SU (Roy) 2807992 Azam Hayat Bosan 2879742 Jiale Chen (Carlos) 2804167
Subject: International Business - Cross Cultural Management – 7928IBA
Date: 24th April 2013
Word Count: Executive summary – 242words Report – 3246words
Executive Summary
In 1987, Banting Seat Corporation and Kasai formed a 35-65 joint venture, Japanese-American Seating Inc. (JASI) in Canada. This report analyses the key management issues which influencing the company's high-efficiency production.
Our report identifies three management issues. First, JASI was producing under “kanban” system. This system was relatively new in North America. Cooperation from suppliers and workers would be necessary for this system. However, due to some historical and cultural difference, JASI was not adaptive enough to “kanban” system. As a result, unfamiliarity with “kanban” system was weakening JASI’s efficiency of production.
Secondly, decision-making is an important part for any business organization which make organization going. As a joint-venture, Japanese and American have significant difference in their decision-making environment. In Japanese culture, decisions are made by upper level. While in American culture, decisions are taken from down to up. The cultural difference is making the process of decision-making slow and weakening the efficiency of organization.
Third, despite there is still some different opinion between Japanese managers and American managers, as the reason of the conflict of their different culture of the hierarchy, JASI has already decided to hire a project administrator. the more time JASI spend on this management issue the less time they can use to solve other issues, and this leads to the reduction in company’s efficiency.
After the managment issues analysis we came to the conclusion and some effective recommendations.
Students: Shi SU (Roy) 2807992 Azam Hayat Bosan 2879742 Jiale Chen (Carlos) 2804167
Subject: International Business - Cross Cultural Management – 7928IBA
Date: 24th April 2013
Word Count: Executive summary – 242words Report – 3246words
Executive Summary
In 1987, Banting Seat Corporation and Kasai formed a 35-65 joint venture, Japanese-American Seating Inc. (JASI) in Canada. This report analyses the key management issues which influencing the company's high-efficiency production.
Our report identifies three management issues. First, JASI was producing under “kanban” system. This system was relatively new in North America. Cooperation from suppliers and workers would be necessary for this system. However, due to some historical and cultural difference, JASI was not adaptive enough to “kanban” system. As a result, unfamiliarity with “kanban” system was weakening JASI’s efficiency of production.
Secondly, decision-making is an important part for any business organization which make organization going. As a joint-venture, Japanese and American have significant difference in their decision-making environment. In Japanese culture, decisions are made by upper level. While in American culture, decisions are taken from down to up. The cultural difference is making the process of decision-making slow and weakening the efficiency of organization.
Third, despite there is still some different opinion between Japanese managers and American managers, as the reason of the conflict of their different culture of the hierarchy, JASI has already decided to hire a project administrator. the more time JASI spend on this management issue the less time they can use to solve other issues, and this leads to the reduction in company’s efficiency.
After the managment issues analysis we came to the conclusion and some effective recommendations.