With Respect to the Japanese: Going to Work in Japan

by John Condon, Tomoko Masumoto

The second edition of With Respect to the Japanese discusses the salient features of Japanese values and behaviors and contrasts them with the values and characteristics of Americans while examining the cultural differences in decision-making, rhetoric, management styles, behavior in the workplace and much more. It examines the critical elements of Japanese culture that affect the way Japanese and Americans perceive and react to each other, and then offers concrete guidelines for establishing effective relationships.

Genres: Japan, Nonfiction, Cultural

137 pages

First published June 1, 1983

About the author

When John Condon was a child, he was always drawing, so his mother and most of his teachers assumed he would become an illustrator or a designer. He did become a designer, and now he’s an author, too. John Condon was born and raised in London, but he currently lives on its outskirts where it’s a little leafier.

Reviews

[Govinda Parasrampuria · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good book, describes in detail how the Japanese people behave and what are their customs. It sheds light on some of the behavior that perplexes the outsiders who come to Japan for work or pleasure.

I loved how the Japanese people value their culture and ethics, giving due respect wherever warranted.

I can confidently say that I am better prepared now to work in a Japanese company and understand, however little, about the Japanese "way".

UPDATE 2016/07/8:
Just re-read it for the second time, before leaving to Japan again. I'm really surprised that I understood so many new things this time. I made many notes and highlights, because I need to keep in mind the important points.
Absolutely indispensable for anyone going to work with Japanese people professionally.

[BeWorldly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best overview I have seen of Japanese culture. It gets at the crux of what the Japanese people truly value, and is an essential guide for visitors in decoding Japanese behavior.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second version of the book which was originally published in 1984. This new version focuses on Westerners going to work in Japanese organizations. The point of the book is that cultural differences between the West (U.S. and Canada) and the Japanese can interfere in communication and cooperation between individuals and corporations. The book explains some of those cultural differences so that communication can improve. The authors state that even those people from the U.S. and Canada who have studied the language and the culture, have many every day challenges to confront once they are in Japan and working at a company there, and the book hopes to make it easier to adjust. Although the book is primarily aimed at people who will be moving from Canada or the United States to live in Japan and work in an organization in Japan, anyone doing business with Japanese organizations will benefit from the information in this book.

This book is primarily aimed at people who will be moving from Canada or the United States to live in Japan and work in an organization in Japan, even if on a temporary basis. However, even exchange students going to live their or anyone doing business with Japanese organizations will benefit from the information in this book.

I have only been to Japan once and it was for non-business reasons. I have had very limited business dealings with people from Japan, but found information such as the differences in how the Japanese view feedback, public praise, non-verbal communication, and contracts to be extremely relevant to my work. Information about gender roles, "classes" of workers that start at companies together, and Japanese holidays would be interesting to anyone who would like to learn more about Japanese culture.

The book begins with five key lessons for anyone that will be working in Japan, such as being told "Yes" could be simply a face-saving way of saying "No". The book ends with seven suggestions that anyone who has worked in Japan would offer, such as keep a journal and express interest in local food to help make personal connections with your co-workers. There is also an appendix with terms that are useful to know when working in Japan such as types of meetings and company titles, as well as a section of additional books and resources.

I think it's a "must-read" for anyone considering moving from the West to Japan, but anyone interested in Japanese culture will find the insights to be fascinating.

I received this book from NetGalley, through the courtesy of Nicholas Brealey Publishing, in exchange for a fair review.

[Ánder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice book for people who are interested in Japanese culture and especially in Japanese workplace culture. It offers a good deal of insights and useful terms to understand the principles exposed. It is an easy read and a short book, even if a person is not directly interested in Japan, those interested in Intercultural Communication or anthropology will find it enjoyable. One disadvantage though is the clear inclination to compare Japanese culture with North American culture which lessens the value for people from other cultures.

[Malcolm F. Cross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Real interesting look at a very different culture, though, of course, you can't really condense people down to words like this. All you can ever get is an incomplete picture... but it is a very, very interesting incomplete picture, especially for me while I was trying to puzzle out the reasoning behind some generalizations about Japanese management/corporate culture.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book to introduce one to the values and ways of doing business in Japan. It helps to understand Hofstede's value system and direct vs. indirect Ispeech. A little dated, but I may have an older version.

[Rebecca Radnor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Condon uses socio-linguistics to help businessmen understand some of the fundamental differences between Japanese and American culture.

[Numa Parrott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just another school book with lots of useful information. Boring.

But the author did have a sense of humor, which made it bearable.

[Brendan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really gives a good insight into why Japanese people do what they do at the workplace (and every other place in life).

[itsumoAoi · Rating 3 out of 5]

what an interesting book !! can't wait to write the review --running out of time-- T_T

[Rachel Birks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Focuses on explaining, and comparing and contrasting Japanese business culture with American business culture.

[Ballaji Vijayan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read, compares and contrasts the japanese and western cultural intricacies in a rather, practical and clear fashion. Useful book.

[Tony Bordeaux · Rating 4 out of 5]

Straight to the point learning why Japanese society is the way that it is.