[2008.08.09] 日本商界：漫画偶像，商界楷模

Business in Japan
日本商界

Take a leaf out of his book
漫画偶像，商界楷模

Aug 7th 2008
From The Economist print edition

Japanese bosses can learn from the country’s favourite businessman-even if he does not exist
从这位最受欢迎的商人身上，日本的老板们大有可学——尽管他并不真实存在

Kenshi Hirokane-Kodansha Ltd
弘兼宪史 讲谈社出品

YAMATO, the ancient name of Japan, essentially means “big harmony”. To achieve such balance, Japanese society has refined a plethora of cultural traits: humility, loyalty, respect and consensus. In the field of business, however, this often results in a lack of leaders who are willing to stand out from the crowd, promote themselves and act decisively. “The nail that sticks up gets hammered down” is a common Japanese refrain; “the hawk with talent hides his talons” is another. Whereas American and European bosses like to appear on the covers of global business magazines, their Japanese counterparts are comfortable in their obscurity. Business in Japan is generally run as a group endeavour.
大和，日本旧称，本意为”大同和谐”。为了达到这种平衡和谐，日本社会提炼出了诸多文化特点，有：谦逊、忠诚、尊重、共识。然而，在商界，这种平衡常常意味着领导缺位，没有人愿意脱颖而出，尽显锋芒，敢作敢当。日本有一句俗语，”枪打出头鸟”劝诫人们不要出风头，”有干将器,不露锋芒”也是一例。不同于欧美商人好在全球商业杂志封面上一展英姿，日本同仁更喜欢默默无闻。通常，日本的企业的成就都是得益于团队的努力。

Such democratic virtues served the country well in the post-war period. But today they hold too many Japanese firms back. Japan boasts some of the best companies in the world: Toyota, Canon and Nintendo are the envy of their industries. But they operate on a global scale and have tentatively embraced some unconsensual American methods. In much of the Japanese economy-especially its huge domestic services sector-managers are in something of a funk. Firms do not give promising youngsters responsibility early on, but allocate jobs by age. Unnecessarily long working hours are the norm, sapping productivity. And there are few women and foreigners in senior roles, which narrows the talent pool.
这样的民主主义作风在战后的日本是如鱼得水。而如今这种作风却阻碍了日本公司的发展。该国拥有不少世界顶级公司, 如丰田、佳能、任天堂等，都算的上是业界翘楚。这些公司业务遍布全球，而对接受打破均衡的美国方式却是心存疑虑。在绝大部分日本企业中，特别是庞大的国内服务业，经理们多少都有些诚惶诚恐。他们铁了心不会提早重用青年才俊，而是按年龄分配工作。加班本不必要，却成为常态，导致生产率受损。而在公司高层中，也鲜有女士、外国人，这也导致了人才匮乏。

So how pleasing it is to be able to report the success of a business leader who breaks the mould. Young, dynamic and clever, he is not afraid to push aside old, conservative know-nothings. He disdains corporate politics and promotes people based on merit rather than seniority. He can make mistakes (he got involved in a questionable takeover-defence scheme), but he is wildly popular with salarymen: his every move is chronicled weekly. In June he was given the top job at one of Japan’s biggest firms. Kosaku Shima of Hatsushiba Goyo Holdings has only one serious shortcoming: he is not a real person, but a manga, or cartoon, character (see article).
For many critics of Japan, that says it all: Mr Shima could exist only in fiction. In fact there is room for the country’s managers and even its politicians to learn from him.
可想而之，如果能有一位商界领导成功挣脱桎梏，将多让人兴奋。他年轻、聪明，充满活力，敢于让那些保守固执、思想僵化的老家伙靠边站。他对公司政治不屑一顾，超越年龄限制按才取人。他会犯错（卷入了问题重重的反并购案），但在员工中仍是大受欢迎：他的一举一动在员工周记中无一遗漏。六月，他成为了日本一家知名企业的高管。初芝电产株式会社的课长岛耕作只有一个致命缺点：他不是真人，而是个漫画人物。日本的批评家口径一致地说道：岛耕作只能是个想象中人。事实上，该国的经理们却有改进余地，甚至政客们都应该向岛耕作好好学学。

Most of the lessons are for Japan’s managers. At present, bosses rarely say what they think because it might disrupt the harmony, or be seen as immodest. Their subordinates are reluctant to challenge ideas because that would cause the boss to lose face. So daft strategies fester rather than getting culled quickly. There is little risk-taking or initiative. The crux of the problem is Japanese companies’ culture of consensus-based decision-making. Called nemawashi[1] (literally, “going around the roots”) or ringi (bottom-up decisions), it helped to establish an egalitarian workplace. In the 1980s Western management consultants cooed that it was the source of Japan’s competitive strength. Sometimes it can be, as in periods of crisis when an entire firm needs to accept new marching orders quickly. But most of the time it strangles a company.
最应该学习的还是那些日本经理们。时下，经理们都不敢直言不讳，恐破坏和谐气氛，落得个桀骜不驯之名。他们的下属更是不敢提出异议，恐怕老板颜面不保。故此，低劣战略腐坏流脓，不见有人开刀剔除。冒险，首创更是无从谈起。问题的症结就在于日企的共识决策文化。名为”根回”（字面意思为：绕着根部进行）（自下而上的决策）的文化旨在营造平等工作氛围。上世纪八十年代，西方的管理顾问将其奉为日本竞争力的源泉。在全公司需要快速接受全新运行规则，面对危机之时，此种文化不无道理。但大多时候，这一文化却是将公司束缚得几近窒息。

Relying on consensus means that decisions are made slowly, if at all. With so many people to please, the result is often a mediocre morass of compromises. And with so many hands involved, there is no accountability; no reason for individuals to excel; no sanction against bad decisions so that there are fewer of them in future. Of course, sometimes the consensus of the Japanese workplace is just a veneer and decisions are still made from on high. But then why persist with the pretence, particularly if it drains a company’s efficiency?
倚仗共识就意味着决策缓慢，如果有决策的话。众口难调，结果常常是平庸的折中主义纠集一处。人人都插上一手，责任无人承担；个人无须标新立异；失败的决策也不会面临制裁，将来失败决策也少不了。当然，有时日本职场的共识只是一个假象，真正决策的还是高层。此种做法已是妨碍了公司效率，又为什么要自欺欺人？

Time to turn the page
向前一步走

If the onus is on Japanese managers to change, then it is fair to say that the government does not make it very easy for them to do so. The biggest problems lie in the labour market. Change jobs in mid-career and you risk losing your pension. The rigid seniority system also discriminates against women: if they get off the ladder to have children, they cannot get back on. And although there is no law against closing down loss-making businesses, most bosses and politicians act as if there were. If Japan’s leaders decide their country needs more people like Mr Shima-and it surely does-then they might reflect on all the ways that they prevent him from becoming a reality.
如果说改变是日本经理们的责任，那么也该说政府为改变所做的还远远不够。最大的问题就是劳动力市场。在职业生涯中期换工作很可能会失掉退休金。这个僵化死板的尚老体系还歧视妇女：女人一旦退出职场回家生子，就别再想恢复原职。尽管没有法律反对关闭亏损企业，绝大多数业主、政客还是会坚持到底。如果该国领导人承认日本需要更多人如岛耕作一般–确实如此–那么他们无疑应该反思阻碍这位漫画人物走向现实的种种行径。

[1]传统日本人的做事方式被称为”根回”(Nemawashi,指园丁在移植树木时小心翼翼地将所有跟须都包缠起来),意思是领导人在做重要决定时,必须设法将所有成员的意见都统一起来。

译者：eirrac    http://www.ecocn.org/forum/viewthread.php?tid=13195&extra=page%3D1