Japanese Etiquette and Ethics in Business

Since its original publication, Japanese Etiquette & Ethics in Business, the pioneering work on the subject, has been the standard guide for Westerners doing business with the Japanese--either here or abroad. In this new edition Boyd Lafayette De Mente, who has been living and working in Japan for more than twenty-five years, examines those characteristics that epitomize the Japanese character and business personality. De Mente explains how concepts from daily life extend to dealings in business and how loyalty to the family and nation applies to professional relationships as well. Throughout this book De Mente offers invaluable advice to Westerners wishing to do business with the Japanese. In an all new chapter De Mente compares the Japanese and Western approaches to business pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of each. This is the one book on Japanese business structure and practices that offers explanations for what appears to many foreigners to be confusing and contradictory behavior by their Japanese counterparts. As part of a rationale for Japan's economic achievements, De Mente has formulated "Japan's Five Commandments for Success," which he presents here for the first time. No other hook is as informative about the cultural factors that shape business practices in Japan. The insights that De Mente has gathered as the results of his long experience in Japan are presented on every page. No one who goes East with the intention of doing business with the Japanese should do so without first consulting Japanese Etiquette & Ethics in Business. "I am delighted to see this revised and expanded edition of a book that has become something of a classic over the decades. Boyd De Mente's long experience in Japan . . . has given him a keen insight into the cultural factors that shaped and still control management practices in Japan." -- Yasutaka Sai, Vice President International Japan Management Association "This book is 'must' reading for anyone with even a marginal interest in Japan and Japanese business." -- William K. Nickoson, President Asia Dynamics (Japan) Ltd. "Until foreign businesspeople fully understand and learn how to cope with the cultural factors underlying Japanese society, particularly such elements as discrimination and egotism, they will not be able to understand or work effectively with the Japanese. Boyd De Mente's Japanese Etiquette & Ethics in Business provides the basis for this understanding, along with practical advice on bridging cultural differences." -- John Artise, Vice President Drake Beam Morin, Inc.