Different nationalities assess their company’s HRM practices and recruitment systems in different ways, depending on the historical background and social, religious and cultural characteristics of the country. Thus, the working environment might be different, as well as the recruitment process. Japan is the most frequently referred to as a role model country as it possesses the third-largest GDP in the world. The economic performance and growth paths varied over time, however, the role of one of the ‘dominant’ economies rotates among Japan. Meanwhile, their traditional approach to human resources management and work environment specialties differ from the Western world practices being sometimes completely strange.
What does the traditional Japanese recruitment system look like?
Japanese recruitment system represents a unique hiring style, which generates some confusion among non-Japanese. Even the etiquette rules for job interviews are complicated.
4th-year university students start their job-hunt simultaneously and the recruitment period is the same for the whole country, once a year, in spring, for all the companies. Hiring new graduates is all about finding people with the highest potential, not necessarily the highest skills, and it makes Japan different from America, with its recruitment based on pure skill-set and the UK, known for its mid-career recruitment system styles.
The job interviews are an etiquette minefield. Uniformity is paramount. Plain black suit, white shirt, black bag, black shoes, and a tie (any color other than black or white).
Knocking 3 times on the interviewer’s door really matters. Two knocks are for checking if a toilet cubicle is vacant. Bowing correctly must not be neglected. 30 degrees upon entering and 45 degrees when you leave. Leaning back on the chair is also not welcomed, and one should put one hand on each knee.
Working hours in Japan are one of the longest in the world. Approximately 80 hours of often unpaid overtime a month, according to a 2016 government survey. Japanese workers don’t even use their paid vacation days. The term “karoshi” has come to be known outside the country. It means “death caused by overwork”, and is a legal term recognized in Japan.
The perception of Japan as a nation of lifetime employment also makes it’s HRM unique. One of the reasons for this system to be existing is that it’s still common to end up face-to-face with the older generation of Japanese people who still have their lifetime employment contracts firmly in hand. Fortunately, the Article 18 of the Labor Contracts Act 1, which took effect on April 2013, gives employees on fixed-term contracts the right to be moved onto a permanent contract once their term at an employer exceeds five years. April 1, 2018, marked five years since the law came into force.
Accordingly, Japanese employee engagement is low and there are many reasons listed above: long working hours, seniority-based promotion, inappropriate assignment of people, rigid compensation and HR systems (egalitarian to the point of unfairness or too strictly performance-based). Besides, Japanese companies are bad at communicating – to their staff as well as to the outside world.
It must be noted too that the Japanese Government traditionally hasn’t supported workers who hopped for jobs but supported management who bring their employees up.
How do Japanese manage human resources in their way?
Japanese people believe that one becomes happy by working hard. Their lifetime commitment to the companies is really hard to be copied by non-Japanese people raised in other cultures or having had previous working experience outside Japan.
In recent years, there appears to be a big focus on fixing the disengagement, so the market for wellbeing and engagement solutions is growing and applying HR digitalization trends, too. And Japanese companies will transform themselves rapidly within the following years.
Meanwhile, the Japanese working culture has many positive cornerstones and lessons to teach us how to manage human resources. Politeness is one of the hallmarks of Japanese culture; Teamwork with very supportive colleagues is their strength; Socializing with colleagues is making stronger relationships in the office; Consensus in decision-making always takes place while making any decisions; Concentrating on planning, process and small details are levelling up the quality; Increased responsibility to employees contributes to the potential of senior-level workers and helps leverage their unique skills.
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