JAPAN MNE Insights
Volume 6, Issue 2

October 2020

Japan Academy of Multinational Enterprises

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Special Essay:
Human Resource
Departments inJapanese MNEs:
Exploring the Black Box

www.mne-jp.org

Special Essay:
Human Resource Departments inJapanese MNEs: Exploring the Black Box

2. Special Essay:
Do Domestic R&D
Activities Impact Those
Overseas?: Analysis of
Productivity Changes
and Globalization in
Japan’s Manufacturing
Industry

This article reports on our recent research on
the roles and challenges of human resource
departments in Japan’s large corporations. While weare still in the process of publishing our results, wereport here shortly on our research motivation andresearch framework and present some preliminary
findings.

Research Motivation
We came to this research topic after
conducting a study on the recruitment of nonJapanese fresh university graduates into theheadquarters of Japanese corporations. As both of us
are teaching at universities outside of Japan, we were
surprised to see an increasing trend of our graduates
being recruited not only into Japanese companies in
Britain or Singapore, but also increasingly into
headquarters in Japan. We thought that researching
this trend was not only an opportunity to look atchanges in human resource management in Japan, butwould also enable us to advise and prepare ourstudents better for work in Japanese companies. We

Harald Conrad
Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf

conrad@phil.uni-duesseldorf.deHendrik Meyer-Ohle
National University of Singapore, Singapore

meyerohle@nus.edu.sg
thus conducted an interview study with young nonJapanese employees working for Japanese
corporations in Japan, the HR sections of Japanesecompanies and finally the agents involved in theactual recruitment processes (Conrad and Meyer-Ohle
2019; Conrad and Meyer-Ohle, forthcoming 2020).
Talking to representatives of HR sections, we realizedthat we had quite a good understanding of the HR
policies and practices of Japanese corporations, butwere clearly lacking an understanding of the roles andcapabilities of HR departments. For example, we had
assumed that being in charge of recruitment and being
involved in the allocation and rotation of employees,
HR departments would carry some weight of theirown in Japanese corporations. However, we foundHR departments facing resistance when placing
international recruits into operational units to fulfil
requests by board members. We also sensed thatsome HR policies of companies were not probably
implemented, with our informants regarding theirwork in human resources rather as a transitional
period than a long-term professional career. We
therefore set out to understand better the position and1Vol.6 Issue 2roles of Japanese HR departments through an
explorative interview study with HR representativesof 37 mostly large, established Japanese MNCs.

Previous Research on HR Departments inJapanese Companies
Previous research on HR departments of large
Japanese companies has largely attributed to them amore important role than that of their counterpartsin Western corporations. While in Western
corporations HR sections have been seen as justanother administrative support function, HR
sections in Japanese corporations have been
described as controlling the vital allocation androtation of employees, necessary within an
employment system that is built on the assumptionof long-term employment. Aoki (1990) describes
this situation in his influential article Toward an
Economic Model of the Japanese Firm as follows:
In order to administer rank hierarchies,
Japanese firms have developed the personnel
department as an important institution. This
department has full control of the recruitmentof new employees for career tracks out ofschool, designs and runs rank hierarchies(pay scale and promotion criteria), androtates white-collar workers with an eye tothe wider interests of the organization… Since
the personnel department potentially has
excessive power because of its control ofpromotion and rotation, managers of thedepartment are usually themselves subject torotation. (12/13)
Yet, Nonaka, another influential scholar on
Japanese management, as early as 1988 questioned
this assumption:
The personnel department of Japanesecompanies, in general, used to be a morestrategic section when compared with that oftypical Western companies. Personnel andfinancialmanagement
arerelatively

JAPAN MNE Insights
centralized in Japanese companies, and there
are considerable numbers of top executives
who have developed their careers chiefly inthe personnel department. In recent years,
however, the tasks of the personnel
department have become limited to moreroutine activities (such as the recruitment of
new graduates, payroll-related activities,
employee benefits and welfare, and labor
relations) as the corporate organization has
become more bureaucratic due to expansion
in size. (58)Consequently, Nonaka proposed that humanresource departments should reassert theirimportance by playing a strategic role in what would
have been a drastic overhaul of the way humanresources were to be managed in Japan. His
propositions included a rejuvenation of decision
makers,diversificationofcareerpaths,
individualizationof
incentive
systems,
decentralization of personnel movement andheterogeneous staffing through mid-career hiring, as
well as the development of foreign staff. Nonaka’s
proposal was derived from the aggregation of
singular progressive initiatives of certain companies.
Yet, the fact that 30 years later all of these issues arestill the focus of a lively debate with regards to theirappropriateness to Japan underlines the stability ofthe original institutions of the so-called Japanesehuman resource management system. While Nonaka
in 1988 mainly related his call for “revitalized”
human resource departments to the needs ofcompanies to nurture creativity and build
international operations, HR departments regainedsome of their importance by default during the
1990s after the Japanese economy had entered into aperiod of stagnation and many companies faced theneed to restructure labour forces through large scale
early retirement programs. Companies also began toexperiment with new incentive systems (Conrad
2010; 2011) or the employment of non-regular
employees, often under the pressure to reducelabour costs (Meyer-Ohle 2009). Jacoby et al.
(2005) provide an overview of the role of the HR2

Vol.6 Issue 2
department in the past and hypothesize forJapanese firms that they have lost some of theirpower due to a shift of governance away from
employees as stakeholders toward the interest ofshareholders. Finding some evidence for change inthis direction, they still concluded that change inJapan has been relatively slower than in the US
with differences becoming even larger.
In Japan, the HR function’s power rests
inside the organization: on career
employment practices, the centralization ofoperating decisions, and on dealings withthe enterprise union. Executives are
somewhat more inclined to see employees as
ends, that is, as stakeholders or ascompetitive resources. In short, we have aparadox: both Japanese and U.S. firms are
becoming more market-oriented yet national
differences persist and may even be
widening. (Jacoby et al. 2005: 238)
Hirano (2013) also looks at the role of HR
departments and, based on a large survey,
concludes that the role of HR departments for
managerial employees as well as towards otherfunctions in the company has changed little since
the high growth period. HR departments are found
to remain important and contributing to companies
through their accumulation of and control overpersonal information, their involvement in thetransfer dynamic of employees, and the training of
employees across functions.
In conclusion, there has been someresearch on the institutional role of the HR
function in Japanese firms, yet much of thisresearch has focussed on the reasons for its
continued relative institutional importance.
Overall, the literature has focussed on theimportant role of the HR function in the Japanese
firm in facilitating the long-term development of
personnel, yet it has little to say about its role ininitiating change or supporting larger corporate
strategic objectives. This is why we set out toinvestigate the latter issues in more detail.

JAPAN MNE Insights
We are still in the process of analysing our
findings and interpreting them within an institutional
theory framework, yet, we would like to highlighthere the following points for an early discussion inthis forum.

Towards a Strategic HR Management inJapanese MNCs?
We found a significant interest among our
informantsindeveloping
human
resource
management in Japan into a professional function thatcan participate in the strategic development of thecompany, especially with the perspective to manage
global labour forces and discover, develop, allocate
and retain talent throughout organizations. Ourinterviewees highlighted the significant efforts ofJapanese MNCs to grow overseas operations, withsome companies having made substantial overseas
acquisitions, yet also admitted that the integration of
HR policies was often lagging behind. Ourinterviewees also reported pressure from board
members to contribute more strategically, but also
highlighted the need of HR departments to reinvent
themselves after losing some of their influence due tothe automation and outsourcing of administrative
tasks. In addition, increasingly independent business
units are claiming more independence in HR
decisions, partly circumventing the HR departmentsby resorting to mid-career hiring, with HR
departments themselves normally focussing only on
the recruitment of fresh graduates.

Following the US Model?
In looking for inspiration for changing the roleof HR departments, Ulrich’s model of HR
professionalism has clearly gained significant
popularity in Japan. His books have been translated
into Japanese and influential institutions such as theJapan Management Association have introduced
development courses for HR managers and are thus
pushing the ideal of a professional HR manager. ThisHR professional has a set of individual abilities, deep3Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

HR skills combined with an understanding ofbusiness operations beyond the realms of humanresource management and follows the mission toalign HR activities with objectives set by corporate
leadership. This enables HR professionals to not justsupport but to engage on eye-level as a partner withother business functions (Ulrich and Dulebohn,2015).

working
temporarilyinhumanresources.
Additionally, our informants did not necessarily see
the need for HR department leaders to have a strong
background in HR, but instead saw leadership
qualities and the ability to institute change as more
important. Here, it can be argued that theseperceptions of the ideal state of HR management
might mostly reflect the realities of Japanese
corporations and particularly the experience of ourown informants, with many not having spent all theircareers in HR and very differing levels of HR
specialization. A call for professionals might thus
question their own careers and legitimacy inoccupying HR leadership positions.

However, while our company informants were
well aware of the above discourse, their answers on
the future of human resources and the “ideal HR
manager” in their companies in particular and inJapan more generally were still very much groundedwithin the existing thinking on employment structures
However, these answers can also be seen as
and employee development in Japan. First, we foundreflecting an opportunity that arises from career paths
a very strong continued commitment to the ideal ofand job descriptions in Japanese corporations being
understanding the so-called “genba” as the place
more open and less specific. The Western discourse
where goods and services are developed, producedon the development and external and internaland sold on a day to day basis. While dealing withrecognition of HR as a profession has admitted to one
unions seems to have lost somewhat in importance,
major hurdle, namely straddling the needs ofmost informants still see future HR managers starting
developing individuals that have both a deep HR
their career in the genba and seem to value thisspecialization and an understanding of the operational
exposure much higher than any possible education in
HR prior to the entry in companies.
Exposure on this level seems to bewhat provides HR managers with theJapanese companies have, based on theirnecessary legitimacy and skills toorganisational characteristics, the opportunity
communicate and align policies and tonegotiate employee transfers, possibly
to come up with what could be termed
even more so than previously, as“professional HR departments” rather thanbusiness functions have gained someindividual “HR professionals”
independence in HR matters.

“

Being ourselves influenced by
the discourse on the HR professional, we asked our
informants for the traits and qualifications of the“ideal HR employee”. However, most of our
informants would instead describe the “ideal HR
department”. Here, they see the HR department being
composed of a mix of people with proper technicalHR skills, possibly also gained through further
education, overseas exposure or in other companies,
and people who have a deep understanding of andlinks to the operational functions, while possibly onlyand strategic needs of the business functions(Lemmergaard 2009; Jamieson, Eklund, and Meekin2012; Cohen 2015). Within the Western system offrequent employer changes within one specialisation,
it seems to be very difficult to overcome this hurdle.
However, the longer tenure of employees in Japanesecompanies and assigning tasks more broadly todepartments and sections rather than specifically toindividuals seems indeed to allow for a combinationof people of different backgrounds, skills and4Vol.6 Issue 2
abilities. Currently, the composition of many HR
departments and the development of HR staff does
seem to reflect some elements of randomness. Yet, if
conceptualised properly, Japanese companies have,based on their organisational characteristics, theopportunity to come up with what could be termed“professional HR departments” rather than individual“HR professionals”. These would then indeed be able
to overcome the hurdle of HR as a profession, as it
has been described in the literature.

References
Aoki, M. (1990). Toward an Economic Model of theJapanese Firm. Journal of Economic Literature,28(1), 1-27.
Cohen, D.J., (2015). HR past, present and future: A
call for consistent practices and a focus oncompetencies. Human Resource Management
Review, 25(2), 205-215.
Conrad, H. (2010). From Seniority to Performance
Principle - The Evolution of Pay Practices inJapanese Firms since the 1990s. Social Science
Japan Journal, 13(1), 115-135.

JAPAN MNE Insights
The role of the Senior HR Executive in Japan andthe United States: Employment Relations,
Corporate governance, and Values. Industrial
Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society,44(2), 207-241.
Jamieson, D.J., Eklund, S., Meekin, B. (2012).
Strategic Business Partner Role - Definition,
Knowledge, Skills, and Operating Tensions. W.J.
Rothwell and G. M. Benscoter (eds), The
Encyclopaedia of Human Resource Management,
Vol. 3, Thematic Essays, pp. 112-128. Hoboken:
Wiley.
Lemmergaard, J. (2009). From Administrative Expert
to Strategic Partner. Employee Relations, 31(2),182-196.
Meyer-Ohle H. (2009). Japanese Workplaces inTransition: Employee Perceptions. Basingstoke:
Palgrave Macmillan.
Nonaka, I. (1988). Self‐renewal of the Japanese Firm
and the Human Resource Strategy. Human
Resource Management, 27(1), 45-62.
Ulrich, D and Dulebohn, J. H. (2015). Are we there
yet? What's next for HR? Human Resource
Management Review, 25(2), 188-204.

Conrad, H. (2011). Change and Continuity inJapanese Employment Practices: The Case of
Occupational Pensions since the Early 2000s.
International Journal of Human Resource
Management, 22(15), 3051-3067.
Conrad, H., and Meyer-Ohle, H. (2019). Overcoming
the ethnocentric firm? –foreign fresh university
graduate employment in Japan as a newinternational human resource development
method. The International Journal of Human
Resource Management, 30(17), 2525-2543.
Conrad, H., and Meyer-Ohle, H. Forthcoming (2020).
Training regimes and diversity: experiences of
youngforeign
employees
inJapanese
headquarters. Work, Employment and Society.
Hirano, M. (2013). Human resources departments ofJapanese corporations: Have their roles changed?"Japan Labor Review, 10(1), 81-103.
Jacoby, S. M., Nason, E. M., & Saguchi, K. (2005).
5

Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Special Essay:
Do Domestic R&D Activities Impact Those
Overseas?: Analysis of Productivity Changes andGlobalization in Japan’s Manufacturing Industry
Tomokazu Seki, Ph.D.

Professor of International Business,
Department of Accounting and Finance, College of Economics,
Rikkyo University, Japansekit@rikkyo.ac.jp

Introduction
Japanese business enterprises reported asignificant decline in R&D expenditures following
the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008. According
to the Survey of Research and Development
conducted by the Statistics Bureau of Japan, R&D
expenditure recovered to pre-crisis levels in FY 2019and has reached 14,232 billion yen. However,concerns about the expenditure levels have recently
re-emerged because of the coronavirus (COVID-19)
pandemic. During April–June 2020, the preliminary
real GDP figures decreased by an annualized 27.8%
from the previous quarter, which is the largest drop
since 1955, when GDP statistics were made available
in Japan. In addition to Japan, the United States, theUnited Kingdom, and Germany report a significant
decline in their GDP levels. To survive this economic
downturn, Japanese companies are exploring new
ways to improve productivity while utilizing limited
resources and rare opportunities. One such solution isan integrated system of manufacturing and sales thatleverages data and digital technology, also known asdigital transformation (DX).
With the objective of exploring the first stepto sales and production, R&D activities, this study
conducts an R&D productivity analysis on Japan’s
manufacturing industry. The results can help
understand not only domestic but also overseas R&D
activities since increased productivity in local R&D

activities can positively affect those overseas. The
research also highlights global innovation in theJapanese manufacturing industry.

Definition of Keywords
This section presents the definitions forresearch and productivity, the two keywords
employed in this study. The Statistics Bureau ofJapan defines research as the creative acquisitionof new knowledge and innovative use of existingknowledge. Our study analyzes R&D productivity
using intramural R&D expenditure data that havebeen annually published since 1987 in the Surveyof Research and Development by the Statistics
Bureau of Japan. The data include labor costs,
materials, expenditures on tangible and intangible
fixed assets, lease fees, and other expenses.
The Japan Productivity Center describes
productivity as the degree to which production
factors are effectively utilized. Labor productivity
per capita, for example, is estimated by dividing
value added by the number of employees. Under
this concept, productivity can be improved byincreasing output while leaving inputs unchanged,
decreasing input while keeping output constant, or
diminishing input while expanding output.
Japanese companies are accelerating DX adoption,
given the potential to save labor costs and otherexpenses.

6

Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Figure 1. Six Types of Productivity Changes

Source: National Association of Small and Medium Enterprise Promotion Organizations (2018, p.62).

Classification of Productivity changeThis study focuses on labor productivity
to estimate R&D productivity in the Japanesemanufacturing industry. The 2018 White Paper on
Small and Medium Enterprises in Japan guides theresearch perspective and serves as a reference forchanges in labor productivity. We adopt a method
developed by Accenture Japan Ltd. to analyze thegrowth rate of labor, which is the growth rate invalue added divided by that in the number of
employees. Figure 1 illustrates the sixclassifications of productivity changes.
The figure shows that efficient growth,for example, improves both labor productivity the
number of employees and, thus, can be considered
to promote corporate growth. Inefficient growth,on the other hand, decreases labor productivity anddoes not create value added associated with anincrease in employees. Thus, the classification
method transcends the simple viewpoint that apositive growth rate for labor productivity denotes
improvements, while a negative growth rate means

deterioration. The method also allows us to explore
the process of arriving at each result.

Value added in R&D
While this study adopts the above
mentioned classification method to examinechanges in the R&D productivity of the Japanesemanufacturing industry, it replaces the number of
employees with the number of persons employed
in R&D. However, such a straightforward
substitution cannot be applied to value added. The
output of R&D activities is generally denoted by
the number of patent applications and publication
citations. However, these indicators are difficult toevaluate in monetary terms.
Therefore, this study calculates value
added in R&D using data from the Survey of
Research and Development by the Statistics
Bureau of Japan for the technology balance of
payments 1 , labor costs, and the depreciation of
tangible fixed assets in R&D. We replace these
indicators with operating profit, labor costs, anddepreciation costs2. Once we determined the

1 The technology balance of payments is estimated as receipts from technology exports minus technology payments.
2 Value added in R&D is the sum of the technology balance of payments, labor costs, and the depreciation of tangible fixed
assets.
3 Following is the formula to estimate the growth rate in value added: labor share × the growth rate for labor costs + (1 − labor
share) × the growth rate for tangible and intangible fixed assets + the growth rate for TFP.

7

Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Figure 2. Productivity Changes in R&D

Source: Author.
appropriate calculation approach for value added,
it became possible to identify the contribution ofeach production factor to the growth rate of value
added 3.

R&D productivity analysis for Japan’s
manufacturing industry
Figure 2 presents the analysis results for
productivity changes in R&D. Changes in
productivity are confirmed between the regions ofefficient growth and efficiency. The analysis also
reports improvements in labor productivity. In
other words, Japan’s manufacturing industry
shows sound growth in its R&D activities. By
contrast, Figure 3 suggests that improvements inlabor productivity in the context of R&D areassociated with a decrease in the growth rate forvalue added in R&D and a further decline in thatfor the number of persons employed in R&D.
Thus, we see a contractionary trend for the growthrate of value added in R&D and the contribution oflabor input, and this is consistent with the
downward trend observed for the growth rate of
the number of persons employed in R&D. Thesefindings highlight the substitution of labor withcapital in the R&D activities of the Japanesemanufacturing industry.
To this effect, Takenaka (1984) describes
R&D activities in the Japanese manufacturingindustry as capital intensive and large scaleconsidering the increasing investments in laborsaving technologies and rationalization. This
viewpoint can be substantiated with theconclusions of the Survey of Research and8Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Figure 3. Factor Decomposition for Productivity Changes in R&D

Source: Author.

9Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Figure 4. Distribution of Four Types of Employees in R&D

Source: Survey of Research and Development, Statistics Bureau of Japan
Figure 5. Trend for Overseas R&D Expenditures in the Japanese Manufacturing Industry

Source: Survey on Overseas Business Activities in Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, Japan.

10Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Figure 6. Relationship between Improvements in Domestic R&D Activities and Ratio of Overseas R&D
Expenditures
4.4%

85%

4.3%
80%
4.2%

TSI for technology

R&D intensity

4.1%
4.0%
3.9%
3.8%

y = 0.1481x + 0.0341
R² = 0.6091

75%

70%

65%

y = 8.4653x + 0.3382
R² = 0.9333

3.7%
60%
3.6%

1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
Ratio of overseas R&D expenditures

55%
0.0%

6.0%

18

84%

17

83%

16

82%

15

Ratio of researchers

Labor productivity (million yen)

3.5%
0.0%

y = 143.18x + 8.5944
R² = 0.8256

14

6.0%

y = 1.5695x + 0.7422
R² = 0.9159

80%

79%

13

12
0.0%

81%

1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
Ratio of overseas R&D expenditures

1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
Ratio of overseas R&D expenditures

6.0%

78%
0.0%

1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
4.0%
5.0%
Ratio of overseas R&D expenditures

6.0%

Source: Author.
Development conducted by the Statistics Bureau ofJapan. Labor costs related to value added in R&D
steadily declined from more than 80% in 1990 to
76% in 2000, 66% in 2010, and 54% in 2019. This
study further confirms the substitution of labor withcapital in R&D activities.

Conclusions and implications
Some scholars have attributed declining
employment to the introduction of information andcommunication technologies (ICT), whereas someothers believe ICT complements a rise inemployment. A majority of micro-level studies inadvanced countries confirm the complementarity
between technology and skills in improving theperformance of productivity. OECD (2003), forexample, reports that computers as a skill-biased
technology increase the demand for skilled workers
but reduces that of unskilled workers. Similarly, the2009 White Paper on Information andCommunications in Japan highlights that ICT
capital complements highly skilled labor but renders
low-skilled labor substitutable in both the
manufacturing and service industries. This study
focuses on researchers performing high-skilledlabor among four types of employees in R&D. The
results confirm that, in recent years, there has been asteady increase in the ratio of researchers to theoverall number of employees (see Figure 4). In
other words, labor productivity in R&D is gradually11Vol.6 Issue 2entering a recessionary phase. The rationalization of
R&D, however, is progressing and complements
highly skilled labor. The conclusions of this study
have some implications for overseas R&D activities
associated with the Japanese manufacturingindustry.
The Survey on Overseas Business
Activities conducted by Japan’s Ministry of
Economy, Trade, and Industry reports a recent
upward trend in the ratio of overseas R&D
expenditures to overall R&D (total domestic R&D
expenditures in Japan and overseas R&D) in theJapanese manufacturing industry (Figure 5). Suchprogress in overseas R&D activities can be viewed
as an extension of advancements in domestic R&D
activities. Figure 6 shows that R&D intensity, thetrade specification index (TSI) for technology, laborproductivity, and the ratio of researchers areassociated with the ratio of overseas R&D
expenditures in the manufacturing industry.
In conclusion, improved productivity indomestic R&D activities may positively affectoverseas R&D activities. Nevertheless, further
analysis is needed to confirm this finding.

JAPAN MNE Insights
August 31, 2020.
OECD (2003). ICT and Economic Growth:
Evidence from OECD Countries, Industries andFirms, (https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/scienceand-technology/ict-and-economicgrowth_9789264101296-en). Accessed August
31, 2020.
Survey of Research and Development, Statistics
Bureau of Japan,(https://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/kagaku/inde
x.html). Accessed August 31, 2020.
Survey on Overseas Business Activities, Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan,(https://www.meti.go.jp/english/statistics/tyo/kai
gaizi/index.html). Accessed August 31, 2020.
Takenaka, H. (1984). The Economics of Researchand Development and Capital Investment:
Mechanisms Underpinning Economic
Dynamism. Toyo Keizai (in Japanese).
This work was financially supported by the Japan
Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)
KAKENHI [Grant No. JP18K01813].

References
Economic Research Office, ICT Strategy Policy
Division, Global ICT Strategy Bureau, Ministryof Internal Affairs and Communications, Japan(2009). 2009 White Paper, Information andCommunications in Japan,(https://www.soumu.go.jp/johotsusintokei/white
paper/eng/WP2009/2009-index.html). Accessed
August 31, 2020.
Japan Productivity Center, (https://www.jpcnet.jp/movement/productivity.html) (inJapanese). Accessed August 31, 2020.
National Association of Small and Medium
Enterprise Promotion Organizations (2018).
2018 White Paper, Small and Medium
Enterprises in Japan,(https://www.chusho.meti.go.jp/pamflet/hakusy
o/H30/PDF/2018hakusho_eng.pdf). Accessed12Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Japan Academy of Multinational Enterprises
2020-2022 Executive Board
President:
Tetsuya Usui (Nihon University)
Vice President:
Yoshinori Yasuda (Soka University)
Masayuki Furusawa (Kindai University)
General Affairs:
Hiroshi Hoshino (Kyusyu University)
Takeshi Ohtowa (Kanto Gakuin University)
General Planning:
Yasuro Uchida (University of Hyogo)
Tamiko Kasahara (University of Shizuoka)
Shohei Tabata (Kindai University)
Tatsuo Mori (Hirosaki University)*
Nisato Suzuki (Hakuoh University)*
Publications Commitee:
Hajime Baba (Kansai University)
Takeshi Fujisawa (Kwansei Gakuin University)
Risa Jitosho (Ryukoku University)*
Wataru Kikuchi (Rikkyo University)*
Best Book and Paper Award Commitee:
Shohei Tabata (Kindai University)
Kazuhiro Asakawa (Keio University)
Takeshi Ohtowa (Kanto Gakuin University)
Akio Tokuda (Ritumeikan University)
Hirofumi Tatsumoto (University of Tsukuba)*
Public Relations:
Masashi Arai (Asia University)
Chie Iguchi (Keio University)
Tamiko Kasahara (University of Shizuoka)
Masato Yamauchi (Senshu University)*

International Relations:
Tomokazu Seki (Rikkyo University)
Chie Iguchi (Keio University)
Hajime Baba (Kansai University)
Mitsuru Nakagawa (Nihon University)*
Naoki Yasuda (Tokyo University of Science)*
Program Commitee:
Naotoshi Umeno (Osaka University of Commerce)
Masahiro Ida (Hannan University)
Takao Yamamoto (Kanagawa University)
Kyuho Choi (Osaka University of Commerce)*
Hiroyuki Yamabe (Nara Prefecutural University)*
Eastern Chapter:
Susumu Harada (Meiji University)
Masashi Arai (Asia University)
Hiroyasu Furukawa (Nihon University)*
Tatsuya Karasawa (Kanto Gakuin University) *Hironori Uchibori (Hakuoh University)*
Western Chapter:
Yukiko Shinomiya (Kindai University)
Takahide Yamaguchi (University of Hyogo)
Osamu Ishida (Kyushu University)*
Motoyuki Kanetsuna (Nanzan University)*
Taehyun Lee (Hannan University)*
Executive Secretariat and Directors:
Head Office: Takuya Fukazawa (Tokyo Fuji University)
Eastern Chapter: Nisato Suzuki (Hakuoh University)
Western Chapter: Yukiko Shinomiya (Kindai University)
Auditor:Shingo Nishii (University of Hyogo)
Kazumi Tada (Hosei University)

Note: Those with * are coordinators of the role.

13Vol.6 Issue 2JAPAN MNE Insights

Japan MNE Insights will be published twice a year on the AMNE official website(www.mne-jp.org). Please feel free to contact with the editorial team if you have any question
or request.

Japan MNE Insights Editorial Team
Editor-in-Chief
Tamiko Kasahara (University of Shizuoka)
EditorMasashi Arai (Asia University)
Chie Iguchi (Keio University)
Masato Yamauchi (Senshu University)
Japan MNE Insights Editorial Team is currently located at
Office of Dr. Tamiko Kasahara,
University of Shizuoka, School of Management and Information
52-1 Yada, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka, 422-8526, Japan
TEL/FAX:+81-54-264-5435 (direct)
Contact e-mail address: kasahara@u-shizuoka-ken.ac.jp
Copyright @ Japan Academy of Multinational Enterprises (Japan)

14