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THE TRANSFER OF JAPANESE MANAGEMENT STYLES IN TWO US TRANSPLANT INDUSTRIES: AUTOS AND ELECTRONICS
Author(s) -
Kennly Martin,
Florida Richard
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
journal of management studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.398
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1467-6486
pISSN - 0022-2380
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-6486.1995.tb00152.x
Subject(s) - electronics , style (visual arts) , technology transfer , quality (philosophy) , automotive industry , adaptation (eye) , business , object (grammar) , management styles , transfer (computing) , industrial organization , computer science , engineering , management , economics , history , international trade , psychology , artificial intelligence , electrical engineering , philosophy , archaeology , epistemology , aerospace engineering , neuroscience , parallel computing
Japanese industry is characterized by a unique set of industrial relations and management styles. the ability to transfer these relations overseas has been the object of much scholarly and popular debate. This paper examines this transfer to the United States in the automobile and electronics industries. It was found that Japanese automobile manufacturers had been able to transfer most of the central features of the system with some adaptation. the most successful firms were using teams, quality control activities, rotation and quite egalitarian management styles. On the other hand, most of the electronics transplants examined had not transferred Japanese style industrial relations. the electronics firms seemed to be content to accept many of the prevailing US practices. It is concluded that the transfer of Japanese style relations is possible, but that this occurs only where Japanese managers make a considered and sustained effort to implant their system. In many electronics operations it appears as though Japanese managers never seriously attempted to implement the Japanese system. Thus, the record of transfer is mixed at the moment.