MANAGEMENT STYLES

(http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/m/management_style.asp, September 2010)

Management style and decision making in large companies in Japan is characterize in that the flow of initiative and information from the bottom up (involvement), making top management as a way (facilitator) and not as a source of authority. (http://corporateinnovationonline.com/Japanese%20Management%20Culture%20for%20Corporate%20Innovation.pdf, September 2010). Also as we saw in the class presentation not all companies are alike, Japanese companies has aggressive pricing as a result of the economies of scale, very close supplier relationship, participation of workers and middle management building group loyalty, right kind of customers, flexible manufacturing: connecting product design and production and corporate values. In other hand “Korean management is ownership and management by family. Considering the short history of Korean enterprises, it is understandable that many corporations are still owned by the founder`s family members.” (http://gshp.gsnu.ac.kr/~india93/way-board/db/free/file/Chaebol%20Style.pdf, September 2010)

Zaibatsu, “Any of the large capitalist enterprises of Japan before World War II, similar to cartels or trusts but usually organized around a single family. One zaibatsu might operate companies in nearly all important areas of economic activity. The Mitsui combine, for example, owned or had large investments in companies engaged in banking, foreign trade, mining, insurance, textiles, sugar, food processing, machinery, and many other fields as well. All zaibatsu owned banks, which they used as a means for mobilizing capital”. The four main zaibatsu were Mitsui, Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, and Yasuda, Dai Ichi Kangyo, Sanwa, and Fuyo. (http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/655416/zaibatsu, September 2010).
“The chaebol are the large, conglomerate family-controlled firms of South Korea characterized by strong ties with government agencies. The name, which means business association, is properly pronounced jay BOL but the spelling pronunciation chay bol is considered acceptable by Korean speakers. There were family-owned enterprises in Korea in the period before 1961 but the particular state-corporate alliance came into being with the regime of Park Chung Hee (1961-1979). Park modeled this arrangement on the zaibatsu system which developed in Japan during the Meiji Era.” (http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/chaebol.htm, September 2010)

Main similarities and differences of Japanese and Korean management styles.

They are both similar in the sense that both countries organized the largest conglomerates that were owned by family members. Both were supported by the local governments with helped them gain force an international area, and other similarity is the relationship that Japan and Korea have with their suppliers.
There were significant differences between the zaibatsu and the chaebol, the most significant of which was the source of capital. The zaibatsu were organized around a bank for their source of capital. The chaebol in contrast were prohibited from owning a bank, another difference are the development in technology Japan works more the economy of scale and Korea in flexible manufacturing.

Explain the phenomenon of convergence in terms of management styles. What are the forces or factors pushing for convergence?
Convergence in terms of management styles is when as country develop will tend to become more similar to a those found in develop nations; there are two models the Eastern (Asia- Japan) and the Western (American – US).