y successful. In today's global environment that encourages instant communication via computers and facsimile machines, it is increasingly more difficult and costly for companies to ignore the differences in the way in which companies around the world conduct business. This research considers key areas of organizational behavior and examines the differences between how Japanese companies and American companies are likely to confront and solve these issues.
In Japanese companies, a corporate philosophy is normally a simple document containing the founder's ideals and moral injunctions, and it includes later additions and amendments. Japan's oldest known corporate philosophy is the "House Laws of the Mitsui Family" which dates back more than three centuries (Lu, 1987, p. 56).
A corporate philosophy is not a manual for employees and need not give directions for day-to-day operation of the company. It articulates the goals of the company and can be used as a means of education and exhortation. Moreover, by giving overarching guidelines, it can help employees identify values that apply beyond the confines of the company.
Corporate philosophies can also be used to simplify procedures. When there is a definite consensus about goals, they do not need to be elaborated on further. Or, when there is doubt about which way a decision should be made, referring to the corporate philosophy may indicate a clear decision. YKK, for example, is the world's largest zipper manufacturer with 40 plants and 140 offices located throughout the world. The founder, Yoshida Tadao, was impressed by Andrew Carnegie's success and dedication to charity. Part of the YKK corporate philosophy is based on Carnegie's quote, "Surplus wealth is a sacred trust which its possessor is bound to administer in his lifetime for the good of the community" (Lu, May 1988, p. 59). Tadao used this as the basis for:
Sow the seeds of goodness and do good, then goodne...