This book focuses on the establishment process of the Japanese style of management (JSM). Traditionally, it has been widely believed that the JSM is native to Japan and consists of three pillars: lifetime employment, a seniority-based wage system, and company unions. This book opposes these traditional views on the JSM and argues that it has been shaped by the influence of management theories and ideas of other countries. The JSM has not only adopted the ideas and concepts of other countries, but also has refined, translated, and customized them to make such ideas and concepts acceptable in Japan. The hypothesis presented here is that in the postwar period of rapid growth, the JSM was a hybrid set of management theories and techniques greatly influenced by American ideas about management. This book concentrates on the impact of American management theories and ideas on the JSM. Taking the historical point of view, it clarifies that impact not only for academics but also for business people. The hypothesis propounded here is that some of those theories and ideas have been accepted whereas some of them have been rejected and eventually made irrelevant. The following issues are discussed: scientific management, the human relations school, Barnard's organizational theory, Drucker's management thoughts, strategic management, human resource management, and corporate culture.

This book explains Chester Barnard's management theory clearly, faithfully, and systematically. When Barnard published The Functions of the Executive in 1938, it caused a paradigm shift in the research area of management. He aimed to clarify what executives should do, and how and why, as he argued that executive functions and processes are deeply related to specialization, incentive, authority and communication, decision making, and responsibility and leadership. Thus, The Functions of the Executive is essential reading for management students. This book serves as an introductory guide for undergraduate and graduate students to help them understand Barnard's management theory. In addition, the book enables researchers to understand how Barnard developed his theory. He accumulated a great amount of experience in managing diverse organizations in both the private and public sectors. Then he gradually shifted his focus from scalar organizations, authority, and vertical communication to lateral organizations, responsibility, and horizontal communication. Finally, this book offers businesspeople helpful insights to create an innovative style of management. As a practitioner, Barnard recognized not only the importance of science but also that of art and value. Experienced businesspeople use not only formal knowledge but also their behavioral and personal knowledge, intuition, business sense, value, and executive art to understand the whole situation, balance conflicting factors, and produce creative solutions. Thus, this book also explores the management abilities that businesspeople need to develop.

This book helps undergraduate and graduate students understand Chester Barnard's organization theory. Barnard's book The Functions of the Executive is a classic that, along with Herbert Simon's Administrative Behavior, is often considered to be essential reading for management students. However, it is well known to be difficult and abstract. Offering a systematic overview, this book provides an excellent introduction to Barnard's organization theory. Chester Barnard's concept of formal organization is often cited as a definitive opus on the subject of organization. However, he provided other concepts of organization, such as cooperative systems, complex formal organizations, and informal organizations. In his second book, Organization and Management, he added two more concepts, lateral organizations and status systems, allowing researchers to gain a better understanding of how Barnard developed his organization theory after his first publication. Barnard was a successful practitioner as well as a theorist, and his organization theory is full of practical insights gained from managing various types of organizations, including NGOs and NPOs. This book discusses how Barnard's organization theory can be applied to business practices in the context of exploring a new style of management, and provides suggestions for business people seeking innovations for their own organizations.