Diversity in Japan?
Report on the May 2006 Symposium on Diversity and Inclusion in Japan, Part I
Many people might pause and think, "Diversity in Japan? What does diversity look like in a nearly homogeneous country?" Although Japan is nearly racially homogeneous, the country has a long history and culture that excludes certain groups of people from equally participating in the workforce.
Workplace traditions
Before delving into the objectives and outcomes of this special symposium itself, it is imperative to understand the history and culture of Japan from a workplace-standpoint. Right now, Japan is lagging behind other developed nations in its diversity practices; they even lag behind other Asian countries, so Japanese businesses and leaders are starting to have conversations around diversity. They understand that to effectively compete in today's international arena Japan must fully utilize all of its available talent.
One very apparent and critical issue that Japan faces is the representation of women in the workforce. Japan has a long history of men being the bread-winners and women staying home and raising the family. When you look at the United States and Japan in comparison, Japan is just now having the same conversations that the U.S. had in the 1960s and 1970s in regard to women's rights in the workplace.
In a culture that is dominantly male seniority-based, women are on the bottom rung. And there are two underlying factors that have perpetuated this culture:
- women are so programmed as to the appropriateness of their roles as homemakers that they do not attempt to break into corporate work environments and
- working women get little to no support from their spouses in raising the kids and taking care of the home so they shirk additional responsibilities or promotions at work because they simply do not have the time or energy.
The organizational culture in Japan, as it stands now, does not support working women, but some scary demographics might force the culture change. By 2007, more people are dying in Japan than being born, and the average number of children couples have is dropping, partly due to the overwhelming responsibility the women have in working and raising kids.
In 2006, Japan's Baby Boomers will start to turn 60 and retire, much like the crisis the U.S. faces. There will be a huge labor shortage in the workforce, and because there is much discomfort regarding foreigners, the Japanese are turning their focus on women.
Japan might be more reluctant to embrace foreigners as part of their workforce because unlike the U.S., there is no melting pot culture. Japan has never faced changes in their racial make-up. Even China is more adapting and accepting, because they have considerable ethnic diversity, such as Mongolians, North and South Chinese and Hong Kong. Japan, on the other hand, has a very different history and is less adaptable.
The business case
Japan is the single most underrepresented in terms of women in management. Out of developed countries, Japan is at the bottom of the list as far as representation of women in management goes. Korea's numbers used to follow behind Japan, but now there are more Korean women in the political arena. At a recent Global Women's Summit in Mexico, it was discovered that Japan lags behind Latin America in terms of women in management positions.
In recent years, Japan has been plagued by corporate scandal and corruption. The business model (male, seniority-based) that has served them since WWII started to crack because there was no accountability. Because Japan wants to stay ahead in the global economy it has to begin working through its diversity challenges. Continuing down the path of inequality will only weaken them economically and weaken their ability to hold their culture together, say symposium founders.
The Symposium
The idea for a diversity-awareness symposium developed four years ago out of the minds of two Japanese business women and a Japanese-American consultant. On May 23, 2006, their idea fully blossomed when the first Diversity Symposium took place. It featured panel discussions and keynote speakers addressing the issues that Japan faces in integrating all groups into the workforce. The target audience included anyone involved in diversity [or is it workforce] issues, whether at grassroots community level, the organizational level, government agencies, academic institutions and leaders or senior management from organizations.
Ms. Ann Sado and Ms. Kimiko Horii serve as co-presidents of non-profit, Global Enhancement of Women's Leadership (GEWEL). GEWEL is "committed to supporting Japanese businesswomen to expand their leadership abilities impacting their success in Japan and globally by providing training programs."
Years ago they began having conversations surrounding women's participation in the workplace, and made contact with Ms. Kay Iwata, of K. Iwata Associates, Inc. based in Union City, California. Ms. Iwata, a third generation Japanese in America, traveled to Japan to discuss the future of diversity in the country. She spent a couple of weeks in Japan, where she opened their eyes to the broadness of diversity and how it goes beyond representation. While Ms. Sado and Ms. Horii had been focusing on empowerment programs for Japanese women, they saw how diversity encompasses issues beyond race and gender.
Many others got on board with the symposium, including two African-Americans, Dr. Price Cobbs, a management consultant, and Ms. Melanie Harrington, executive director of the American Institute for Managing Diversity; both would explain the history of diversity in America. Japanese corporate leaders who saw the importance of diversity for business survival in Japan became keynote speakers. However, others involved questioned the timing of the symposium. Was Japan ready for a cultural overhaul?
Dr. Cobbs called the symposium "historic," saying, "I am honored to be a guest in your country and am delighted to have been invited to speak at this historic event. As both a participant and a witness to many significant events, I do not say the word 'historic' lightly. The experiences of my life tell me that for this first ever event to be held now, a confluence of many trends both in Japan and globally have occurred."
Would corporate Japan be ready to embrace diversity?
Come back next month when we will feature Part II of this article series depicting the objectives, outcomes and highlights of the symposium, as well as thoughts for the future.
Read more:
- For more on diversity in Japan see our Cultural Diversity Archive resources!
- See more Global Diversity articles
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