Introducing the Young Japanese Executive: Antecedents and Outlook

The young Japanese executive is a product of his socio-economic environment specifically the Japanese educational system. Thus the paper first highlights the key features of the Japanese school and higher education system, touching briefly upon the scope and extent of post-graduate management education in Japan. The young Japanese executive is also poised on the threshold of a management career in a dynamic industrial firm. Hence the paper goes on to discuss recruitment (in the context of the Life-time employment system), training (including in overseas MBA programs) and promotion (with reference to key attributes of Japanese top management such as the search for Wa, or harmony, and the emphasis on Seishin, or the managerial spirit). Finally, the paper focuses on an emerging problem for young Japanese managers viz. International management in developed as well as developing countries. The paper concludes that the problems facing young Japanese managers, especially those assigned abroad, are interesting and challenging ones and merit the attention of management educators world wide, including India.