Abstract
Over the years, Japanese women have risen to leadership positions in foreign-affiliated companies in Japan. This has provided opportunities for Japanese women to develop as leaders and exercise leadership in diverse settings. Through a literature review and in-depth interviews with Japanese women leaders across foreign-affiliated companies in Japan, we examined the rise of foreign direct investment in Japan and how it parallels the national women’s movement. We have discussed how Japanese women came to their positions in foreign-affiliated companies. In addition, we explored how these companies mirror the cultural context and practices of global parent companies. We discussed aspects of group dynamics and the challenges that Japanese women leaders have confronted. We concluded this chapter with implications for practice and recommendations for future research.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abe, Y., Javorcik, B., & Kodama, N. (2016, March). Multinationals and female employment: Japanese evidence. CEPR Policy Portal. Retrieved from https://voxeu.org/article/multinationals-and-female-employment-japanese-evidence.
Aram, E., Baxter, R., & Nutkevitch, A. (Eds.). (2018). Adaptation and innovation: Theory, design and role-taking in group relations conferences and their applications. New York, NY: Routledge.
Brazaitis, S. (2014). Group relations and conflict resolution. In P. T. Coleman, M. Deutsch, & E. C. Marcus (Eds.), The handbook of conflict resolution: Theory and practice (pp. 947–970). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Bernhofen, D., & Brown, J. (2017, August 31). Gains from trade: Evidence from nineteenth century Japan. Microeconomic Insights. Retrieved from https://microeconomicinsights.org/gains-trade-evidence-nineteenth-century-japan/.
Bozkurt, Ö. (2012). Foreign employers as relief routes: Women, multinational corporations and managerial careers in Japan. Gender, Work & Organization, 19, 225–253. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2009.00503.x.
Fatehi, K., & Choi, J. (2018). International business management: Succeeding in a culturally diverse world. California, CA: Springer.
Gender Equality Bureau, Cabinet Office. (2020). Women and men in Japan (2020). [Pamphlet]. Retrieved from http://www.gender.go.jp/english_contents/pr_act/pub/pamphlet/women-and-men20/pdf/3-3.pdf.
Hamada, T. (2018). Japanese company’s cultural shift for gender equality at work. Global Economic Review, 47(1), 63–87. https://doi.org/10.1080/1226508X.2017.1393725.
Johnson, S., & Sy, T. (2016, December). Why aren’t there more Asian Americans in leadership positions? Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2016/12/why-arent-there-more-asian-americans-in-leadership-positions.
Kobayashi, M. (2009). How Japanese working women learn to attain leadership positions in the Japanese business environment. Doctoral dissertation. Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. (Order No. 3368422).
Kodama, N., Javorcik, B., & Abe, Y. (2016). Transplanting corporate culture across international borders: FDI and female employment in Japan. RIETI Discussion Paper Series 16-E-015. Retrieved from https://www.rieti.go.jp/jp/publications/dp/16e015.pdf.
Matsui, K., Suzuki, H., & Tatebe, K. (2019, April). Womenomics 5.0. Portfolio Strategy Research. Retrieved from https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/pages/womenomics-5.0/multimedia/womenomics-5.0-report.pdf.
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. (2015, March). Plan to double investment. METI Journal. Retrieved from http://www.meti.go.jp/english/publications/pdf/journal2015_03b.pdf.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. (2019). Invest Japan! Retrieved from https://www.mofa.go.jp/policy/economy/japan/invest/index.html.
Mun, E., & Jung, J. (2018). Change above the glass ceiling: Corporate social responsibility and gender diversity in Japanese firms. Administrative Science Quarterly, 63(2), 409–440. https://doi.org/10.1177/0001839217712920.
Nikkei, B. P. (2014, August). Citigroup to unload Japanese retail banking business. Nikkei Asian Review. Retrieved from https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Banking-Finance/Citigroup-to-unload-Japanese-retail-banking-business2.
Nikkei, B. P. (2019, May). Nikkei woman and Nikkei Womenomics project conduct survey on female worker’s workplace opportunity. NIKKEI BP. Retrieved from http://www.nikkeibp.com/news/2019/0507.html.
Noumair, D., Pfaff, D., St. John, C., Gipson, A., & Brazaitis, S., (2017). X-Ray vision at work: Seeing inside organizational life. In A. B. Shani & D. A. Noumair (Eds), Research in organizational change and development (pp. 203–248). Bingley, UK: Emerald.
Ogiwara, C., Tsuda, H., Akiyama, T., & Sakai, Y. (2008). Gender-related stress among Japanese working women. Transcultural Psychiatry, 45(3), 470–488. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363461508094677.
Olcott, G., & Oliver, N. (2014). The impact of foreign ownership on gender and employment relations in large Japanese companies. Work, Employment and Society, 28(2), 206–224. https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017013490333.
Osawa, M. (2016). 「女性にやさしい」その先へ [Going beyond “being nice to women”]. Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan: Asahi Shimbun Shuppan.
Paprzycki, R., & Fukao, K. (2008). Foreign direct investment in Japan: Multinationals’ role in growth and globalization. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511753992.
Statistic Bureau of Japan. (2020, February 28). Labour Force Survey: Monthly Results—January 2020. Retrieved from http://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/roudou/results/month/index.html.
Ushio, N., & Shimura, K. (2014). 女性リーダーを組織で育てる仕組み [How organizations can develop women leaders]. Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo: Chuo Keizaisha.
Usui, C., Rose, S., & Kageyama, R. (2003). Women, institutions, and leadership in Japan. Asian Perspective, 27(3), 85–123. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/42704422.
Zhou, Y. (2015). Career interruption of Japanese women: Why is it so hard to balance work and childcare? Japan Labor Review, 12(2), 106–123. Retrieved from http://www.jil.go.jp/english/JLR/documents/2015/JLR46_all.pdf.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Nakao, F., Bang, A. (2021). Corporate Sector: Foreign-Affiliated Companies. In: Nakamura, Y.T., Horimoto, M., McLean, G.N. (eds) Japanese Women in Leadership. Current Perspectives on Asian Women in Leadership. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36304-8_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36304-8_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-36303-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-36304-8
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)