The face to face: an essential of Japanese business. (Part 2): The gift

Today we'll look a little at the essentials of the gift in Japanese culture, focusing on Japanese business culture.

It's no secret that gift giving is an integral part of Japanese culture. I won't go too much into information that is already available, but there are a few things to keep in mind when planning a trip to Japan.

1) When in doubt, give a gift. You are making your first trip to Japan, and you will be meeting with a certain amount of people. If this is your first meeting with them, why not give them a gift? You should try to have something for every person you know you will meet, then a couple extras just in case. Japanese usually don't expect gifts from foreigners, so receiving one shows sensitivity and good foresight of the giver. Make the office staff happy by including a box of chocolates or something else the office can share. Without a doubt you will be a guest people will look forward to seeing.

2) It's the thought that counts. And this thought really does count. There is no need to break the bank, and an overly expensive gift may embarrass the receiver. Showing that you took the time and thought of this person before your trip is the message you want to send.

3) Presentation is everything. In Japan the wrapping is just as important as the gift inside. There is no need to fret too much about extravagent ribbons and such if the gift is travelling from overseas, but it should at least be wrapped nicely.

4) Make sure the boss gets a gift at least as good as everyone else.Even if you will meet the president or head only briefly during your trip (or not at all), make sure you get him something as well. Not only is it good for you when it comes time to make decisions regarding your company, it will create discomfort among the boss's subordinates if they received something and he didn't.

When you are hosting Japanese guests there are a few things to remember:

1) A gift is still important. But you can wait to give it until the end of the trip, though probably before the bags are packed is best.

2) Schedule time for your Japanese guests to buy gifts for home. Not only does the Japanese businessperson have to worry about getting gifts for those he's meeting, but he has to worry even more about getting gifts for his office and family. This is a real source of stress for the Japanese traveller, and I have heard that 20-50% of vacation times is spent shopping for gifts.

3) Help your guest choose local specialties. Without guidance, the busy Japanese businessman buys a bottle Jack Daniels for the boss, cookies for the office and a the same Chanel handkerchief for his wife that he bought on the last three trips. All these items are available in not only every duty-free shop in the world, but also in every department store in Japan. Every state has specialty stores featuring local goods. Because of this, getting your hands on things that aren't available in Japan is a real treat for the recipients.

So back to our tale of the Japanese businessman who made a special trip to drop off a report to an city official in Oregon. (Please refer to the previous post if you haven't read it yet.)

Introductions were made, and our client presented the city official with a Japanese picture book about fishing "because you said you enjoyed fishing in your free time." The official looked sheepish and said "I probably shouldn't be accepting this, but I appreciate it very much. I wish I knew you were coming, and I could have returned the favor."

Since the gentlemen know each other, and have met each other, if only briefly, at least once a year for the last several years, the culture of gift giving can morph a little bit. Now it's not enough to show, "I was thinking of you," but more, "I know you well enough to know that this is something you will enjoy." Notice how he pointed out "because you said you enjoyed fishing". This is a concrete way we can see a reading of the kuuki that we talked about in earlier posts.

A few years ago I hosted some American high school students on a Japan exchange trip. We were based out of Nara, but the father of the host family I stayed with worked at the JR Tennoji train station in Osaka. He offered to host a trip for the students and leaders to Osaka to see some temples and Osaka Castle. He and his wife also hosted us trip leaders on weekend day trips during our three-week stay. A few days after our outing to Osaka it came time to go back to the US. Our last night together he and his wife pulled out a twol large vinyl bags and handed one to each of us. The contents summarize the essentials of gift giving in Japan. Along with paperweights and windchimes from the neighborhood we were staying in (known in Japan for its goldfish farms), there were small trinkets from several of the temples we visited. Also he had over heard the other leader saying that he would like to find jikatabi (pictured)　that fit him , but his large shoe size made our searches fruitless. Much to our surprise, this kind man had searched out and special ordered extra-large sized tabi for the trip leader's huge feet. Keep in mind, our host's English was far from fluent, but he had somehow gleened this information.

At Osaka Castle a student was commenting on a series of t-shirts containing Osaka-ben phrases, and our host had overheard me comment that one of them was "cool". He had secretly purchased one of the shirts that day and brought it home to present it to me on our last night in Japan.

It is this kind of careful observation and presentation which makes the culture of gift-giving so important and fascinating.

The face to face: an essential of Japanese business. (Part 1)

Recently we received a call from a client in Japan. He was going to be in Portland on a certain date, and wondered if we couldn't help him get to the city hall of a nearby town to meet with an official there. I picked up the gentleman downtown and we made our way, about a 40 minute drive in the heavy morning traffic, to his destination. He was a very kind man, and we had a pleasant discussion about the differences in raising children in Japan and the US. We got to our location, and met with the city official. I was surprised to see that this gentleman was taken aback to see us. "What are you doing here?", he asked with a happy grin. "I came to deliver our report, as you requested," replied our Japanese client, "and I wanted to stop by and say 'hi'". Introductions were made, and our client presented the city official with a Japanese picture book about fishing "because you said you enjoyed fishing in your free time." The official looked sheepish and said "I probably shouldn't be accepting this, but I appreciate it very much. I wish I knew you were coming, and I could have returned the favor." The large envelope containing the report was also given, and the apparant long-time friends talked about changes in leadership in the electrical engineering organization they both belonged to, and who would be at the annual convention. When he had a moment the official turned to me in private and said "I can't believe he came all the way here. He could have just dropped the report in the mail. He didn't need to come and give it to me by hand, though it was a nice surprise."

I, too, was a bit confused. I was led to believe he had a meeting with this man, and it's lucky that the official wasn't out that morning. I asked about it, and the client told me he was on his way back to Japan the next day. He had business in Seattle the day before, and thought it would be nice to fly down to Portland and deliver the report in person.

This seemed remarkable to me. Even if my business was booming, I would have a hard time justifying the time and expense of two extra nights and a plane ticket to deliver a report by hand that could just as easily been delivered by mail. This interaction opened my eyes to some key points in Japanese culture, especially business culture.

1) Face to face interaction is essential. We translate surveys from Japanese to English for companies that have satellite offices in Japan. One common complaint from vendors was that representatives of the product company didn't visit their stores enough. The American product company visited the stores when their product was first released, but then never again after that. The product company was happy with e-mailed reports of sales and returns, but the Japanese vendors wanted representatives of the product company to pick up these reports, or to simply stop by now and again. A few of the surveys found this "invisible company" becoming less and less trustworthy. What a strange turn of events!

The reasons are not so hard to guess, though. The main reason is that with so much of communication happening through non-verbal information, periodic physical meetings are essential to maintain a relationship in Japan. How can you read the kuuki if you can't see it? As long as the business is continuing, the communication must also. The vendors who were complaining didn't have any particular complaints about the product or company. The product sold well, and customers seemed satisfied. The simple fact that they hadn't phyically seen a company representative darken their door in several months was enough to make them lose trust in that company.


This ability to "read" another person is an essential in Japanese business, and is a likely contributor to some of the successes Japanese corporations have in Japan and around the world. I am reminded of a scene from Juzo Itami's wonderful film Tampopo. The movie is about a ramen-loving truck-driver helping a ramen shop owning single mom get her little restaurant out of a slump. The truck driver, Goro, spends time training the shop owner, Tampopo, in the complete art of making ramen, as well as how to be a good business owner. They practice using his trucking partner, Gun (played by the almost unrecognizable Ken Watanabe), as new customer. (As memory serves), Gun says "LOOK at the customer when he comes in. What kind of person is he? Is he hungry? Is he tired? Is he drunk? Is this the kind of customer you want in your shop?" Goro is telling Tampopo to read the kuuki before any verbal communication even happens. Of course, this is a comedy, and one might think that Goro's instructions may be over-the-top for a simple seller of ramen, but it does emphasize the need for people in business to be savvy in the art of reading the customer.

Next week we will look at other reasons our client felt the need to visit the city official in person, despite the expense and time required.

The American businessman's mistakes (Part 2): The right message from the right person.

Last time we talked about having a Japanese right-hand man, and not using the Japanese company's interpreter. Now let's look at the final two mistakes from our story:

3) Knowing who to contact. Our friend contacted the only person at the company he knew who could speak English in an effort to find out their decision on whether they would purchase the American's product. This guy was at the meeting, he speaks English, so perfect, right? Wrong. There are a couple things we need to keep in mind in these situations. We must remember the rank of the person we are contacting. Any business interaction is a formal situation, especially during office hours. It's important to, when possible, interact with people of similar rank as you. If the Japanese person is ranked much lower (as may be true in this case), his discomfort in the unbalance will set him in "fight or flight" mode, and he will often say anything he can to end the conversation. On the other hand, if the Japanese is too high up, he might be insulted by this subordinate's ingnorance or audacity, and will also try to end the communication quickly. The English-speaking Japanese is not a decision maker, nor the go-between (despite the American's beliefs), therefore he will not only try to end the conversation quickly, but we must also remember the second rule in today's discussion:

4) Japanese do not like to give bad news. The timid translator will never be able to muster the words, "I'm sorry, but we do not require your services at this time." By saying "It is really difficult at this time," he is basically saying "No" without actually saying "no". It is this subtlety in conversation which is so often missed by unprepared Americans. The translator is wondering at every call, "Why is he calling me back? I told him already! If he doesn't like the answer, why is he bothering me? He should be calling my superior!"

By not identifying the correct person to contact, and not taking the subtle hints, or not reading the kuuki, our American friend might have sat in his hotel for weeks or months "dancing" with this Japanese translator to no resolution (at least to the American, but surely the Japanese man's nerves will end up shot).

The American businessman's mistakes (Part 1):
The Japanese right-hand man

You may remember our story of the American businessmen sent to Tokyo.

An American company sent a sales representative to negotiate a potential sale in Tokyo. The American approached the Japanese company, used their English interpreter, and made his pitch to the people in charge of such purchases. Already, you can likely guess a couple mistakes he has made, (our post last week on building relationships is one clue).

So he was thanked for the presentation, and told that he would be contacted soon with an answer. A few days went by, and he was preparing to return to America. He hadn't heard from the company yet and contacted the gentleman who did the interpretation (the only English speaker in the company he knew of). After taking his call the Japanese man told him, "It's difficult to answer at this time." The American delayed his trip home, waited a few more days waiting for an answer, and then he called the gentleman back. "I am sorry, but it is really difficult at this time." Another delay, and then a third call was made, now nearly two weeks after the original visit. Again the American seller got the same answer. Time was of the essence. Why couldn't this Japanese firm make a decision? Frustrated, the American went to drown his sorrows at a British-style pub in Tokyo. There he met another foriegner, shared a few beers and told his story. The other American responded by saying, "Then what are you still doing here?"

"Obviously, I am waiting to hear their answer!" replied the increasingly frustrated businessman.

"But, you have already heard their answer," countered the other American. "Their answer is 'no'."

I concluded that (at least) four major errors were made by this travelling businessman and his home company. If you have followed this blog at all you can guess the first mistake rather easily.

1) Building a relationship. You can see our earlier post on the importance in building relationships before doing actual business.

Then we come to the second mistake our ambitious salesman made:

2) A Japanese right-hand man. We see that our American friend "used their English interpreter". This is a common mistake that especially medium to small size businesses do to cut costs. "They have an interpreter? Terrific! That'll save us hundreds of dollars a day!" But isn't that hundreds of dollars worth it when the difference is making or not making the sale?

Mr. Shintaro Tominaga visited our offices recently, and he reminded us of the need for the Japanese right-hand man when doing business negotiations. This "right-hand man" isn't necessarily an interpreter (and not necessarily a man, either, but for simplicity's sake he'll be a "he" today). He may be a consultant, an advisor, or just a low-man in the company who happens to be Japanese. When it comes to important and expensive deals, the Japanese feel most comfortable doing business with the Japanese. This is slowly changing, but without a doubt, given the choice, a Japanese company would rather be buying from another Japanese company rather than a foreign company. You can argue there is a certain caché associated with being an "international company", but when contracts are signed and money changes hands, the Japanese businessman is going to feel better knowing there is a Japanese person on the other side. This creates not only a sense that communication is really happening (the Japanese confidence level in English is usually far below acual ability), but also there is the sense of having a "business confidant" in sharing the same home country.

We are sometimes asked to send interpreters for business negotiations, and we have to be careful in these situations. There are times when sending a native Japanese speaker is advantageous, and other times when a non-native Japanese speaker is a better choice. In our case, we are more often hired by the American company, so our job is to represent the needs of our client accurately. It isn't uncommon for the representatives of the Japanese company to try to subtley squeeze information from the interpreters if they are native Japanese. Depending on the situation, sometimes a non-native Japanese speaker is more appropriate. Native speakers have finished a job feeling a bit uncomfortable at being asked for "business hints" from the Japanese guests. The American company is the client, but at the same time the interpreter doesn't want to be rude to the fellow Japanese who have travelled so far. Now before we lay judgement down, would an American not do the same in the reverse situation? Alone in a strange country, would you not see this fellow American acting as interpreter as a beacon of information?

We do not only do interpretation, but consulting, based on many of the very issues discussed here. We have seen great results when we consult with an American company engaging in business with Japan, not only because it helps the Americans learn about different communication styles, but also it shows the Japanese company that the Americans are serious enough about the business, nay, the relationship to take the time to hire US/Japanese business consultants.

Now where did the poor American salesman go wrong next? What compounds the mistake by our friend is his follow-up calls to the interpreter for an answer on their decision. We'll get into that more in Part 2...

Interpreting what isn't there.

There are certainly plenty of times when interpreters are needed, but there are some things even the best interpreters can't easily translate, and one of these is kuuki (空気）. Kuuki basically means "air", but in terms of a heavy business negotiation, the answer to you questions may rest in the kuuki, not the words your potential partner is saying.

A good American businessperson needs to be able to read not only the other party's words, but also be familiar with the other party's cultural communication style. (That's what this blog is all about.) An interpreter can only tell you what is said, but the most important messages from a vital meeting may not be relayed in words the way an American is used to receiving them. Additionally, even the best interpreters usually aren't in the business of explaining what one party is saying under the surface, beneath his words. To do so makes for awkward interpretation, and can raise suspicion on the other side. A good interpreter wants to be as invisible as possible, therefore the responsibility of reading kuuki falls on the non-Japanese speaker.

We find that we are getting more consulting work to help American businesses in the steps before and after a vital negotiation, not just for the negotiation itself.

I am reminded of a story of an American company who sent a sales representative to negotiate a potential sale in Tokyo. The American approached the Japanese company, used their English interpreter, and made his pitch to the people in charge of such purchases. Already, you can likely guess a couple mistakes he has made, (our post last week on building relationships is one clue).

So he was thanked for the presentation, and told that he would be contacted soon with an answer. A few days went by, and he was preparing to return to America. He hadn't heard from the company yet and contacted the gentleman who did the interpretation (the only English speaker in the company he knew of). After taking his call the Japanese man told him "It's difficult to answer at this time." The American delayed his trip home, waited a few more days waiting for an answer, and then he called the gentleman back. "I am sorry, but it is really difficult at this time." Another delay, and then a third call was made, now nearly two weeks after the original visit. Again the American seller got the same answer. Time was of the essence. Why couldn't this Japanese firm make a decision? Frutrated, the American went to drown his sorrows at a British-style pub in Tokyo. There he met another foriegner, shared a few beers and told his story. The other American responded by saying, "Then what are you still doing here?"

"Obviously, I am waiting to hear their answer!" replied the increasingly frustrated businessman.

"But, you have already heard their answer," countered the other American. "Their answer is 'no'."

There are four main mistakes identifiable in the American's approach to doing business in Japan. Can you guess what they are? We'll get more into reading kuuki, debates, and bad news over the next couple weeks, as well as answers to the mistakes our poor American salesman made.