Introduction
Nissan Motor Company Limited is a famous Japanese automobile manufacturer which formerly marketed vehicles. It is a famous brand in the world. The company has always been strongly overseas oriented and set up its first plant outside Japan in Mexico in 1966. Even today it is the only Japanese automobile company that has its own manufacturing based in Europe.
Italian
Japanese
Individualism
76
46
Figure 1 Shows the weights of the working attitude between Japanese and Italian.
Individualistic cultures value personal time, freedom and such extrinsic motivators as material rewards at work. In family relations, they value honesty, talking things out and maintaining self-respect (Hofstede’s cultural dimensions). In Italy, workers received instructions from the manager to get things done. As they are living and working in a relaxing atmosphere, they hardly work over time. European prioritises family so benefit and holidays are their preference to set the value of the company. Beside, the cultures of European usually work on its own, hardly work as a team.
Japanese considered it is more important to work as a team to accomplish a goal, as shown on the table the Individualism figure is much lower than Italian. Japanese workers are loyal to their company; they give up their own time for the company and feel it is their responsibility. As they are running “Life Time Employment” policy, which means staff usually works until retirement. Yet, Italian changes their job by setting the value of the offer.
Labour mobility is an issue to human resource management in Nissan. Italian staffs dissatisfy their job duties and working condition. Promotion by merits can certainly motivate staffs. Staffs can advance in their work and high level task when they get achievement in the task. Often work could arranged in, job enlargement, job rotation or job enrichment. More efficient work can be done by rotating the job. Authorities can be released to staffs so that the labour mobility problem can be solved. Giving more freedom to the staffs and not bound by a certain, philosophy, policy of the company.
In Italy, people in high management and dealers are the most likely to be a target of other company, so money or reward could keep people staying, as rewarding also play an important role in motivation. Company shares reward to the high level management, a high commission rate can be offer to the dealer and other money or other bonus. They have their knowledge, understanding of the local markets, and this could help in further developments. Shares value can be presented by the market, and it is equivalent to money. Family benefits can be offer to the local staff, as the local government would not offer as good standard to the citizens, and it can show the care from the company.
Dealers are not employed by Nissan. Dealers have their own working preference; they can identify the objectives to determine the target on increasing sales with the target that can help on the objectives ( 2007). Dealers often react more actively to strategies that help them address essential problems, such as improving the training and retention of salespeople, building consumer loyalty, or building sales of a product or service. Reward can be given out brand-name merchandise, retail gift certificates, group incentive travel, and individual incentive travel. It is necessary that everybody understand the reward system, so the rules should spell out all conditions for participation in the program.
The working culture and attitude bring Japan to the top in Asia, so Japanese expatriates could be crucial for the whole system. They are performing multiple functions; they mainly concentrate on five issues.
Internally, manager usually undertakes variety of functions including overseeing local operations and personnel, and ensuring their good morale and job satisfaction, and also reassuring the business plans are on the right track. Technology transfer introduces the latest Japanese technology to Nissan Italian. They are also expected to develop external relations with local government organizations, unions, dealers and others.
Externally, works as a two-way communicator or be a coordinator facilitating information exchange between headquarters and local office. Market researchers collect market news from the quickly changing market. Bearer of his experience expected on his return to transmitting his knowledge and experience he has gained while abroad.
The major role of headquarters is making decision. Japanese expatriates execute the business smoothly, to invest money and facilities by using the business plan that they design. Besides that the IHRM system can develop on an international appraisal system, provide training and management development.
Problems that they are facing on Japanese expatriates are flown out to trouble-shoot. Real trust has not been built up through in-depth. Well written, positive sounding monthly management reports from subsidiaries and the occasional board meeting are not enough to persuade most Japanese management in Japan, when it comes to the crunch. Most of the senior management team are Italian, who do not understand the Japanese management style, they complain about the long and non-transparent Japanese decision making processes seem to exclude the European. The Japanese expatriates will be sandwiched between. Despite of the problems, all Japanese expatriates can speak fluent Italian and English, so there are less problem in communicate. They can build up a closer relationship with local staffs. Japanese possess strong problem solving and management skill to handle the day-to-day management issue efficiently, as they do not get sufficient support from the headquarters.
Headquarter can establish a “REAL TRUST” between Japanese expatriates and management, learn more about the cultural differences between Italy and Japan, try to fit in the shoes of Japanese expatriates to provide face-to-face interview, listen to the recommendations and problems, let headquarter and expatriates keep in touch, so they will not missed any information.
In order to bring people from different cultures together, encourage employees to act on their own ideas across different countries and maximise the potential of the multicultural team, Nissan should build up the international training and development and family arrangement for globalization. Firstly, Nissan should develop its employees from top managers to minor staffs, the capacities to work with cultural diversities and ‘scan the world from a broad perspective, always looking for unexpected trends’ ( 2004). Due to limited resources, the training and development should be prioritized on pre-departure Orientation and Training. Cultural training and attend the sensitivity training on the reduction ethnic prejudices (2007:).
The cultural integration issue should be in the highest priority for the international enterprise. For an understanding of cross-cultural training on cultural and communication both side staffs. Nissan should train all staffs interactively through the use of case studies, role-playing scenarios, etc. Training gives them the understanding on how the people from different cultures view each other, so communications, management and business development can be improved.
Mentoring is the most cost-effective way to assure appropriate career development; Nissan should appoint expatriates back as a mentor, usually an experienced and high-level manager from U.S. and Mexico in the expatriate’s particular function for those who get overseas assignment. To increase the broader skills, employees could attend some short courses or temporary assignments to learn new ideas and technologies. In long run Nissan could sponsor some high potential staff to a well-respected business schools or Universities for MBA course. If possible, the employees can visit the host country with their families before the formal departure or prepare executives visits. To provide language training for high management or dealers, as they could be the speak person for the company.
Nissan should take care on its transferees and their families to readjust the working relationship, host country lifestyles and cultural practices. Besides, Nissan should facilitate the readjustment process so that the company can benefit from the expatriate’s knowledge and experience (2007).
Conclusion:
The successful overseas assignment policy will not only result in improved personal development of the employees concerned but will also contribute to a more mature corporate structure for globalization. Nissan needs to promote the cultural philosophy: “growing and changing to meet the needs of today’s customers” and establishes Nissan’s culture that everyone agreed in order to guide all employees to think in the same angle and becomes the top automobile factory in the world.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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