【出版时间及名称】：2010年4月日本证券市场投资策略报告
        【作者】：德意志银行
        【文件格式】：pdf
        【页数】：41
        【目录或简介】：

The values of Sushi chefs
inform the spirit of Japanese
capitalism
Gauging Japan’s outlook through craftsmen and reputation
The concepts of shareholder primacy and market fundamentalism are often held up for
criticism in Japan, though few shareholders have truly experienced either. The model
generally offered here in opposition to shareholder primacy is Japanese capitalism. The broad
idea is that society is better served by emphasizing the traditional distinctions of Japanese
firms such as lifetime employment and the seniority system. However, Japanese capitalism
has not been sufficiently defined. This report seeks to outline the basic tenets of Japanese
capitalism and the type of spirit that motivates it. We then consider the outlook for Japanese
society and corporations and analyze the steps they should undertake.
Key terms: “artisan spirit” (shokunin) and “reputation” (ethics of “seken”)
Whereas the social basis for European-style capitalism is often attributed to Protestant values,
we believe that the equivalent for Japan is the respect for the craftsman and concern for
reputation. The term craftsman or artisan is not considered patronizing in Japan. In contrast,
within the framework of ‘reputation’ (of “seken”), there is a mechanism that demands
homogeneity or consistency that is different from social rules. Social values based on a
concern for craftsmanship and reputation do not place a high value on monetary fulfillment.
As such, capital tends to accumulate. Also, this system demands that details be evaluated.
For example, in the production process, the process itself becomes an object of display. On
the other hand, there is no deep consideration for affairs of state and little interest in the big
picture. Concern is less for the overriding mechanisms than for small scale and continuity.
This accounts for the abundance of old-established shops in Japan. Business tends to favor
the status quo such as social standing and does not question the form itself. Among the
public (“seken”) (unlike the broad society), reticence is valued and debate disliked. This
mechanism allows for a vertical society with direct contact as well as a large-scale
bureaucracy.
There are no clear signs that the Japanese economy will be able to deal with globalization
and the shrinking population, but we have hope. If an economy is to seek efficient growth, it
must refine itself further as a transaction based economy involving constant market
competition and weeding out players in place of moralistic values arising from the public,
such as promotion by seniority and decorum. Thus, safety net functions hereby assumed
effectively by corporations will have to be shifted smoothly to society. Also, the vertical
society implicit in companies will have to be reconstituted into a network society.
At the same time, the economic behavior required by globalization will include many
immeasurable values and features such as environmental protection and food safety that
cannot be addressed by the mediation of simple currency transactions. This has much in
common with the kind of artisan spirit admired by the Japanese. If the Japanese concern for
reputation should spread to global society, Japan has the potential to create companies that
could respond to this change in values.