"Language, Discourse and Organizational Change in Japanese Contexts"

Japanese methods, such as TQM, TPS and lean, and Japanese organizational characteristics, such as loyalty to the company and long-term incentive systems, have received great attention from researchers who study organizational development and change. Some studies suggest that Japan's unique modes of communication can lead to effective and unique forms of organizational development and change. However, only a few studies examine the role of language and discourse in organizational development and change in Japanese organizations. The situation is similar in other non-English speaking countries. Most of the studies that draw on organizational discourse theory use cases of Western organizations in which English is used as the official language. This symposium is an attempt to break through such a situation. The main aim of this symposium is to bring a perspective on the diversity of language and various modes of language use in the studies of organizational discourse as well as organizational development and change through a particular focus on communication in Japanese organizational settings. Entrepreneurship As Practice: A critical interpretation of corporate venturing Presenter: Yasushi Fukuhara; Senshu U. Customer satisfaction and strategy: A discourse analysis of a Japanese hotel company case Presenter: Takeshi Saito; Meiji U. Presenter: Kenichi Suzuki; Meiji U. Presenter: Masayasu Takahashi; Meiji U. Presenter: Rick Delbridge; Cardiff U.