Outline by Brenda Okulski
Master of Accountancy Program
University of South Florida, Fall 2000
Japanese Management Main Page | JIT Main Page
Lagging U.S. Production is a Serious Problem
Whose fault is it?
* Government.
* Unions.
* Environmentalists.
* OPEC.
* Corporate Managers.
* Workers.
Response of CorporateManagers
Someone else’s problem.
* Beyond their control.
* U.S. still most productive nation.
Seeing it as their problem.
* Loss of market share.
* Decrease profits.
* Increase inflation.
Concerns put into action.
* Productivity improvement programs.
* Japanese Productivity System.
Japanese Productivity System
#1 Product Quality Control.
* Productivity improvement by-product of QC.
* "Religious" dedication to quality.
* Positive input & output effects.
#2 Grassroots Involvement.
* Worker suggestion system
* "Bottom up" approach
#3 Quality Control Circles.
* Address more complex problems.
* Consist of non-QC workers & foremen.
* Solve product QC and other problems.
* Active company support.
* Significant monetary benefits (savings).
* Many intangible benefits: morale, safety, teamwork, quality, communication.
#4 Non-Financial Rewards
* Positive reinforcement tools: praise & recognition.
* Minimal monetary incentive.
#5 Materialistic Management
* Close, nurturing relationships motivate & develop workers.
* Constant flow of information.
Uniqueness is in how the key factors fit together.
* No major differences in resources.
* Most programs developed by U.S.
Japanese system Transferable to USA?
Some say "no". The Japanese have
* Cozy government relationships.
* Company-based unions.
* Lifetime employment.
* Innate group orientation.
Some say "yes".
* Japanese companies with US subsidiaries.
* US companies with QC circles.
Conclusion
Fate of Productivity Improvement Rests with Managers.
* Top management must support it.
* Assistance from a variety of departments is needed.
* Challenge workers to solve problems.
* Utilize product QC as catalyst to improve productivity.
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Cooke, T. E. 1993. The impact of accounting principles on profits: The US versus Japan. Accounting and Business Research (Autumn): 460-476. (Summary
Cooper, R. and C. A. Raiborn. 1995. Finding the missing pieces in Japanese cost management systems. Advances in Management Accounting (4): 87-102. (Summary).
Crawford, R. J. 1998. Reinterpreting the Japanese economic miracle. Harvard Business Review (January-February): 179-184. (Summary).
Dillon, L. 1990. Can Japanese methods be applied in the western workplace? Quality Progress (October): 27-30. (Summary).
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Martin, J. R., W. K. Schelb, R. C. Snyder, and J. C. Sparling. 1992. Comparing the practices of U.S. and Japanese companies: The implications for management accounting. Journal of Cost Management (Spring): 6-14. (Summary).
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Sobek, D. K. II, J. K. Liker and A. C. Ward. 1998. Another look at how Toyota integrates product development. Harvard Business Review (July-August): 36-49. (Summary).
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Tanaka, T. 1994. Kaizen budgeting: Toyota's cost-control system under TQC. Journal of Cost Management (Fall): 56-62. (Summary).
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