How are Perceived Foreigners in the Business in Japan? Are there Any Differences According to Their Nationality?

Extract

[...] Such is the case for Japan and Germany, both countries established themselves as manufacturing powerhouses in the past couple of decades. They shared many cultural similarities of perceived high-quality craftsmanship and keeping time. But those similarities hide deeper differences that may have significant effects on business transactions. The work-life balance for instance, is resolutely more European in Germany, whereas Japanese workers go beyond contractual obligations. Similarly, the process of a business transaction or indeed any task matters almost as much as the end result in Japan. [...]

[...] Are there Any Differences According to Their Nationality? Japan is a well of contradictions with respect to the gap between its integration with global trade and flow of capital and services, as well as its heavy influence on many aspects of popular culture around the world. Nonetheless, the country remains insular. Foreign businesspeople typically find it difficult to engage with their Japanese counterparts, even as the economy trades in large volumes of goods, services and capital. As a result, cultural differences color substantially the interactions within business transactions, and may account for many unforeseen failure and successes. [...]

[...] Such is not the case in Germany, where efficiency trumps building consensus. There are wider differences between Japanese and French business practices as well. The interactions with customers for instance in Japan is at odds with that practiced in France: in the latter, it is usually assumed that vendor and customer are equals, and thus the former does not have to defer to their client, even at the cost of antagonizing them. By contrast, Japanese customer service goes beyond expectations, as vendor value client satisfaction highly. [...]