Sonzai no Akashi

My new company is a Japanese company. I've worked in German companies, Korean companies, and a number of American companies. Of course there are many differences between any two companies within a nation, the differences between nations is quite dramatic. All companies have some sort of mission statement. The idea being that successful companies have mission statements, so mission statements make companies successful. There a plenty of examples to follow, each an example of how another company was successful. All publicly owned companies have only one mission, make money for shareholders. The shareholders tend to be nothing but investors, and interest in the company tends to be limited to stock price. Stock price having been reduced to an extremely complex equation of gross margins and asset inflation.

My new company's mission statement is "Sonzai no Akashi." Typical of Japanese business concepts, it doesn't really translate well so you should learn the Japanese word for the concept. According to Episode 28 of Kiba it means "Proof of Existence" or I would guess, mission statement. Working with pan-language technical documentation give you a good idea exactly how badly things translate sometimes. Siemens would name high voltage power supplies as low voltage "network box" because it's how the German word translated. It's the box that connects you to the "electrical network". So it's important to remember "Sonzai no Akashi," or the company's values. Disco lists them as:

-A corporation is a social system that assists people in attaining happiness and a comfortable living.

-Each corporation must choose a specific business domain to accomplish its own social mission.

-Each individual has responsibility as a member of society, but what people can do as an individual is very limited. This is why they take part in a social system called a "corporation" and work in order to accomplish the mission of the corporation. This, in effect, allows them to fulfill their own responsibilities.

-Working at Disco means aligning our aspirations with Disco's. By increasing the mission-achievablility of Disco, each one of us can ensure our existence in society and obtain satisfaction from work as well as achieve Self-actualization.

It's a bit different from, "We're a corporation. We pay you to make money for the shareholders." Of course making money is a necessary part of fulfilling responsibilities, but it's not the main purpose of the corporate social system. There are important practical differences in corporate philosophy. They also list:

"Behavior Identity - Always the best, Always Fun - this is our motto. Always the best refers to the pursuit of the very best under any circumstances. Always fun is the effort to always enjoy your work.

If everyone of us gains a proper understanding of Disco Values and Disco Vision and puts them into practice, we will be able to establish a dynamic corporate culture that enables us to overcome the tides of change no matter how big or challenging they may be."

I tend to very much dislike when I company tells me what my values should be, but it works out quite well when I feel the company's values match mine. The company also refuses to sell products to any company that produces parts for nuclear weapons. The company is based out of Hiroshima, and started in 1937.