The Temple's Fourth Burning

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

Yuca Ishizuka's Golden PavilionYuca Ishizuka's Golden PavilionBy Yoichi Takabayashi
Yuca Ishizuka's 'Golden Pavilion'

More than fifty years ago, an incident took place. The Rokuon Temple (also known as the Temple of the Golden Pavilion), in Kitayama, Kyoto, was burnt down to the ground by a young monk who was studying there. It had been established over six hundred years previously by the Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. The Temple of the Golden Pavilion was one of Japan’s major cultural assets and was a designated national treasure that had escaped the ravages of war. It was thought to be everlasting. This act of arson happened at the time when I was a high school student in Kyoto, and I found it deeply shocking. It was not simply the incineration of a building, but the irreparable loss of over six hundred years of history.

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“Economics 101” for Job Seekers

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

By Terrie Lloyd
2007 Recruiting for Managers and IT Specialists in Foreign Companies

Japan Inc’s Terrie Lloyd provides a primer on how the economy connects to job hunting, offering tips on getting the timing right and advice on how trends in the market can help you improve the salary and conditions in your next job.

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Lonely at the Top?

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

Peter HarrisPeter HarrisBy Peter Harris
A review of Shinzo Abe’s premiership so far: where it’s been and where it might be going

Despite his poor position in recent polls, Japan’s premier seems to be enjoying his position six months into the job, even if he can’t always manage a smile. In his chatty newsletter on his homepage he writes of the “deep breath of fresh air” afforded him by his diplomatic visits abroad:

“In one European country I was received by a brass band playing the Japanese national anthem. On another occasion, I was welcomed by military police standing in perfect formation. In the Philippines, women dressed in colorful ethnic costumes and performed a beautiful dance for me.”

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Educating to Meet the Demands of the 21st Century

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

The reality of today's classrooms.The reality of today's classrooms.By Patrick Newell
Education must meet the needs of today and the demands of tomorrow

Technology, media and globalization contribute to our world changing at an alarming pace and in ways it never has done before. When our current elementary school children enter the workforce, a significant percentage of the jobs they will take have yet to be invented. Their generation are likely to change careers five times.

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Simple Technology Tools That Make a Big Business Difference

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

Jason WinderJason WinderBy Jason Winder
Want to improve your productivity?

Innovation in the IT sector continues with companies around the world working to improve the way we work. A host of new products and services designed for business people are available. Some examples are applications that allow you to securely access the information on your PC from anywhere in the world, and new collaboration tools which allow teams of people to work on the same documents simultaneously regardless of location.

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My struggle at the Frontline of Japanese Enterprise IT

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

James MokJames MokBy James Mok
Part I. How Japan’s enterprise IT has failed to learn from its most competitive industry–manufacturing

Whether you are an expatriate who needs to interact extensively with local IT departments, or a foreign consultant who works intimately on IT projects for Japanese firms, you may well find a few surprises during your engagement.

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TILEFILE

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

TILEFILE - Transfering TILEFILEsTILEFILE - Transfering TILEFILEsBy Willhemina Wahlin
A creative avenue for the maverick Japanese

There are plenty of reasons why some Japanese might wish to escape the grind of their more traditional corporate workforce. Long hours and extreme dedication to the company are the norm, not the exception. A late-afternoon surf when the working day is done, perhaps, might be as remote a pleasure as the annual four-week sabbatical. It’s not surprising then, that an attraction between the more maverick Japanese professional and foreign companies is growing.

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Hisashi Misawa’s "Germ Heat"

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

Hisashi Misawa displays his 'Germ Heat'.Hisashi Misawa displays his 'Germ Heat'.By Burritt Sabin
Heating everything at half the cost

Traveling northeast from Naka-Meguro (a Tokyo station) on the Hibiya Line you reach a sartorial watershed. The yonder side of Higashi Ginza the men in Burberry suits and women in Prada have vanished, and workers in overalls and seniors with small shopping carts fill the car. You have passed through the business and fashion centers and are moving into the Shitamachi, the eastern quarter, where Old Edo is said to survive. Indeed this low-lying district along the Sumida River is home to the sumo arena, the city’s liveliest festivals, public baths and cottage industries. In the last named labor the shokunin (the artisans) fashioned things with pride and stubborn persistence.

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Can Google Make it in Japan?

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

By Natasha Thompson, Researcher for J@pan Inc
In a Yahoo! dominated marketplace Google has its work cut out

According to whatis.com, a search engine is a coordinated set of programs that uses a spider, or 'a bot', to search and read every page on a website, creates a huge index, or database, of information from web pages, process search requests, and returns results to you. In other words, when you are 'searching' the Web using a search engine, you are not searching the Web at all, instead you are reading information that has been gathered on its huge database.

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New Knowledge Clusters

Submitted by Japan Inc on March 25, 2007

Photo by Andy RainPhoto by Andy RainBy David Meredith, President, Bates Asia Japan Inc
New technology is more than noise and bright lights

In 1950 the world’s biggest companies were all industrial manufacturers and raw materials suppliers. It was an era when Ford and General Motors were ‘kings of the castle’ and in Japan, the Mitsubishi Corporation was founded and became the country’s largest general trading house. Shortly after, in 1953, the Bridgestone Corporation, originally established in 1928 by tabi manufacturer Shojiro Ishibashi, diversified to become Japan’s largest tyre manufacturer. It was a time when men, for it was mostly men back then, got their hands dirty in factories and produced goods we could see and touch.

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