A Comparison Of Employee Downsizing Practice In American And Japanese Companies In China From A Cultural Perspective

Having had many years of experience working in Japanese organizations, the author has come to understand how Japanese companies manage their workforce and in what way Japanese cultural characteristics influence the fashion in which they manage their employees. At the same time, the author has a strong interest in the culture of Western corporations. With the assistance of relevant publications and information from friends, the author has gained some understanding about how Western companies carry out human resource management.The author has always enjoyed a deep interest in culture. Culture plays a significant role in the human resources management of our globalizing economy. Cross-culture comparisons of downsizing practices conducted by both American and Japanese subsidiaries in China are an effective way to explore the"faces"of both cultures, and to explore how different cultural values shape the fashion in which companies manage their personnel. Based on the above background, this thesis compares downsizing practices implemented by both American and Japanese subsidiaries in China, and draws respective conclusions.The author first introduces relevant theories concerning the definitions and dimensions of culture, human resource management, downsizing, and globalization. Such definitions and theories contribute to cultural comparison studies in the context of downsizing. These theories will be used when the author analyzes downsizing in both American and Japanese subsidiaries in China.The author then discusses American individualism and Japanese collectivism, and illustrates how these cultural values affect downsizing practices. Since the...