As the global economy has evolved, many companies have expanded their operations overseas in a constant search for potential markets in which to sell their products and services. As these companies seek to establish themselves abroad, it becomes imperative to train and to retain local employees. Despite this pressing need, Japanese companies have been widely criticized for failing to retain the services of experienced local employees. The retail industry, in particular, experiences a high degree of employee mobility and requires instant solutions for adjusting to the fast changing environment in which its firms operate. However, many companies believe in the rationality of their corporate systems without questioning suitability to the local circumstance. This thesis uses an anthropological approach to evaluate the company building process of a leading Japanese fashion enterprise (referred to by the pseudonym “Ichi”) in Hong Kong. In adopting this approach, I seek to explain the formation and expression of Ichi’s corporate ideology, and its interpretation by the firm’s employees. This analysis focuses on two primary themes: Ichi’s managerial control and the way employees attempted to satisfy company expectations in a purely superficial manner. Specifically, I adopt a participant-observation approach over fifteen months to provide a comprehensive illustration of the activity within Ichi’s Hong Kong stores. The first part of this thesis suggests that Ichi uses its corporate ideology, Ichi DNA, to control employees through its corporate system including training, ranking, remuneration, and promotion. Ichi’s implementation of its corporate system in Hong Kong seeks to apply its ideology to local employees to promote a “shared” set of values and its own institutional culture, thus unifying important principles across the company. This suggests that industrial familialism, which many scholars have identified as unique to Japanese corporate culture, only superficially illustrates the nature of Japanese companies. This thesis further demonstrates that during the implementation of Ichi’s corporate ideology, store employees individually or collectively distorted reports of their performance to attain personal career goals. This challenges the widespread perception that “harmony” is a genuine characteristic of the Japanese company. By examining the actions of different nationalities, the thesis also shows that Store Managers manage human relations within their stores primarily on the basis of different interpretations of the corporate ideology rather than their ethnic backgrounds. This similarly refutes the presumption that Japanese companies are ethnocentric in nature. Evidence from this study demonstrates that the general assumption of the efficacy of scientific management must be reexamined, as the company’s managerial practices and relationships with its employees are more heavily influenced by worker politics than the firm’s rational structure. By exploring the company building process and the effect of dynamic human relations on it, this study seeks to address the gap between corporate ideology and those practices that exemplify it, contrasting starkly with studies that claim that Japanese firms are uniquely culture- or ethnocentric. / published_or_final_version / Japanese Studies / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / Management Studies / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Japanese Studies / Master / Master of Philosophy

by Lum Yee Chung, Richard. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1990. / Bibliography: leaves 71-73. / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iv / LIST OF TABLES --- p.vii / PREFACE --- p.ix / Chapter / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Why Japanese Department Stores Came in the 1980s --- p.2 / Statement of Problem --- p.3 / Research Questions --- p.3 / Significance of Study --- p.5 / Limitations of Study --- p.5 / Summary --- p.6 / References --- p.7 / Chapter II. --- INDUSTRY ENVIRONMENT --- p.8 / Introduction --- p.8 / Opinions by Department Store Practitioners --- p.8 / Store Categories --- p.9 / Market Environment of the Retail and Department Store Industry --- p.11 / Summary --- p.15 / References --- p.16 / Chapter III. --- METHODOLOGY --- p.17 / Introduction --- p.17 / Approach of Study --- p.17 / Questionnaire Design --- p.18 / Sampling and Data Collection --- p.22 / Summary --- p.23 / References --- p.24 / Chapter IV. --- RESEARCH FINDINGS --- p.25 / Introduction --- p.25 / Background Information of Respondents --- p.25 / Criteria for Shoppers to Choose Department Stores --- p.28 / Shoppers' Opinions on Japanese Department Stores --- p.32 / Store Categories that Respondents Shop Most Often --- p.35 / Effectiveness of Advertisement --- p.37 / Idea on Product to Buy and Amount to Spend Before Entering a Store --- p.39 / Importance of Product/Services Other Than Traditional Merchandise in Department Stores --- p.41 / "Importance of Price, Quality, Brand Name and Discount" --- p.42 / Main Strengths and Weaknesses of Japanese Stores --- p.45 / Identifying the Heavy Shoppers and their Characteristics --- p.48 / Summary --- p.52 / References --- p.54 / Chapter V. --- CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS --- p.55 / Introduction --- p.55 / Conclusions --- p.55 / Recommendations for Japanese Stores --- p.55 / Recommendations for Local Stores --- p.59 / Future Direction --- p.62 / References --- p.63 / APPENDIXES --- p.64 / Chapter Appendix 1 : --- Questionnaire - Studies on Japanese Department Stores --- p.64 / Chapter Appendix 2 : --- Questionnaire - Consumer Survey --- p.68 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.71

published_or_final_version / abstract / Japanese Studies / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration