ABSTRACT
In the context of the work-place, there is no fundamental distinction between management and labour. The company employs managers and managed alike. The image of a coin comes to mind: one side of the coin is management, the other is labour; they are definitely different, but they converge to make the coin, the company. Post-war Japan has been characterised by the enthusiasm of Japanese management for importing ‘modern’ technology of production as well as management. In the process, Japanese management has become ‘professional’. Contrary to pre-war practice, when managers were promoted on the basis of their kinship to a given family or partisanship to a political regime, in post-war years management positions have been obtained on the basis of alleged or demonstrated competence. The top management of public corporations and other government-related enterprises is largely composed of these former officials. Turning to the management hierarchy, the customary division in the West is: top, middle and lower.
