ABSTRACT
The collapse of the ‘bubble economy’ of the late 1980s and the ensuing asset deflation crisis threatened the very viability of the Japanese financial system and resulted in Japan’s most profound economic recession since the post-war period. This in turn led to grave and unexpected economic consequences, including a major shift in interorganizational industrial networks. One serious and ongoing consequence has been the hollowing out of Japan’s domestic industrial production, as primary contractors continue to expand their outsourcing of parts production overseas, abandoning their supplier networks in Japan. This trend has led to the end of such hallowed managerial practices as so-called ‘lifetime employment’.
