ABSTRACT
The concept of employability is becoming widely used in Japan as in Europe. So, professional managers must be ready to live a "nomadic" life, in building their career and skill base in a number of organizations. Performance-based calculations are factored into the remuneration and promotion of managers, and increasingly also of ordinary employees. The Nikkeiren proposals expected to enable Japanese companies to meet the major challenges: effective incentives, manageable costs, and individual-oriented management of people. The baby-boomer generation has reached the age level appropriate for managerial posts, but the supply of qualifying employees outnumbers middle and upper-middle managerial positions available, exerting a downward pressure on salaries. Hakuhodo decided to remove the distinction between the tracks existing inside the company that impeded the access of female employees to managerial positions. With some conditions fulfilled, companies believe that the concept may be applied effectively and replace advantageously the skill-grading system.
