Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 18, 1995 TAG: 9506230019
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: GREENSBORO, N.C. LENGTH: Short
Under an agreement announced last week , the nonprofit Center for Creative Leadership in Greensboro, N.C., will help the Japanese Management Association design a course to teach Japanese managers how to break from the traditional mold.
``Japanese managers are very good at developing a consensus but sometimes they can be too conservative,'' said Yoshio Tomisaka, president of the Tokyo-based association.
``We want to encourage entrepreneurship. We believe it's very important to become innovators.''
The course, which will take a year to develop, will focus on things like individualized feedback, empowerment and goal-setting. Initially, it will be offered only in Japan.
Like the rest of the world, Japan is struggling to keep its economy strong in the face of global competition. Such competition is forcing many companies to give up their present businesses and look in new directions. They also are being forced to cut costs.
``Many Japanese businesses are being challenged to take voyages that they have never before experienced,'' he said.
JMA was established as an independent, nonprofit educational institution in 1942. With a worldwide network of affiliates, it has more than 2,500 corporate members and 1,800 employees.
The CLC is a 25-year-old, nonprofit educational institution. It is the largest in the world dedicated to the study and practice of leadership.
by CNB