Making Decisions with the Japanese Ringi Technique

Abstract
Commitment to and support for decisions made in American companies are often nonexistent. This is due to the high amount of conflict which prohibits consensus decision making. In contrast Japanese companies have developed a system known as ringiseido which allows consensus to be reached while avoiding conflict. This paper explains the differences in the cultures of America and Japan and how these differences have affected the way decisions are made.

Making Decisions with the Japanese Ringi Technique Imagine living in a culture where your peers are considered part of your group and you strive to benefit the group as a whole and conflict is avoided as it would disrupt the harmony of your group. For many Americans this may sound impossible. For instance, how would anything be accomplished, how would decisions be made, and most of all how would this benefit us individually? There are several cultures that do strive to avoid conflict. In this paper I will discuss Japan’s treatment of conflict and decision making through its use of a technique known as ringiseido.
As many of us know, Americans are not afraid of conflict, some of us may be uncomfortable with it but in general we feel that it is unavoidable. In fact, “conflict is seen as inevitable, and the ideal way to view conflict is as an opportunity to promote communication, stimulate ideas, increase understanding, and to bring about positive and creative change” (Asia University America Program, 2011). Overall, American’s feel that the best way to deal with conflict is to be direct and to bring it out into the open, by doing this there will be a chance to develop better ideas and solutions to problems. This trend in conflict management is carried over into corporate America. American companies are not concerned with maintaining harmony by avoiding conflict rather conflict is a normal and expected occurrence. Many decisions made in corporate America are made by speaking directly and openly with little concern about who may disagree. In turn disagreements will be voiced and conflict will ensue. But without conflict teams would be considered unhealthy as conflict causes the team to discover new approaches to problem solving (Levi, 2011). In contrast Japanese are very concerned with maintaining harmony and conflict is strongly discouraged. Conflict is viewed as “dangerous to relationships and is to be diffused beforehand or avoided at all costs. Harmony is the ultimate social ideal and conflict is completely at odds with it” (Asia University America Program, 2011). As a result, Japanese have developed an art to getting their messages across while not being direct or creating conflict. Similar to Americans, Japanese have carried their treatment of conflict into corporate Japan. In order to avoid conflict in corporate Japan a decision making technique is commonly used which is called ringiseido also known as ringi.
Ringi originated from the traditions of the Japanese family system, in which authority was based in the head of the household. In the past the head of the household made all significant decisions for the entire family. This style changed over time and now the head of the household is more concerned with maintaining harmony and consensus within the family than utilizing authority (Cordeiro, 1999). Today the head of the household consults with other household members and strives to come to decisions made in consensus with everyone involved. “Feudalism [servitude] in Japan is long gone, but the group behavior patterns established during that time are deeply rooted in society, and still influence how decisions are made in Japanese companies” (Kopp, The Decision Making Process in Japan, 2012). Despite this even Japanese companies have attempted to change from autocratic to consensus decision making.
Contrary to what many think, a consensus decision does not mean that every team member fully agrees with the decision but that they are willing and able to live with the decision (Harshman, 1998). Japanese companies attempt to make decisions that the stakeholders are willing and able to live with through their participation. However this change in participation is difficult for people in high-power distance cultures like Japan. High-power distance cultures accept significant power and status differences. High respect and admiration are shown to those of higher status causing questioning of their authority or decisions to be difficult (Levi, 2011). In response, Japanese companies are making an effort to change the view of status difference by encouraging supervisors and employees to have more equal relationships where consensus on both parts is required to make decisions. Top management is desired to be seen as a facilitator/consensus builder and to have the responsibility of maintaining harmony so that employees can work together (Gallent, 2010).
The ringi decision making technique allows consensus decisions to be made while overcoming high-power distance issues and maintaining harmony among those involved. With Ringi lower-level-managers can anonymously draft a document which “describes the matter to be decided and makes a specific recommendation. The Ringisho is not a mere inquiry to top management. It does not suggest alternatives for top management's approval; rather, it offers a specific recommendation” (Cordeiro, 1999). Through this method people of lower status in the company can make recommendations to upper management without appearing to be directly questioning their superior’s authority. After the Ringi document is drafted it is circulated to those in the company who would be involved in making this decision. Rochelle Kopp, author of “How Do the Japanese Put in Their Two Cents? Ringi!” describes the process as follows: “A ringi contains the case for a certain decision, laid out in a clear format, with all the data that needs to be considered attached to it. This document is then circulated to all the people who need to sign off on the decision” (Kopp, How Do the Japanese Put in Their Two Cents? Ringi!, 2010). During this process those involved write comments, edit, and forward the document to others. The document is revised using the comments and edits and sent through the same process again until all group members stop commenting and sign off on it (Levi, 2011). Through this process direct conflict is avoided and everyone involved is allowed to voice their opinions.
Obviously a drawback to this style of decision making is the amount of time it takes to reach decisions. Japanese are not as concerned with the amount of time decisions take as they are with finding consensus and discovering the long-term effects of their decisions. (Robert V. Anderson, 2009). Americans on the other hand are concerned with how long decisions take; they demand quick decisions and immediate solutions. The problem with this is that time is not taken to reach a consensus on the decision. Those involved are left feeling their concerns were not important, causing them to become unsupportive of the decision. Charles Rodkoff, writer for Doing Business in Japan describes decision making in American companies as follows: proposals are put on the table, massaged (or kicked around as the case may be) until a majority decision is arrived at, at which point the proposal either dies or goes to the next phase of its life. There’s argument, disagreement, the feeling among participants that either they’re going to get bulldozed, shafted or get a leg up one or two rungs on the corporate ladder. A competitive, combative arena. (Rodkoff, 2012)
Although implementing a Ringi process in American companies might seem like an improvement to its current decision making processes, this would most likely be unsuccessful because of the vast differences in culture. Clearly American culture cannot be changed but the use of Ringi for certain types of decisions such as highly controversial ones could be useful. By providing a method of avoiding the traditional conflict in controversial decision-making Americans could focus on the long-term outcomes of the decision, everyone could voice their opinion without being challenged, and a consensus could be reached over time. Through consensus the decision may not be exactly what everyone wants but it would be something everyone could support. Ringi would provide a method to build support among those involved in making a controversial decision. In conclusion, conflict exists in every culture but how it is treated and dealt with varies. Japan avoids conflict and focuses on maintaining harmony in its workplaces through the ringi technique. And as we know, “conflict is relatively high in American workplaces, with a third of all workers reporting they constantly deal with conflict in their role, and a quarter of all workers conceding that they’ve experienced a conflict that led to someone being fired (Murphy, 2009). Although this is typical for American culture, there are potential benefits in applying the Japanese’s Ringi consensus decision making techniques. By using the ringi technique American companies could reach consensus on decisions and in turn build commitment to decisions, empower their employees, and balance the distribution of power.
References
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