Though I would not say it is the first
priority as in my previous post, for MNCs operating in Japan, language is
usually named as the first obstacle for their market entry into the Japanese
market and being successful. And it is
true you cannot underestimate language issue in doing business in Japan.
Only very limited Japanese people are
fluent in English. That is even those
working in large MNCs operating in Japan.
That is why translating/localizing documents and tools into Japanese is “must”
in all businesses and occasions.
Whenever you are to have a meeting or event involving non-Japanese
speaker(s), interpretation is the issue you need to think about / solve.
Japanese companies and business
professionals also say language (English) is the first challenge they face in
going global. Similarly, language is not
the first priority but it is an obstacle they need to overcome.
Language is a tool of communication in doing
business. Without it, no way you can be
successful in your business.
But, it does not mean you always need to be
fluent in Japanese to succeed in business in Japan.
This is one of the topics I have covered in
my two eBooks I wrote, which was published by StartiaLab, a leading Japanese
eBook publisher in November, 2015.
English version: 7 Things to Know to be Successful in Business in Japan
This article was originally posted on
Megumi Oyanagi’s Blog About Japan
