The implementation of the Japanese work ethics in a Malaysian organization

Look East Policy was introduced in 1982 aims to emulate the rapid development of Eastern countries such as Japan and Korea. Kaizen is the Japanese working culture that is applied within an organization and it is very important to improve the quality of work, innovation, and efficient management of work, competitors, and energy. This study evaluates the extent to which Kaizen was applied in Japanese companies located in Malaysia, through the method of in-depth interviews with 15 strategic informants comprising former government officials who had served in Japan, alumni, and former Sony factory workers in Penang. Findings of the study revealed that a great proportion of the kaizen principles had been successfully implemented in the Malaysia-based organization such as those pertaining to the achievement of productivity and quality targets, time management, the application of the 5S (Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu dan Shitsuke) and the rin-gi, and the systematic management of complaints. However, there were the perceptions among workers that they would avail themselves of greater advantages if their leader was of the same ethnic or race, just as Japanese personnels had a greater advantage in securing promotion to higher echelons than non-Japanese even if the non-Japanese were proficient in Japanese. In conclusion, after more than three decades of experimentation, the organisational application of the Japanese work ethics was only partial a multi-racial society like Malaysia.