1. What types of organizational changes would you advise Japanese electronics managers to consider?

2. How do you think Japanese demographic trends have been a factor in the innovation problem?

Japan is an ancient country of many traditions and the country’s culture makes it difficult to realign to globalization. Japan was at the pinnacle of home consumer electronics industry from the 1970s to the 1990s. Now Japanese firms are struggling to stay in the game and Japan’s global market share of electronics goods has decreased more than half since 2000. What happened? 

The simple answer is failure to innovate to keep up with the changing technology. Deeper issue is the refusal of Japanese managers to adapt to the changing global environment and to change their organizations accordingly. For Japanese electronics companies to survive, they must change to foster innovation, which may involve a cultural, as much as an organizational transformation.