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ross Cultural Management: An International Journalmerald Article: The perceptions of Malaysians in a Japanese company

eap Peik Foong, Stanley Richardson

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cite this document: Yeap Peik Foong, Stanley Richardson, (2008),"The perceptions of Malaysians in a Japanese company", Cross

ultural Management: An International Journal, Vol. 15 Iss: 3 pp. 221 - 243

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Cross Cultural Management:

International Jou

Vol. 15 No. 3, 2

pp. 221

# Emerald Group Publishing Lim

1352-7

DOI 10.1108/13527600810892

The perceptions of Malaysians ina Japanese company

Yeap Peik Foong and Stanley RichardsonFaculty of Management, Multimedia University, Cyberjaya, Selangor, Malaysia

Abstract

Purpose The aim of this paper is to investigate the perceptions of Malaysian employees of ABCMSC (a Japanese company in Malaysia) in order to recommend changes in management practices.Design/methodology/approach Fieldwork was conducted using participant observation andinterviews. Participant observation was conducted to investigate the flow of information, theimplementation of decisions made by the top Japanese managers, problem resolution, and thereaction of the local staff to management practices. The interviews highlighted communicationproblems which have existed between the Japanese CEO and the local telecommunications companiessince the company started operations in 1997.Findings Even thought the company is backed by a financially strong parent company in Japan

and has a lot of growth potential, this potential remains partially untapped due to managementstrategies of the company headquarters.Research limitations/implications Japan remains an important Foreign Direct Investmentcountry in Malaysia. The perceptions of employees of Japanese companies in Malaysia are worthinvestigating since changes of management strategies in the home country affect the direction andoperations of the overseas subsidiaries. Further research should be carried out in other Japanesecompanies in Malaysia.Practical implications Suggestions to improve the management strategies are discussed.Originality/value It is believed that no other Japanese company in Malaysia has been investigatedin this way before. This papers findings should be useful to many expatriate managers in Malaysia.

Keywords Japan, Malaysia, Employee attitudes, International business, Expatriates,Corporate strategy

Paper type Case study

IntroductionJapan remains an important source of Foreign Direct Investment in Malaysia. Japanranked third in the list of Malaysias top ten trading partners in 2005 and it remained thelargest source of imports for Malaysia and the third largest market for Malaysianexports in the same year (Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation, 2005). Theperceptions of employees who work in Japanese companies in Malaysia are worthinvestigating since changes of management strategies in the home country affect thedirection and operations of the overseas subsidiaries (Taira, 1980; Jaeger, 1983; Beechlerand Yang, 1994). Malaysia is a multi-ethnic country. The Malays and other indigenousgroups make up 61 per cent, the Chinese 24 per cent, the Indians 7 per cent, and others8 per cent of the population. Thus, the study of Malaysian employee perceptions in a

Japanese overseas subsidiary should show how Japanese management practices areviewed in a multicultural environment such as Malaysia. This paper concerns one

Japanese company in Malaysia, ABC Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) (a pseudonym)engaged in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry.

ICT in MalaysiaThe development of the ICT industry in Malaysia has received great attention from thegovernment. The Malaysian government embarked upon the MSC initiative in 1996 withthe aim of cultivating a knowledge-rich society in Malaysia and taking the country into

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at

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the information age. The MSC covers a 15 km by 50 km land area, stretching from the

Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur in the north to the Kuala Lumpur International

Airport in the south; and encompasses two new cities: Cyberjaya, the technology core

and Putrajaya, the new administrative capital of Malaysia. It is also an integrated

logistics hub with rapid rail links to Kuala Lumpur, and a new highway system. In orderto provide high-capacity global telecommunications and logistics network services, a

2.5-10 gigabits digital fiber-optic backbone was built in MSC. Moreover, the innovative

cyberlaws, policies and practices which govern the MSC allow investors to harness the

full potential of ICTand multimedia.

With this unique and ideal multimedia environment, Malaysia continues to attract

leading ICT companies both local and international to locate their industries in the

MSC and undertake research, develop new products and technologies and export them

from this base. Japanese companies have taken the initiative to establish their

subsidiaries in Cyberjaya while Malaysia is making efforts to expand Cyberjaya into a

major regional IT hub.

Background of the companyThe company

ABC MSC was incorporated as a wholly owned Japanese subsidiary of ABC

Corporation (also a pseudonym) on 2 July 1997. It moved operations from the capital,

Kuala Lumpur to the newly established intelligent city of Cyberjaya, 30 km from

Kuala Lumpur. Thus the ABC Group marked its debut in the MSC established in 1996.

ABC MSCs principal activities are to supply and install telecommunication equipment,

and to provide other value-added telecommunication and market research services

relating to the local telecommunication industry.

ABC MSC organizational structureOn 30 June 2006, ABC MSC had a total workforce of 73, i.e. seven Japanese expatriates

(9 per cent) and 66 locals (91 per cent). There are 32 technical staff (44 per cent), 24 sales

staff (33 per cent), and 17 support staff (23 per cent). Table I shows the manpower

structure by ethnic groups in the technical, sales, and support groups. The

management prefers to hire Chinese because they generally regard them as better

qualified and more highly motivated than members of other ethnic groups (this was

stated by three Malaysians two department managers and the human resource

manager).

There are seven divisions and thirteen departments in the organization. Figure 1

shows the ABC MSC organizational chart at 30 June 2006.

Table I.Manpower structureby ethnic groups atABC MSC

Technical group Sales group Support group Total

Japanese 1 4 2 7Malay 6 5 11Chinese 18 19 9 46Indian 5 1 6Others 2 1 3

Total 32 24 17 73


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The aimThe aim of this study is to investigate the perceptions of Malaysian employees of ABCMSC (a Japanese company in Malaysia) in order to recommend changes inmanagement practices.

MethodologyTriangulation methodsVarious methods were used, including documentary analysis, participant observation,and interviews. Denzin (1978, p. 291) says triangulation is the combination ofmethodologies in the study of the same phenomenon. The use of multipleapproaches allow an investigator to address a broader range of historical, attitudinal,and behavioral issues (Yin, 1994, p. 92).

Multiple approaches and methods have been used by many researchers (Lam, 1992;Lee, 1998; Ogasawara, 1998; Wong, 1999). In an effort to examine the extent to whichthe growing pressures from equal opportunities between the sexes have caused

Japanese companies to adapt and modify their employment and personnel

management practices, Lam (1992) carried out comprehensive surveys of employmentpractices across companies and industries in Japan, combined with detailed fieldworkat Seibu in 1984 and again in 1988. Similarly, Lees (1998) study of gender in twofactories owned by a Hong Kong-based company located in two sites, (in Hong Kong,China and in Shenzhen, China) aimed to investigate the factors that caused theimplementation of different management practices between the two sites. She usedmultiple approaches, she not only observed the working of the factories, butparticipated in the work and involved herself personally in the relations and processesthat she studied. In an attempt to investigate workplace politics between Japanese maleand female workers in a Japanese company, Ogasawara (1998) combined participant

Figure ABC MSC organizationchart as at 30 June 20


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observation and personal interviews in her methodology to carry out her study. Shespent six months of participant observation as a temporary clerical worker at theTokyo headquarters of a large bank and interviewed 40 office men, ten wives of officemen, and 30 office ladies to collect data. Wong (1999) examined the success of a

Japanese supermarket retailer in transferring its management systems to Hong Kong.He spent two years of participant-observer research in various branches of thedepartment store to study the companys operations in Hong Kong, particularly thepower relations between and among the Japanese expatriates and local Hong KongChinese employees.

Collection of informationInformation was obtained from company annual reports, the employee handbook,newsletters, brochures, and the company website. Further information was obtainedby:

. Semi-structured interviews: interviewees were selected from the managers

(including the President, and the directors of the main divisions); from theexecutives (senior technical staff, e.g. IT programmers, engineers, data entrystaff, etc); and from non-executive staff (clerks, drivers, etc). All interviews werearranged and conducted after the official working hours from 1730 onwards, toavoid interrupting the respondents daily work.

. Participant observation: One of us, Yeap Peik Foong (YPF) immersed himself inABC MSC alongside target participants, becoming an employee of the company.As far as possible, everything was observed and observations recorded as soonas possible after they had been made. Special attention was paid to the teamprocess in order to determine weaknesses and strengths.

ResultsRespondents backgroundA total of 53 interviews were successfully carried out (all by YPF). The profile of the 53respondents from 14 departments is in the Appendix. The average age of therespondents was 31 years old and the average length of service in the company wasfour years two months. Most (60.4 per cent) of the respondents were graduates eitherfrom local or overseas universities. These respondents came from three levels ofemployees: management (14), executive (35) and non-executive (four). Among these 53respondents, there were 32 Chinese, eight Malays, five Indians, two Kadazan and oneEurasian (all Malaysians) and four Japanese. Three of the local respondents spokefluent Japanese and one of them had three years working experience in a Japanesecompany in Japan.

Respondents perceptionsJapanese company an attraction?. Did the respondents initially view the fact that ABCMSC was Japanese as an attraction to work for the company? Sixty-four per cent of thelocal respondents responded positively to this question. Respondent L32 graduated in

Japan and had three years working experience in Japan before she returned toMalaysia. She felt that she has better prospects working in a Japanese companybecause she graduated from a university in Japan and speaks fluent Japanese. Shebelieved her educational background and language ability are personal strengths inbuilding her career in a Japanese company. For most of the management (75 per cent)


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all the local employees commented that they only had little or moderate influence ondecision-making and little or moderate personal autonomy in work. Moreover, the localemployees believe that little consensus decision-making was practiced in thiscompany; their suggestions and opinions were sometimes solicited, but rarely

implemented, they said. More than 80 per cent of the local employees believed thatconsensus decision-making is only practiced among the Japanese managers.

Chain of command and transparency. Forty local employees (80 per cent)interviewed found that the job description, duties and responsibilities, and chain ofcommand were not defined, or documented, in the company. Some employeescomplained that they needed to handle the work of two different departments andreport to different superiors, which creates confusion among the locals. In addition, thecompany policies are only moderately transparent. Some respondents were not awarethat they are entitled to apply for training or attend seminars or conferences that arerelated to their work once a year. This benefit is not stated clearly in the EmployeeHandbook.

Pay. Forty-three of the respondents (85 per cent) were dissatisfied with the pay they

received in the company! Respondent L7, L11, and L35 said that the salary they receiveis marginally lower than other telecommunications companies in Malaysia. The reasonthey have stayed is that they are satisfied with the working conditions, including ahealthy safe working environment, privacy, office space, a personal computer, andrelations with her superiors and colleagues. The majority of the respondents weresatisfied with the day-to-day working conditions and relations with superiors andcolleagues in the company. However, they were dissatisfied with the conditions ofservice and contracts, e.g. job security, promotion, training, welfare, and benefits, etcprovided by the company.

Other financial benefits. All respondents commented that the difference in benefitsbetween the Japanese expatriates and the local staff is too large. All the Japaneseexpatriates are entitled to a company car, housing allowance, and family allowance; butMalaysian employees get none of these. Thus, many local employees felt that it wasunfair when they compared the fringe benefits the company provided to the localemployees with those of the Japanese expatriates. Respondents L2 and L4 suggestedthat the company should reduce the fringe benefits of the Japanese expatriates andutilize the money more productively, for example, in upgrading the computer systemand equipment in the Data Centre and providing medical benefits for the immediatefamily members of the local staff. Currently, the medical benefits do not cover the localemployees immediate family members. However, some respondents felt that eventhough they were not satisfied with the big difference in staff benefits between the

Japanese expatriates and local staff, they had to accept them without any hardfeelings because it is the company policy. A study carried out by Keeley (2001) among

Japanese expatriates and local employees in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, andThailand revealed that this gap in compensation and benefits often leads to frictionbetween Japanese expatriates and local employees.

Redress of grievances. How do local employees redress their grievances since there isno union in the company? The first approach used by all the respondents is to haveface-to-face talks with their immediate superior. They felt that this is the mostappropriate way to express their dissatisfaction; 76 per cent of the respondents talk tocolleagues to share their feelings, 62 per cent of the respondents send email to theirsuperior or colleagues, while 26 per cent of the respondents speak to the humanresource manager. Respondent L15 said he would talk to the most vocal person in the


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company and hope that this person would convey his dissatisfaction to themanagement. But in the final resort, all respondents said all they can do is to keepquiet, even if they are not happy with the management practices: this may be a reasonfor labour turnover.

Labour turnover. From 1 October 2005 to 30 June 2006, nine local employees and twoJapanese employees who were recruited in Malaysia left the company. The labourturnover rate was about 15 per cent and the majority who resigned were the ITengineers and staff from the sales division and system operations division. The highturnover rate, especially among the younger engineers, has caused the company to loseits trained manpower and indirectly lower the morale of the local staff. BetweenFebruary and June 2006, five IT engineers resigned because of better offers from othercompanies. Two of them had more than five years working experience in ABC MSC.Many employees resigned from the company after they received the announcement ofsalary increments from the management at the end of the year 2005. Some employeeseven appealed to the human resource manager, who is a local, but she was not able torevise the salary increments. The ultimate decision was made by the Human Resource

Director, who is Japanese. Since the management did not make any changes regardingthe increment, the local staff member resigned. Some of the experienced IT engineersmanaged to get better offers in terms of salary and position from other companies; twoof them were respondents L10 and L12. Ironically, the human resource manager whohad been in the company for five years resigned at the end of December 2005. Onemonth later, her assistant, the human resource and administrative officer with ninemonths service also resigned and left the whole human resource department withoutany local employees for about a month before the new human resource manager washired. The high turnover of local employees from various departments in the companywas reported to the regional manager, a Japanese, in the Singapore office. He came tothe company in Cyberjaya and held a meeting with all the employees in February 2006to discuss the issue. In the meeting (attended by YPF), he explained to the localemployees that the management practices in ABC MSC are different from the parentcompany in Japan. For example, the practices of lifetime employment and enterpriseunions are not implemented in ABC MSC. Since there is no union to represent the voiceof the local Malaysian employees, he encouraged open communication with employees.Those facing problems with their work or are unsatisfied with the management cancall or write to him directly. He even met individually with those who have tenderedtheir resignation letters to ask the reasons for their resignation. However, the localemployees still opted to leave the company since they managed to get better offerselsewhere.

Perception of Japanese colleagues. How did the local employees view the Japaneseexpatriates? There were pros and cons. Generally the Japanese staff were viewed as

friendly, hardworking and easy to approach in a social context. However, the generalperception was that they act differently when it came to work-related issues.Respondents commented that Japanese colleagues feel that they are superior and seethemselves as the bosses when they deal with work and formal issues. They rarelylisten to the opinions of the local employees, and even when they do, they generally donot implement them. Respondents L1, L4, L9, L12, and L38 viewed the Japanese staff asonly focusing on their own work and having short-term commitment to the Malaysiancompany: they are in Malaysia only for a few years after which they return to Japan.Thus, there is little effort to strengthen the relationship between the Japanese and thelocal staff. The interests of the local staff in relation to fringe payments and benefits are


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not cared for effectively. Respondents L7 and L14 felt that the Japanese expatriateswere not the people to look to for direction. This is because the Japanese expatriates donot listen to the local employees and they will not change once they have made theirdecision. Respondents L2 and L4 had the same perception. They said that even though

there are some Japanese expatriates who are highly respected, 90 per cent are not. Someof them appear incompetent and they do not try to improve. They behave as if they arein Malaysia on holiday. They called this group of Japanese expatriates the holidaymakers.

Japanese perception of Malaysian colleagues. How did the Japanese view the localemployees? Generally the local staff were viewed as hardworking, cooperative,enthusiastic to learn, easy to work with, and friendly. Informant L53 who had threeyears overseas working experience in an ABC subsidiary in Manila, the Philippines,commented that the Malaysian colleagues were more disciplined, well educated, andresponsible than the local employees in the subsidiary in Philippines. He enjoyedworking in a multicultural environment and even practiced his limited Malay languageskills with the local staff. Informant L42 shared the same perception. She felt that the

Malaysian colleagues were friendly and helpful. She had no problem mixing with them,especially the Malays, because she spoke fluent Malay, which she had learned in heruniversity in Japan. However, informant L52 commented that the morale andcommitment of the local employees was low. He felt that some local employees were notputting their full effort and commitment into their work. He further commented thatthe local employees, especially those who were young and single, were less loyal thanmany of those who had left the company after a few years of service.

DiscussionThe changing Japanese work ethic

Japanese attitudes toward work have changed (Mohwald, 2000), along with socialchange (Eades, 2000) and increasing affluence, especially among the youngergeneration who are more concerned with personal pleasure and enjoyment. Thestereotype of the workaholic Japanese is no longer true. The Japanese attitudes inrelation to work have been changing since the mid-1970s. Even though work is stillimportant to the majority of Japanese, however the value system which used to stressthe importance of hard work, diligence, commitment, etc has changed among theyoung workers. A survey of work-related attitudes among youths who consulted theTokyo and Osaka regional offices was carried out by the Employment Security Bureauof the Labour Ministry in 1990. The result of the survey showed that the majority of therespondents belonged to a type they called shinjinruigata. This type of worker displaysa low level of loyalty to the company, dislikes hard work, and prefers leisure to work,opts for free time rather than extra income where the two conflict, has no interest in the

content of work nor in responsibility, aspires to high salaries and short working hours,rejects socializing with colleagues after hours, and favours frequent change of jobs.New value patterns have emerged in Japanese society and this has strongly affectedthe work motivation of Japanese (Mohwald, 2000).

ABC MSC problems past and presentThe idea of the MSC was conceptualized in 1996 to support the development of theglobal ICT industry, not only in Malaysia but globally. One of the problems faced bythe company was the need to relocate its workforce from the sales office in KualaLumpur to the new office in Cyberjaya. Most of the staff were requested to move from


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the Kuala Lumpur office to Cyberjaya. Since the infrastructure of Cyberjaya was notfully developed at that time, transportation was the main problem for the staff withouttheir own transport. Besides, other facilities such as banking, clinics, and lunchfacilities were very limited. The company failed to attract sufficient local talent to work

in the new location. On the other hand, the most prominent external problem faced bythe company was to establish good relationships with the local telecommunicationscompanies. Since ABC MSC is a company that provides global network services tocustomers, it needed to establish good relationships with the local telecommunicationscompanies in order to get a licence as a network service provider and also to be able toshare the domestic network and infrastructure with the local telecommunicationscompanies in Malaysia. Communications problems existing between the Japanese topexecutives and the local telecommunications companies caused a delay in getting theright partnership agreements to share the telecommunications infrastructure. Thiswas partly because the Japanese expatriates did not speak good English and they didnot feel comfortable negotiating with the local partners. In addition, the Japaneseexpatriates in ABC MSC only mingle with the Japanese community in the city. They

rarely socialize with the local business partners. Thus, the Japanese top managementdepended on the local managers to deal with the local telecommunications companies.

Poor communications and conflicts of interests with the local telecommunicationscompanies remain among the continuing issues faced by the company. This may bedue to the three changes of CEO since the establishment of ABC MSC in 1997. The firstCEO was replaced in 2002 because ABC MSC was not performing well financially.When the second CEO arrived, drastic changes took place. The R&D Department wasclosed down because the department was not profitable. In addition, 45 local employeeswere laid off in 2003 and a new organization structure was implemented. A fewemployees were transferred to other departments. The second CEO was transferredback to the parent company in Japan in July 2005. The current CEO came to ABC MSCin August 2005. He restructured the organization and created new departments twomonths after he assumed his position. The local employees are reluctant to plan longterm because the new CEO may restructure the organization and implement newpolicies, they believe.

Furthermore, a lack of proper maintenance of equipment and of plans to invest innew technology and to upgrade the current system are affecting the companys aim toachieve a top position in the industry. Meanwhile, the company is facing otherchallenges, including the need to reduce its prices, to introduce more new products andservices to cater for the needs of its customers, to improve its employee compensationand benefits packages in order to retain staff, and to provide training to upgradeemployees skills and knowledge. Even though on-the-job training is provided, manystaff learn mainly through trial and error. Besides, the manpower is insufficient in a

few departments, for example the Data Centre Operations Department (see Figure 1);or so the Malaysian Data Centre Operations department manager and the assistantmanager (Corporate Department) said. However, the Japanese Human ResourceDirector denied that manpower was insufficient.

Perceived future of the company by local employeesAll the respondents view ABC MSC as a financially strong company because itsultimate holding company is ABC in Japan, which is well established. Besides beingfinancially sound and having a good brand name, ABC MSC has developed newproducts and has joint research activities with numerous local universities, etc. Thus,


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ABC MSC has a lot of potential to grow. However, this potential is unfulfilled due to theJapanese headquarters management strategies to cut costs and reduce investment inits people and equipment.

Employee perceptions of the multicultural work settingJapan prides itself on homogeneity but many scholars (e.g. Refsing, 2003) write aboutthe homogeneity myth arguing that Japan is a society much like many others, with agreat deal of variety among the population that lives within its boarders and withconstant new additions to the mix. If it is different from other heterogeneous societies,it is only in its reluctance to accept and deal with this reality . . . Refsing might haveadded that the number of Japanese working overseas has made Japan moreheterogeneous in its outlook. Malaysia has had Japanese working in severalorganizations for many years including the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra.

In this context Malaysia is probably unique. No other country exemplifies such astrong example of the practicalities of managing cultural diversity . . . (Smith, 2003)

with its three major ethnic communities and many minor ones, especially in Sarawakand Sabah. Interacting with Malaysians is a fundamental theme of this paper andMalaysians in subordinate status are observed to be fearful of commenting andcommunication to their superiors about things that are bothering them. They are notspecific in giving feedback . . . (Abdullah and Pedersen, 2003). All this is true ofMalaysians in ABC MSC. The broader issues involved are discussed by Fontaine andRichardson (2005). These arguments help to explain most of the respondentsperceptions of ABC MSC, and hence the high labour turnover rate especially asMalaysian employees feedback is ignored, they believe.

Recommendations and conclusionsRecommendations

Top management local staff. Local staff who understand the local conditions should beput into top management positions so that the voice of the local staff can be heard, as aunion does not yet exist in the company. Keeley (2001, p. 219) reported that Theimportance of integrating home country national managers into the managementprocess of Japanese overseas subsidiaries should be understood in the context of theincreased focus on international human resource management as a competitive factor.Many multinational corporations have appointed local employees to hold majorpositions in the top management of their overseas subsidiaries in Malaysia. Forexample, Dell has announced the appointment of a Malaysian as general manager ofDell Malaysia from September 2006 (The Star Online, 2006). Similarly, IBM announcedthe appointment of a Malaysian as Managing Director of IBM Malaysia in February

2007 (The Star Online, 2007). Thus, ABC MSC needs to deal more effectively withinternational human resource management issues and integrate managers from thehost country into the management process in Malaysia, and ideally in the parentcompany as a whole.

Japanese top management. Japanese top management should improve theirleadership style to provide a clear and consistent long-term direction for the company.Moreover, the Japanese top management should associate more with the local CEOs inother companies, especially in the local telecommunications industry. Good rapportand communication will enhance good relationships between the CEOs. This isimportant because it will make negotiation processes smoother and faster. Long ago,


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Dore (1979) criticized the image of Japanese managers as unable to adapt to foreignlanguages and cultures, and for some individuals, this is still the case.

The crucial change needed is in managements thinking about the nature of therelationship between the employees and the company. The top management should be

more Malaysian-oriented and treat the local employees more as partners (see Drucker,2003, p. 89). The commitment of staff and the retention rate could be increased if the topmanagement listens more to the local staff, takes greater care of employee morale, andprovides more attractive benefits and compensation packages to Malaysian staff.

Japanese expatriates constrained by the language barrier or lacking confidence inEnglish must admit to the need for further language training. It is an area of self-development for enhancing working ability in the language of international business.Many schools and institutes are offering language-training programs in Malaysia. Forexample, the British Council in Malaysia offers English for work course which aimsto improve communications at work and to enhance knowledge of internationalbusiness communications practice. It is an English language course for a businesscontext. In addition, corporate training programs, including courses and workshops

tailored to the objectives and schedules of the corporation are also available. Forinstance, the written communication course includes report writing skills, grammar forbusiness, and writing skills for managers. The interpersonal communication courseincludes presentation skills, effective negotiation skills, and essential skills fortraining-the-trainer (The British Council, Malaysia, 2007). Some Japanese expatriatesmust take advantage of these programs to improve themselves. Whitehall noted someyears ago that Greater efforts to improve Japans scorecard in internationalcommunication are needed and cannot be left to chance (Whitehill, 1991, p. 283), andthese problems still persist.

Job satisfaction. ABC MSC should develop policies to improve the level of jobsatisfaction among local employees. The top management of ABC MSC must seriouslyconsider the level of dissatisfaction among the local employees and take action toimprove their so that they have a sense of security and the belief that top managementunderstands their concerns and is taking action. Management localization programmesand initiatives should be implemented to increase local employees participation indecision-making. Such steps will help to increase the level of job satisfaction (cfSerapio, 1995).

In the effort to help improve decision acceptance among the local employees in ABCMSC, top management should encourage group-oriented and participative decisionmethods so that the local employees may gain understanding and become committed tothe process. This is one of the benefits of participative decision methods and effectiveleadership recommended by the Vroom-Jago model (Campling et al., 2006).

Local staff benefits and compensations packages should include medical benefits

that cover immediate family members, the spouse and children of local staff. This iscommon practice among many large employers in Malaysia, for example the AmericanInternational Assurance Co. Ltd.

The company should set up a training department under the corporate division andprovide more training for the local managers to upgrade their management skills andto promote team spirit among them. Furthermore, the training manager should inviteprofessional trainers to conduct train-the-trainers programmes in order to upgradethe skills of the in-house trainers and also to invite speakers to conduct seminars toboost the morale of the local employees. The communication climate within anorganization is one of the factors to stimulate the strategic business alignment, i.e. the


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degree to which employees understand, support, and are able to execute the companiesstrategic initiatives (Riel et al., 2005).

Since Japanese dominate top management in ABC MSC, a union should beencouraged among the local employees so that the union not only represents their

voice, but also takes care of the welfare of the local employees. Hence perception of topmanagement by locals would be enhanced.

Office seating. Despite Japanese office culture, the design of office space and sittingarrangement in ABC MSC should maximize efficiency and effectiveness andincreasing the possibility of interaction, and opportunities to accommodate a widerange of different tasks simultaneously (Duffy, 2000, pp. 331-2). A study[1] by Kroneret al. (1992) at an insurance company in the USA revealed a statistically significantpositive association between the change in productivity and the change in overallsatisfaction with the workspace. Furthermore, researchers found that improvedindoor architectural and environmental design contributed to an overall increase inproductivity of 16 per cent (Kroner, 2000, p. 293). Even though the study wasconducted in the USA, there is no reason to suppose that it will not apply in Malaysia,

where the application of the traditional Japanese seating plan based on seniority wassometimes misunderstood or resented. Hence, the management of ABC MSC shouldseriously consider how to redesign its workplaces to revitalize not just how officeorganization performs but also offices appearance, especially in view of the need tobreak away from the Japanese hierarchical office layout.

ConclusionsRegarding the transfer of the four core principles of Japanese management practices,i.e. lifetime employment, the seniority-based wages and promotion systems, enterpriseunionism, and company welfare services and benefits, these practices were not foundin ABC MSC. This finding conforms the study of Raduan (2002) that such practicesare not the priority of the management strategy in running the subsidiaries operationsof Japanese overseas subsidiaries in Malaysia. In addition, many of the supportingfeatures of the Japanese management practices including consensus decision-making,practice of internal promotion, and the development of skills through consistenttraining have not been used in ABC MSC to any significant degree. The parentcompany in Japan and the Regional Office in Singapore control the extent to which thetop management in ABC MSC needs to, or indeed is able to, transfer the Japanesemanagement practices to Malaysia, and it is possible that the high turnover of staff inMalaysia has prevented them from doing so. Major decisions such as the control ofbudget, the development of R&D activities, the distribution of technology know-how,the implementation of new products and services, and the dispatch of Japaneseexpatriates are determined by the headquarters in Japan. Hence, the top management

in ABC MSC has a limited degree of freedom in implementing Japanese managementpractices in its Malaysian subsidiary.There were local employees who were attracted to work for ABC MSC because the

company is Japanese. This is particularly shown by the respondents who graduated inJapan and had working experience in Japanese companies in Japan. However, amajority of the executive and the non-managerial staff do not view ABC MSC asproviding job security. They feel that they can be laid off anytime. This is because ofthe retrenchment of executive and non-managerial staff and the closure of the R&Ddepartment in 2003. This incident has changed their perceptions of the job securityoffered by ABC MSC.


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The mismatch of aims between the top management and local employees could beone reason for the dissatisfaction which has led to the high turnover rate in thecompany. The President/CEO has changed on average every three years. Each newCEO, has meant changes in the corporate strategies and the organizational structure.

The changing corporate strategies have affected the long-term plans of variousdepartments and the motivation of many local employees. Furthermore, many localstaff believe the differences between employee benefits for Japanese expatriates andlocal staff are too great.

The Malaysian employees perception that their Japanese colleagues are seriousabout their work is not surprising, despite the fact that some interviewees thought thatthe Japanese were in Malaysia on holiday. In Japan, performing at ones highest levelis not simply promoted as a way to make it . . . The motivation to realize individualscompetence stems from the fact that doing so helps secure ones place in a society thatemphasizes and values interpersonal bonds (Gardner, 2006), but maybe the Japanesechange when the come to work in Malaysia.

The top management of ABC MSC emphasizes soft skills, for example, the skills to

organize, to lead, and to communicate. This is clearly stated in the key performanceindicators for salary increment and promotion. Thus, the local employees in ABC MSC,(particularly employees in the technical category) should learn these skills eitherthrough on-the-job training or by attending seminars and courses provided by externaltrainers since there is no in-house training programme in the company.

Japanese expatriates dominate the top management positions. At ABC MSC, allimportant decisions that affect the organization such as the restructuring ofdepartments, change of company policies, and transfer of staff are made by the

Japanese top management, then announced to the local staff, without consideration forlocal staff opinions. It was perceived by the local employees that group consensusdecision-making might have been practiced among the Japanese in ABC MSC;however, when the decision had been made, an authority decision approach(Campling et al., 2006, p. 372) was implemented to the local employees. There was nosignificant relationship between entry salary and seniority, educational qualifications,and years of working experience in ABC MSC. The differences of entry salary betweenand within the different categories of employees may have been due to negotiatingskills of individual local employees vis-a-vis the management. The more they were ableto negotiate, the higher the entry salary, but of course, this was not confined to ABCMSC. However, these inequalities helped reinforce the sense of dissatisfaction whichmany felt.

ABC MSC does not offer a direct monetary reward, such as a higher salary, toencourage local employees to stay longer in the company. Its strategy to retain the localemployees tended towards offering other benefits such as transport allowances, cell

phone, and car parking allowances. However, these allowances were not good enoughto attract the local employees. Firstly, the transport allowance was revised from RM200per month in year 2000 to RM220 per month in year 2005. An increase of RM20 (10 percent) or an average increase of merely 2 per cent per year was considered insufficientby the local employees as the average inflation rate in Malaysia was 2.9 per cent peryear over the period 1991-2005 (Malaysia, Government, 2006). Secondly, the cell phoneallowance up to a maximum of RM160 per month was not enough because Malaysiansspend an average of RM100 a month on short message service alone (The Star Online,2007)! Thirdly, it was stated in the Employee Handbook 2005 under B5-1.6 Car ParkDisbursement that employees who based in the sales office in Kuala Lumpur were


15/24

CCM15,3

234

entitled to claim the reimbursement of car park fees up to maximum of RM50 permonth. This allowance was too little because the minimum cost for parking in thesurrounding areas was RM5 per day. Thus, the change of policies revealed that topmanagement did not take into consideration some of the economic factors before the

policies were implemented.ABC MSC has considerable potential for growth. The strong financial support it

receives from the parent company in Japan and its brand name are the majorattractions for local talent. The company can achieve greater success if themanagement focuses on job security and fringe benefits that foster organizationalcommitment among employees. If ABC MSC can retain its experienced employees, itwill not only save the expense of training new employees but also generate greaterlong-term productivity and profitability, as experienced employees allows the companyto continue to grow. The importance of knowledge workers is constantly increasing(see, for example, Richardson and Tan, 2006). However, ABC MSCs Japanese managersneed to understand this and its importance for attitudinal change.

Note

1. The study analyzed the impact of environmentally responsive workstations, ERWs onoffice worker productivity and worker response to individualized environmentalconditioning. ERWs integrate and provide heating, cooling, lighting, ventilation, andother environmental qualities directly to the occupants of workstations. Additionalintegrated components may include: communication and information systems, electricpower service, optical view panels, and fragrance options. The key feature of an ERW isthat the occupant controls, modulates, and maintains the environmental conditions.ERWs are designed to operate when the workstation is occupied. ERWs are at their bestif they are integrated with an environmentally responsive architecture. (Kroner, 2000, pp.296, 303).

ReferencesAbdullah, A. and Pedersen, P.B. (2003), Understanding Multicultural Malaysia, Prentice Hall,

Petaling Jaya.

Beechler, S. and Yang, J.Z. (1994), The transfer of Japanese-style management to Americansubsidiaries: contingencies, constraints, and competencies, Journal of International

Business Studies, third quarter, pp. 467-91.

(The) British Council, Malaysia (2007), Courses and training programmes, available at:www.britishcouncil.org/malaysia.htm (accessed 5 July 2007).

Campling, J., Poole, D., Wiesner, R. and Schermerhorn, J.R. (2006), Management, 2nd Asia-Pacificed., John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd, Sydney.

Denzin, N.K. (1978), Sociological Methods: A Sourcebook, McGraw Hill, New York, NY.

Dore, R. (1979), The Internationalization of Japan, Pacific Affairs, Institute of DevelopmentStudies, University of Sussex, Brighton, pp. 595-611.

Drucker, P.F. (2003), The Essential Drucker, HarperCollins, New York, NY, pp. 87-90.

Duffy, F. (2000), New ways of working: a vision of the future, in Croome, D.C. (Ed.), Creating theProductive Workplace, E & FN Spon, London and NY, pp. 323-33.

Eades, J. (2000), Introduction: globalization and social change in contemporary Japan, in Eades,J.S., Gill, T. and Befu, H. (Eds), Globalization and Social Change in Contemporary Japan,Trans Pacific Press, Melbourne, pp. 1-16.

Fontaine, R. and Richardson, S. (2005), On cultural values in Malaysia, cross culturalmanagement, An International Journal, Vol. 12 No. 4, pp. 63-77.


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23

Gardner, H. (2006), Multiple Intelligences: New Horizons, revised ed., Basic Books, NY, p. 201.

Jaeger, A.M. (1983), The transfer of organizational culture overseas: an approach to control inthe multinational corporation, Journal of International Business Studies (Special Issue onCross-Cultural Management), Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 91-114.

Keeley, T.D. (2001), International Human Resource Management in Japanese Firms, Palgrave,New York, NY.

Kroner, W.M. (2000), Employee productivity and the intelligent workplace, in Croome, D.C.(Ed.), Creating the Productive Workplace, E & FN Spon, London and NY, pp. 295-303.

Kroner, W.M., Start-Martin, J.A. and Willemain, T. (1992), Using Advanced Office Technology toIncrease Productivity: The Impact of Environmentally Responsive Workstations (ERWs) onProductivity and Worker Attitude, Rensselaer, Center for Architectural Research, Troy, NY.

Lam, C.L. (1992), Women and Japanese Management: Discrimination and Reform, Routledge,London.

Lee, C.K. (1998), Gender and the South China Miracle: Two Worlds of Factory Women, Universityof California Press, Berkeley, CA.

Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (2005), Malaysia trade information: top 10trade statistics, available at: www.matrade.gov.my/foreignbuyer/Msiatop10.htm(accessed 25 July 2006).

Malaysia, Government (2006), The Ninth Malaysia Plan, 2006-2010, National PrintingDepartment, Kuala Lumpur.

Mohwald, U. (2000), Trends in value change in contemporary Japan, in Eades, J.S., Gill, T. andBefu, H. (Eds), Globalization and Social Change in Contemporary Japan, Trans PacificPress, Melbourne, pp. 55-75.

Ogasawara, Y. (1998), Office Ladies and Salaried Men: Power, Gender, and Work in JapaneseCompanies, University of California Press, Berkeley, CA.

Raduan, C.R. (2002), Japanese-style Management Abroad, Prentice Hall, Kuala Lumpur.

Refsing, K. (2003), In Japan, but not of Japan, in Mackerras, C. (Ed.), Ethnicity in Asia,RoutledgeCurzon, London, pp. 48-63.

Richardson, S. and Tan, W.K. (2006), The implications of knowledge management developmentfor globalization, paper presented at the International Conference on Globalisation ofBusiness, 28-29 August 2006, INTI University College, Nilai, Malaysia, unpublished.

Riel, C.B.M., Berens, G. and Dijkstra, M. (2005), The Influence of Employee Communication onStrategic Business Alignment, Report Series Research in Management, Erasmus ResearchInstitute of Management (ERIM), Rotterdam.

Serapio, M. (1995), Management localization in Japanese subsidiaries in the United States,in Shenkar, O. (Ed.), Global Perspectives of Human Resource Management, Prentice Hall,New York, NY, pp. 211-25.

Smith, W.A. (2003), Culture and management in Malaysia, in Warner, M. (Ed.), Culture and

Management in Asia, RoutledgeCurzon, London, pp. 115-34.(The) Star Online (2006), New Dell country manager for Malaysia, available at: http://star-

techcentral.com/tech/story.asp?file/2006/9/7/technology/20060907164942&sectechnology(accessed 12 September 2006).

(The) Star Online (2007), New MD for IBM Malaysia, available at: http://star-techcentral.com/tech/story.asp?file/2007/1/11/technology/200701111181326&sectechnology (accessed12 January 2007).

(The) Star Online (2007), Malaysians spend average of RM100 a month on SMS, available at:http://star-techcentral.com/tech/story.asp?file/20070131123123&sectechnology (accessed5 February 2007).


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Taira, K. (1980), Colonialism in foreign subsidiaries: lesson from Japanese investment inThailand, Asian Survey, Vol. 20 No. 4, pp. 373-96.

Whitehill, A.M. (1991), Japanese Management: Traditional and Transition, Routledge, London.

Wong, H.W. (1999), Japanese Bosses, Chinese Workers: Power and Control in a Hong Kong

Megastore, Curzon, Richmond.Yin, R.K. (1994), Case Study Research: Design and Methods, 2nd ed., Sage Publications, London.

Further reading

Hofstede, G. (2001), Cultures Consequences, 2nd ed., Sage Publications, London.

Nyland, C., Smith, W., Smyth, R. and Vicziany, M. (Eds) (2001), Malaysian Business in the NewEra, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.

Richardson, S. (1991), Southeast Asian Management: Cases and Concepts, Singapore UniversityPress, Singapore.

Richardson, S. (Ed.) (2005), How to Research, Thomson Learning, Singapore.

Shaughnessy, J.J. et al. (2000), Research Methods in Psychology, 5th ed., McGraw-Hill, Singapore.

About the authorsYeap Peik Foong is a Lecturer in global management, Faculty of Management, MultimediaUniversity, Malaysia. Yeap Peik Foong is the corresponding author and can be contacted at:[email protected]

Stanley Richardson is an Associate Professor and a consultant at the Faculty of Management,Multimedia University, Malaysia. Since 1963 he has taught in various countries, especially inHong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia.

To purchase reprints of this article please e-mail: [email protected] visit our web site for further details: www.emeraldinsight.com/reprints


18/24


23

Table AI.Informants profiles at

ABC MSCAppendix

No.

Informant

Nation

ality

Stafflevel

Department

Gender

Ethnic

group

Age

Yearjoined

Position

whenjo

ined

1

L1

Malaysian

Management

Corporate

Sales

Male

Chinese

36

Dec-99

Manage

r

2

L2

Malaysian

Management

ProductM

anagement

Male

Chinese

35

Oct-98

SeniorITConsultant

3

L3

Malaysian

Management

BusSupp

&Comm

Male

Chinese

32

Mar-01

Manage

r

4

L4

Malaysian

Management

NetworkO

perations

Male

Eurasian

31

Jun-98

ITEngineer

5

L5

Malaysian

Management

SystemOperations

Male

Chinese

34

Nov-00

AssistM

anager

6

L6

Malaysian

Management

Corporate

Sales

Male

Chinese

33

Jul-97

ITEngineer

7

L7

Malaysian

Management

Corporate

Female

Chinese

32

Sep-04

AssistM

anager

8

L8

Malaysian

Management

Customer

Relations

Male

Chinese

31

Aug-04

AssistM

anager

9

L9

Malaysian

Management

DataCenter

Male

Chinese

31

Dec-97

ITEngineer

10

L10

Malaysian

Management

IPBackbo

neOprns

Male

Chinese

30

Oct-99

ITEngineer

11

L11

Malaysian

Management

ProductM

anagement

Female

Chinese

32

Aug-98

ITEngineer

12

L12

Malaysian

Management

SystemOperations

Male

Chinese

30

Apr-99

ITEngineer

13

L13

Malaysian

Executive

IPBackbo

neOprns

Male

Indian

33

Jun-01

ITEngineer

14

L14

Malaysian

Executive

BusSupp

&Comm

Male

Chinese

27

Nov-00

ITEngineer

15

L15

Malaysian

Executive

DataCenter

Male

Indian

28

Apr-05

ITEngineer

16

L16

Malaysian

Executive

DataCenter

Male

Chinese

28

Nov-04

ITEngineer

17

L17

Malaysian

Executive

ProductM

anagement

Female

Chinese

30

Aug-00

ITEngineer

18

L18

Malaysian

Executive

ProjectManagement

Male

Chinese

36

Jul-01

ITEngineer

19

L19

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Chinese

28

Nov-05

ITEngineer

20

L20

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Indian

28

Dec-04

ITEngineer

21

L21

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Female

Chinese

24

Sep-04

ITEngineer

22

L22

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Malay

27

Aug-04

ITEngineer

23

L23

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Chinese

30

Nov-03

ITEngineer

24

L24

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Indian

27

Nov-03

ITEngineer

25

L25

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Chinese

26

Aug-01

ITEngineer

26

L26

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Chinese

29

Oct-00

ITEngineer

27

L27

Malaysian

Executive

DataCenter

Male

Kadazan

26

May-05

NOCEn

gineer

28

L28

Malaysian

Executive

DataCenter

Male

Kadazan

24

Oct-04

NOCEn

gineer

29

L29

Malaysian

Executive

DataCenter

Male

Malay

27

Sep-04

NOCEn

gineer

30

L30

Malaysian

Executive

DataCenter

Male

Chinese

28

Dec-03

NOCEn

gineer

31

L31

Malaysian

Executive

DataCenter

Male

Malay

30

Nov-00

NOCEn

gineer

(continued)


19/24

CCM15,3

238

Table AI.No

Informant

Nation

ality

Stafflevel

Department

Gender

Ethnic

group

Age

Yearjoined

Position

whenjo

ined

32

L32

Malaysian

Executive

Customer

Relations

Female

Malay

27

Jul-05

CustSuppEng

33

L33

Malaysian

Executive

Customer

Relations

Female

Chinese

30

Jun-01

CustSuppEng

34

L34

Malaysian

Executive

Customer

Relations

Female

Malay

29

Aug-00

CustSuppEng

35

L35

Malaysian

Executive

Corporate

Sales

Male

Chinese

32

Nov-00

ITCons

ultant

36

L36

Malaysian

Executive

Corporate

Sales

Male

Chinese

32

Aug-00

ITCons

ultant

37

L37

Malaysian

Executive

Corporate

Sales

Male

Chinese

31

May-01

ITCons

ultant

38

L38

Malaysian

Executive

Corporate

Sales

Female

Chinese

32

May-01

ITCons

ultant

39

L39

Malaysian

Executive

ProductM

anagement

Female

Chinese

30

Dec-03

ITCons

ultant

40

L40

Malaysian

Executive

SystemOperations

Male

Chinese

29

Apr-05

ITCons

ultant

41

L41

Malaysian

Executive

SalesAdm

instration

Female

Chinese

33

Jun-01

ITCons

ultant

42

L42a

Japane

se

Executive

Wholesale

&GIN

Female

Japanese

30

Jul-01

ITEngineer

43

L43

Malaysian

Executive

HR&

Administration

Female

Chinese

23

Aug-05

HROffice

44

L44

Malaysian

Executive

Accounting

Female

Chinese

32

Jun-00

AccountsOfficer

45

L45

Malaysian

Executive

Customer

Relations

Female

Chinese

30

Apr-01

Customer

Administrative

Officer

46

L46

Malaysian

Executive

HR&

Administration

Male

Indian

47

May-01

Security

Officer

47

L47

Malaysian

NonExecutive

HR&

Administration

Female

Malay

33

Jul-98

Administrative

Assistantcum

Receptio

nist

48

L48

Malaysian

NonExecutive

HR&

Administration

Male

Malay

47

Aug-97

Driver

49

L49

Malaysian

NonExecutive

HR&

Administration

Male

Malay

39

Oct-97

Driver

50

L50

Malaysian

NonExecutive

HR&

Administration

Male

Malay

36

Sep-97

Driver

51

L51

Japane

se

Management

PresidentsOffice

Male

Japanese

48

Oct-05

Director

52

L52

Japane

se

Management

Corporate

Male

Japanese

33

Jun-02

Manage

r

53

L53

Japane

se

Executive

Customer

Relations

Male

Japanese

42

Aug-04

Manage

r(c

ontinued)


20/24


23

Table ANo

Length

of service

(Year)

Current

position

Promotion

Methodof

recruitment

Japanese

language

fluency

Experience

ofworking

inJapanese

company

Expe

rience

ofworking

overseas

Qualification

Working

experience

1

5

Senior

Manager

1(2005)

Byagent

None

None

None

Degree

Salesmana

ger

2

6.4

Senior

Manager

2(2001,

2005)

Byagent

None

None

None

Master

Salesmana

ger

3

4.9

Manager

None

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Diploma

ITSystem

Executive

4

7.7

Manager

3(2000,

2002,2004)

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Degree

FirstJob

5

5.2

Manager

1(2004)

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Degree

ITSystem

Executive

6

8.6

Assistant

Manager

2(2003,

2005)

Byagent

None

None

None

Diploma

1.ITSyste

mExecutive

2.ITAnalyst

7

1.3

Assistant

Manager

None

Byapplying

through

companys

website

None

None

None

Diploma

1.Account

Assistant

2.CorporateExecutive

3.PersonalAssistant

8

1.5

Assistant

Manager

None

Byapplying

through

companys

website

None

None

None

Master

1.ITAnalyst

2.ITConsultant

9

8

Assistant

Manager

1(2000)

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Degree

1.Draughtsman

2.SystemEngineer

10

6.3

Assistant

Manager

2(2001,

2004)

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Diploma

1.SystemEngineer

2.ITAnalyst

11

7.6

Assistant

Manager

2(2001,

2005)

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Degree

ITAnalyst

12

6.9

Assistant

Manager

2(2001,

2004)

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Degree

FirstJob

(continued)


21/24

CCM15,3

240

Table AI.No

Length

of service

(Year)

Current

position

Promotion

Methodof

recruitment

Japanese

language

fluency

Experience

ofworking

inJapanese

company

Expe

rience

ofworking

overseas

Qualification

Working

experience

13

4.7

Senior

ITEngineer

1(2005)

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Degree

SystemEngineer

14

5.2

ITEngineer

None

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Degree

FirstJob

15

0.8

ITEngineer

None

Writein

None

None

None

Degree

1.Auditor

2.AdminA

ssistant

3.ITSyste

mSupport

Executive

4.ITEngineer

16

1.2

ITEngineer

None

Byapplying

through

companys

website

None

None

None

Degree

SystemEngineer

17

5.6

ITEngineer

1(2005)

Byreplyingto

advertisement

None

None

None

Degree

ITConsultant

18

4.7

SeniorIT

Engineer

2(2002,

2004)

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Diploma

1.SystemEngineer

2.ITSyste

mSupport

Executive

19

0.2

ITEngineer

None

Byapplying

through

companys

website

None

None

None

Master

ITEngineer

20

1.1

ITEngineer

None

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Degree

1.SystemEngineer

2.ITConsultant

21

1.4

ITEngineer

None

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Degree

ITEngineer

22

1.5

ITEngineer

None

Callin

Fluent

conversation

Yes,

2years

None

Degree

R&Deng

ineer

(continued)


22/24


24

Table ANo

Length

of service

(Year)

Current

position

Promotion

Methodof

recruitment

Japanese

language

fluency

Experience

ofworking

inJapanese

company

Expe

rience

ofworking

overs

eas

Qualification

Working

experience

23

2.1

ITEngineer

None

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Diploma

1.SystemEngineer

2.ITConsultant

24

2.1

ITEngineer

None

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Diploma

1.ITSyste

mSupport

Executive

2.SystemEngineer

25

4.5

ITEngineerI

1(2004)

Byapplying

through

companys

website

None

None

None

Degree

FirstJob

26

5.3

ITEngineerI

1(2005)

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Degree

FirstJob

27

0.8

NOCEnginee

r

None

Byapplying

through

companys

website

None

None

None

Diploma

ITEngineer

28

1.3

NOCEnginee

r

None

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Degree

SystemEngineer

29

1.4

NOCEnginee

r

None

Writein

None

None

None

Degree

SystemEngineer

30

2

NOCEnginee

r

None

Byapplying

through

companys

website

None

None

None

Diploma

ITEngineer

31

5.2

NOCEnginee

r

None

Bypersonal

contact

None

None

None

Diploma

SystemEngineer

32

0.6

CustSupp

Eng

None

Through

ABCMSC

CareerFair

inTokyo

Near

native

fluency

Yes,

3years

Yes,3yea

rs

inNHK,

Japan

Degree

Broadcaster/Translator

(continued)


23/24


24/24


24

Table ANo

Length

of service

(Year)

Current

position

Promotion

Methodof

recruitment

Japanese

language

fluency

Experience

ofworking

inJapanese

company

Experience

ofworking

overseas

Qualification

Working

experience

45

4.9

Customer

Administrative

Officer

None

Byreplying

toadvertisement

None

None

None

Certificate

1.Purchaser

2.AccountsAssistant

46

4.8

SecurityOfficer

None

Byagent

None

Yes,

1year

Yes,1yearin

Indonesia

and2years

inCambodia

OLevel

1.RoyalM

alaysia

Airforce

2.Technician

3.ChiefSe

curityOfficer

4.MainCo

ntractor

47

7.6

Administrative

Assistantcum

Receptionist

None

Byagent

None

None

None

Diploma

Secretaryinlegal

firmfor4

years

48

8.5

Driver

None

Byagent

None

None

None

JuniorHigh

School

1.OfficeA

ssistant

2.Driver

49

8.3

Driver

None

Byagent

None

None

None

OLevel

Driver

50

8.4

Driver

None

Byagent

None

None

None

OLevel

Driver

51

0.2

Director

None

Transferfrom

Headquarter

Native

Yes,ABC

Headquarter

Firstexpe

rience

Degree

Global

Sales

52

3.7

Senior

Manager

1(2003)

Transferfrom

Headquarter

Native

Yes,ABC

Headquarter

Firstexpe

rience

Degree

Administrative

Executive

53

1.5

Senior

Manager

1(2005)

Transferfrom

Headquarter

Native

Yes,ABC

Headquarter

3yearsin

Philippines

Degree

GlobalNetwork

SystemEn

gineer

Notes:aEmployeeL42wasrecruitedinMalaysia;BusSupp&Comm

BusinessSupportandComm

unication;IPBackboneOprns

Inte

rnetProvider

BackboneOperations;Wholesale&GIN

WholesaleandGloba

lIntegrationNetwork;HR&Administration

HumanResourceandAdministration;

CustSuppEng

CustomerSupportEngineer

perceptia malayesienilor

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