THE THIRD CONFERENCE ON: THE BRIDGE BETWEEN THE NETHERLANDS AND
JAPAN IN CULTURE AND ECONOMY
September 17, 1993
Tilburg, The Netherlands

On the occasion of the Japanese week in Tilburg the Japanese
Chamber of Commerce in The Netherlands organized a one-day
symposium. The meeting was chaired by Mr. N. Takei, director of
Yokogawa Europe BV, who stated in his opening speech that there
are big differences between Japan and Europe in social customs,
religion, language, and food but, when management is concerned
the differences evaporate into thin air.
Professor J. Stam, head of the Department of Modern Japanese
Studies of the Erasmus University (Rotterdam), stated that the
Japanese companies have been so successful because of their
strong identity, flexibility, and the involvement of workers in
the companies. According to Stam, employers and employees see
themselves as partners in business. This kind of "we"-feeling is
absent in The Netherlands and causes problems between the
Japanese management of Japanese companies in The Netherlands and
their Dutch workers.  
H. Bertsch (M.A.), talked about the effectiveness of means of
production in Europe, America, and Japan. He pointed out that the
Japanese have the most effective means of production in terms of
time, e.g. in Japan it takes 16 hours to build a car, in America
25 hours and in Europe 36. However, he did not allude to the
social consequences of rapid production. It became clear that it
would take many more hours to bridge the gap between The
Netherlands and Japan, even in terms of management. The fourth
such conference will take place next year, but the city has not
yet been chosen by the organizers.
(Source: Brabants Nieuwsblad, September 18, 1993)