Is the customer a false god? Part III: my struggle at the frontline of Japanese Enterprise IT.(IT industry)

From: Japan Inc. | Date: March 1, 2008| Author: Mok, James | Copyright information

The ancient religion of Shinto regards all natural objects and exceptional creatures as kami or "Gods." Visitors to Japan can easily sample a taste of kami-sama treatment by indulging themselves in the high level of customer service in tasteful restaurants, cozy ryokans or in engaging with the eye-dazzling selection of consumer goods. However, the same 'Customer-is-kami-sama' attitude in the IT services industry has worked adversely by accounting for more inefficiency than hospital...

Related newspaper, magazine, and journal articles from HighBeam Research

Tom Ricks's Inbox
The Washington Post ; Some observers have taken a page from urban planning theory to describe Iraq as a "wicked problem" -- a term coined to describe complex and divisive issues, such as building a new highway through a city or finding a location for a large homeless shelter. Here is one expert's explanation of the
The web of democracy: Roy Madron and John Jopling bring together democracy and scientific ideas about how systems work.(Networks)
New Internationalist ; ... of organization--long after tribes, hierarchies and markets-to come into its own to redefine societies.' This may well be bad news for autocrats. As Stephen Jones in his book Emergence writes: 'Progressive movements for democratic renewal are uniquely suited ...
The Designful Company
Design Management Review ; In a challenging business environment, there is no substitute for having an innovative and distinctive brand expressed in "experiences that rivet minds and run away with hearts." Marty Neumeier identifies how design drives this reality, embracing not only products and services but also processes,
Dealing with 'Wicked Problems'
RUSI Journal ; This article is about the impact of complex problems on defence planning and thinking. A great deal is heard about the individual impacts of strategic change and technological development from substantial experts in the field, from the customer side, from the scientific perspective and from the
Some Further Thoughts on Addressing 'Wicked Problems'
RUSI Journal ; Jeremy Blackham's recent article* on wicked problems is a welcome piece of fresh conceptual thinking in respect to defence acquisition. If one accepts the validity of wicked problems and the need for a different approach, then one has to ask what sort of characteristics are essential, in our
Getting Caught in Your Underwear.(Brief Article)
School Administrator ; Back in the early '70s, one of us was blessed with a mentor, a fellow born and raised in Oklahoma, who was gifted with an abundant amount of horse sense. His name was Jerry Bell, and he could put into words important lessons about life in a way that everyone could understand. One of his favorite
IRAN ISSUES:PAUL K. VAN RIPER
Congressional Testimony ; ... conversations about the course of that war and the actions of our national leaders. Even as a six year old the gravity of radio news broadcasts was evident to me. As a teenager I followed reporting on the Korean War closely as did my family, friends, and classmates ...
Taming wicked problems: theory and practice; a practical lesson in how to tackle the multi-faceted problems in the workplace. (Article).
The Public Manager ; The Civilian Personnel Flight supports the 49th Fighter Wing of 117-A Stealth fighters at Holloman Air Force Base (AFB) in New Mexico. The staff had been struggling with the problem of managers wanting to reward their civilian employees' good performance by upgrading an employee's position rather
LEADERSHIP BEHAVIORS IN MATRIX ENVIRONMENTS
Project Management Journal ; ... t come there lying. They don't try to hide information. I think it's because of our collective behavior on how we handle bad news." " ... you don't fear information being conveyed to the surprise of the functional organization of the program management organization ...
Think like Peter Senge: applying his laws of systems thinking to identify patterns that shape behavior.
School Administrator ; From a very early age, we have been taught that every cause has an effect. If we do A, then B will occur. However, what we have not been taught to do is see the long-term effects of doing A. What's more, the long-term effects may be quite different from what we intended to have happen. Take, for