How Matsushita Electric and Sony Manage Global R&D: A long tradition of conducting R&D overseas has helped these Japanese companies adapt to changing competitive conditions

Research Technology Management

Volumn 42, Issue 2, 1999, Pages 41-52

  Arimura, Sadanori ^a  

^a YAMAGUCHI UNIVERSITY   (Japan)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

COMPETITION; ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL EFFECTS; INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS; SUPERVISORY PERSONNEL; TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER;

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES;

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT;

EID: 0033097828     PISSN: 08956308     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/08956308.1999.11671272     Document Type: Article

References (35)

1. Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry, International Business Affairs Division of Industrial Policy Bureau, Enterprise Statistics Division of Research and Statistics Department. Dai Roku Kai Kaigai Jigyôkatsudo Kihon Chôsa Hokoku (Highlights of the 6th basic survey of overseas business activities of Japanese companies-definite report-. Japanese edition). Tokyo: Japanese Ministry of International and Trading, 1997, p. 40.
2. Japanese Science and Technology Agency. Minkan-kigyo no Kenkyû-Katsudô ni kansuru Chôsa-Hokoku (Report on the survey of the R&D activities by Japanese private companies. Japanese edition). Tokyo: Printing Bureau of Japanese Ministry of Finance, 1996, p. 19.
3. Clayton, Ross. "A Convergent Approach to R&D Planning and Project Selection." Research Management, September 1971, pp. 68-74.
4. EIRMA. "Top-Down and Bottom-Up Approaches to Project Selection." Research Management, March 1978, pp. 22-24.
5. Lovelace, Robert F. "R&D Planning Techniques." R&D Management, October 1987, pp. 241-251.
6. Fischer, William A., and Behrman, Jack N. "The Coordination of Foreign R&D Activities by Transnational Corporations." Journal of International Business Studies, Winter 1979, pp. 28-35.
7. Ronstadt, Robert C. "International R&D: The Establishment and Evolution of Research and Development Abroad by Seven U.S. Multinationals." Journal of International Business Studies, Spring-Summer 1978, pp. 7-24.
8. Granstrand, Ove and Fernlund, Ingemar. "Coordination of Multinational R&D: A Swedish Case Study." R&D Management, October 1978, pp. 1-7.
9. Håkanson, Lars and Zander, Udo. "International Management of R&D: The Swedish Experience." R&D Management, July 1988, pp. 217-226.
10. "Matsushita Electric, Kaigai no Kenkyùsha Zoin (Matsushita Electric increases its overseas R&D personnel. Japanese edition)." The Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun, 25 November 1997, p. 27.
11. "Global Kigyô e Kassô, Matsushita-Denki and Matsushita-Denbô no Gappei (Towards a global company: merger of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. and Matsushita Electric Trading Co., Japanese edition)." The Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun, 1 April 1988, p. 13.
12. "Matsushita, Tyakutyaku to Global Senryaku Taisei Saihen, Koka no Hodowa (Matsushita Electric's reorganization of the global strategy and structure: what is the effect? Japanese edition)." The Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun, 13 October 1988, p. 12.
13. Kansai Productivity Center. "Panasonic Europe Ltd." Ôsyû/Keieigenchika · Kigyôshimin/Senryaku-Tyôsadan Hôkokusho (Report on the survey of localization and corporate-citizenship in the EU. Japanese edition). Osaka: Kansai Productivity Center, 1992, pp. 60-64.
14. "Genchishudo no Unei ni, Matsushita no America Kenkyukaihatsu-Kogaisya (Matsushita Electric introduces a self-sustained management approach into its American overseas labs. Japanese edition)." The Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun, 14 January 1991, p. 27.
15. In this reorganization, two overseas labs under the control of regional headquarters were incorporated as subsidiaries of Matsushita Electric (Panasonic Singapore Laboratories Pte. Ltd. and Panasonic European Laboratories GmbH in Table 2), and the executive and the office had the authority and responsibility for managing them (see the note for Table 2).
16. The number of overseas R&D personnel is based on the paper by Shigeru, Yokono (25).
17. Sony Corporation. Genryu (History of Sony Corporation. Japanese edition). Tokyo: Sony Corporation, 1986, p. 214.
18. "Sony of America, Hikinuki Gassen Tenkai (Sony of America head-hunts and employs local R&D personnel. Japanese edition)." The Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun, 8 January 1982, p. 19.
19. "Sony of America, Kenkyusho Setsuritsu (Sony of America establishes its research laboratory. Japanese edition)." The Nihon Keizai Shimbun, 4 November 1981, p. 1.
20. "Sony ga Ômono Sukauto (Sony recruits a top manager from a local company. Japanese edition)." The Nihon Keizai Shimbun, 25 August 1982, p. 7.
21. "Sony wa Hontôni Tachinaottaka (Has Sony recovered? Japanese edition)." Weekly Diamond, 18 June 1988, p. 84.
22. "Denki-Gyôkai, Kaigai e Hashiru (Japanese electric industry internationalizes. Japanese edition)." The Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun, 11 January 1978, p. 4.
23. According to Mr. Iwaki who was Sony's vice president at that time, the company's Japanese business divisions did not assume managerial responsibility for overseas sales and inventory until 1982. This responsibility had been entirely delegated to the foreign sales subsidiaries, and the Japanese division only had to produce and export its products on the basis of a request from foreign sales subsidiaries (see Ref. 24 for details). Because of such a loose control system and other reasons, for example, failure of marketing strategy, recession and so on, Sony had massive unsold inventory at its foreign sales subsidiaries in 1982. Consequently, the company's profitability also declined drastically. At that time, this incident was called "82 year's shock" or "Sony shock".
24. Hanada, Mitsuyo. "4 Kyoku Taisei o Koeni World Headquarters Koso (Interview research on Sony's world headquarters. Japanese edition)." Diamond Harvard Business, June-July 1991, pp. 18-27.
25. Shigeru, Yokono, "Globalization of Research and Development: A Case Study." Paper read at Pan-Pacific Conference XIII, 30 May 1996, at Chiba, Japan. Mimeographed. Mr. Yokono was a general manager of R&D strategic planning and coordination from 1988 to 1993 in Sony's Corporate Research lab, and he contributed to the company's globalization of R&D.
26. Masahiko. Morizono, "Kokusaikan no Bungyô de Sekai ni Tsûyô suru System o Tsukuru (Produce a global system by international division of labor. Japanese edition)." Nikkei Electronics, 11 January 1988, p. 87. Mr. Morizono was Sony's vice president.
27. The author's interview with SRF Secretariat, Corporate R&D Strategy Department of Sony Corporation.
28. Hiroo, Takahasi. Kenkyû-Kaihatsu Kokusaika no Jissai (The practice of internationalization of R&D. Japanese edition). Tokyo: Chuokeizai-sha, Inc., 1996, p. 111.
29. Bartlett, Christopher A., and Ghoshal, Sumantra. Managing across Borders, the Transnational Solution. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1989.
30. De Meyer, Arnoud. "Management of an International Network of Industrial R&D Laboratories." R&D Management, April 1993, pp. 109-119.
31. Howells, Jeremy R. "Going Global: The Use of ICT Networks in Research and Development." Research Policy, March 1995, pp. 169-184.
32. De Meyer, Arnoud. "Tech Talk: How Managers Are Stimulating Global R&D Communication." Sloan Management Review, Spring 1991, pp. 49-58.
33. McDonough III, Edward F., and Kahn, Kenneth B. "Using 'Hard' and 'Soft' Technologies for Global New Product Development." R&D Management, July 1996, pp. 241-251.
34. According to the Corporate R&D Strategy Department of Sony Corporation, in addition to the Sony Research Forum, Sony has also held the "Sony Technology Exchange Fair" once a year in Japan since 1973. Of course, the company's overseas labs as well as Japanese labs and divisions can participate in this fair. The Sony Research Forum aims to exchange output of basic research, while the Sony Technology Exchange Fair focuses on exchanging and commercializing output of development.
35. The author's interview with the Public Relations Center of Sony Corporation.