"something you should not do" in Japanese office

When many foreigners work in Japanese offices for the first time, they may be wondering if there is any taboo. Here are some things you shouldn't do in a Japanese office. Actually, there are not many taboos when working in a Japanese office as much as overseas. It is because of the lack of religion-based discipline and the national character that is relatively tolerant of others.

❶Power harassment and sexual harassment

Power harassment and sexual harassment have been cracked down in Japan these days. You should be careful enough. If you use it without understanding Japanese, it may cause trouble with simple words.

❷Overly patronize certain employees

The Japanese are a country with a strong sense of equality. It is good that everyone is treated equally. Therefore, it is not interesting for Japanese people to communicate and invite only high-performing employees to eat. Try to treat them equally as much as possible.

❸Actions should be reported sequentially

The Japanese have the word ”Hourensou（ほうれんそう　報・連・相）”. This is a collocation of reporting, contact and consultation.

The Japanese way of working is to not divide the work into small pieces relatively one by one. Usually, multiple people work on one job. Therefore, as much as possible, you should communicate like "I'm going to company A now." "I'll be returning directly from company A." "I'll be off tomorrow." "I'll submit the report by tomorrow."