In a conversation between philosopher Uchida Tatsuru (内田樹) and Iwao Shunpei (岩尾俊兵), an associate professor at Keio University, the strengths of Japanese companies’ management thinking and the challenges facing top-down organizations were discussed.
An excerpt from a conversation questioning whether methods that have succeeded overseas should be adopted in Japan was presented based on the book *Management Thinking as a Weapon*. The conversation focused on the strengths of Japanese companies and management philosophy, presenting the view that management should place greater emphasis on people as a community.
The conversation expressed the view that management should be understood not simply as the pursuit of profit, but as a community in which people work together, and criticized the trend in modern management studies of turning organizations into tools focused on numbers. It emphasized the perspective of a management scholar regarded as heterodox and discussed the challenges facing the current system.
The view was shared that Japan’s decline stems from errors in constructing its organizational theory, and it was pointed out that top-down organizational management is problematic. As a specific example, the way Hyogo Prefecture Governor Saito Motohiko (齋藤元彦), who was re-elected in November 2024, runs his organization was discussed.
The conversation indicated the need to reconsider the view of management as merely a capitalist tool, suggesting the need for new management thinking that places importance not only on money, but also on culture and the nature of communities.