The Lee Kong Chian School of Business

Academic Year 2022/23

Term 2

MGMT 301 BUSINESS STUDY MISSION TO TOKYO/KANSAI

Instructor: Toru Yoshikawa
Title: Professor of Strategic Management
Tel: 6828 0756
Email: toru@smu.edu.sg
Office: LKCSB #5020

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This business study mission aims to expose students to globalization, innovation, and transformation in Japanese firms
and in Japanese business. Japanese firms are known for their innovations in product development services. At the
same time, Japanese firms are also facing rising pressure to globalize and become even more innovative in their
businesses due to the aging and shrinking domestic population as well as rising competition. Students will learn about
how Japanese firms are coping with such pressures by visiting companies, both traditional and venture, in Tokyo and
Kansai (Kyoto and Osaka). We will also visit some facilities that showcase Japanese culture.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Demonstrate a deep understanding of how the national environment fosters innovation and creativity in
business
• Identify key sources of innovation and creativity for/in Japanese firms and Japanese business
• Learn how Japanese firms are trying to globalize their businesses
• Compare the practices and key elements of the national environment for innovation, creativity, and
globalization among different countries
• Discuss what Singaporean firms can learn from the Japanese practices and experiences

DESTINATIONS AND DURATION

• Tokyo and Kansai area, Japan
• 7 May to 14 May 2023

PRE-REQUISITE/ CO-REQUISITE/ MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE COURSE(S)

Please refer to the Course Catalogue on OASIS for the most updated list of pre-requisites / co-requisites for this
particular course. Do note that if this course has a co-requisite, it means that the course has to be taken together
with another course. Dropping one course during BOSS bidding would result in both courses being dropped at the
same time.

ASSESSMENT METHODS
• Class participation 15%
• Group presentations in class 15%
• Learning journal 70%
Attendance in class prior to the trip is compulsory.
This course is graded upon Pass/Fail.

Faculty have been instructed not to reuse questions verbatim from past year papers or published test banks, for the
graded continuous assessments and examinations in this course.

Class participation: 15%

Students are expected to actively participate in class discussions.
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Group presentations: 15%
Students will form a group (4-5 students) to present on a given topic. A presentation will be on a specific topic
related to business environment. The following are the topics on business environment for your presentation:
- Business and commerce in Japan’s history; how has business evolved in Japan in the past 1000 years
- Post-war socio-cultural environment and its evolution in Japan for business
- Japanese business environment and its impact on globalization
- Japanese business environment and its impact on innovation
- Role of government in innovation, creativity, and globalization in Japanese business
- Japanese business practices: HR, finance, interfirm relations

Learning journal: 70%

Each student is required to write and submit a learning journal. The journal should include what each student learn
from his/her visit to companies, other facilities as well as his/her observations in general. It would be ideal take a
perspective comparing Singapore and Japan.

INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS AND EXPECTATIONS

This BSM seeks to attract students who:
- are eager to learn about how innovative and creative firms operate
- are interested in Japanese business and the Japanese business environment
- are willing to work in teams on projects

TRAVEL PAYMENTS
Costs for this BSM are expected to be approximately S$3,400 (please note that the final costs are subject to
change due to high uncertainty in airfare and market fluctuations). This amount includes airfare, hotel
accommodations, land transport, bilingual guide, and facility entry fees.

Deposit: Students selected for the BSM will be asked for a non-refundable deposit of S$1,000 as evidence of their
confirmation within 2 days after the selection. A deposit is non-refundable once paid (the deposit will be returned if
the trip is cancelled).

Itinerary: A tentative itinerary will be provided later. The companies we will be visiting will be confirmed closer to
the dates of the trip.

In case of travel cancellation: We will plan a series of guest speaker seminars and company visits in Singapore as
alternative plans.

UNIVERSITY POLICIES

Academic Integrity
All acts of academic dishonesty (including, but not limited to, plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, facilitation of acts of
academic dishonesty by others, unauthorized possession of exam questions, or tampering with the academic work of
other students) are serious offences.

All work (whether oral or written) submitted for purposes of assessment must be the student’s own work. Penalties
for violation of the policy range from zero marks for the component assessment to expulsion, depending on the
nature of the offense.

When in doubt, students should consult the instructors of the course. Details on the SMU Code of Academic
Integrity may be accessed at https://oasis.smu.edu.sg/Pages/DOS-WKLSWC/UCSC.aspx.

Copyright Notice
Please note that all course materials are meant for personal use only, namely, for the purposes of teaching, studying
and research. You are strictly not permitted to make copies of or print additional copies or distribute such copies of
the course materials or any parts thereof, for commercial gain or exchange.

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For the full copyright notice, please visit: https://smu.sg/Copyright-notice or OASIS -> CAMPUS LIFE & EXCHANGE ->
CONDUCT & DISCIPLINE -> UNIVERSITY COUNCIL OF STUDENT DISCIPLINE

Accessibility
SMU strives to make learning experiences accessible for all. If you anticipate or experience physical or academic
barriers due to disability, please let me know immediately. You are also welcome to contact the university's disability
services team if you have questions or concerns about academic provisions: included@smu.edu.sg. Please be aware
that the accessible tables in our seminar room should remain available for students who require them.

Digital Readiness for Teaching and Learning (DRTL)

As part of emergency preparedness, instructors may conduct lessons online via the Zoom platform during the term,
to prepare students for online learning. During an actual emergency, students will be notified to access the Zoom
platform for their online lessons. The class schedule will mirror the current face-to-face class timetable unless
otherwise stated.

TEACHING ASSISTANT
Megan Elaina CHEAH Kit Hann <megancheah.2019@business.smu.edu.sg>

CLASS SCHEDULE
There will be 5 class sessions in Term 2, 2022-2023. The class schedule will be announced later.

Tentative Class Schedule

Guest speakers will be invited for some of our sessions.

Contents
Session 1 Course introduction and team project assignment; Brief lecture on Japan
Session 2 Business and commerce in Japan’s history; Post-war socio-cultural environment
Session 3 Japanese business environment and its impact on globalization; Japanese business
environment and its impact on innovation
Session 4 Role of government in innovation, creativity, and globalization; Japanese business practices:
HR, finance, interfirm relations
Session 5 Company overview; Wrap-up