Nemawashi: the roots of Japanese work culture

The Asia Media Centre recently spoke to Rugby World Cup 2022 tournament director Michelle Hooper about her experiences working in Asia and the lessons she was bringing to the organisation of the upcoming cup. Here, she talks about the work culture she found in Japan and one particular concept - nemawashi.

Michelle Hooper found herself thrown in the deep end of nemawashi when she took a position as team services lead for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.  

“The working environment, it's incredibly different in Japan. I think being female, being a Westerner and being in a leadership role is also very, very different,” she says.  

Her role involved looking after the needs of each team, whether that was helping hotels cater to athletes’ diets, or organising cultural experiences for team members. In the lead-up to the games in 2019, Hooper worked closely with the Japanese organising committee, spending part of her time working remotely from New Zealand and part of her time in Japan.   

Rugby World Cup 2022 tournament director Michelle Hooper. Image: Supplied

One of her big challenges – and wins - was adapting to the differences in work culture, particularly when it came to the concept of nemawashi.  

“Nemawashi is incredibly valuable and very, very important,” Hooper says. 

The literal translation of the term is ‘to work around the roots’ and relates back to the world of Japanese gardening: when transplanting trees, one method is to uncover the roots with care, giving each part the attention it needs to survive and flourish when it’s moved. 

It’s often compared to the Western ideas of ‘consensus building’ or testing the waters before moving ahead – although these aren’t quite direct parallels. 

Nemawashi is semi-formal and sequential as a process. Imagine there’s a big meeting coming up at work, or a milestone project – anything involving big decisions. In the lead up to that, the practice of nemawashi usually involves one-on-one, or small group conversations to gauge what people are thinking, gather feedback and bring people together to a solution before the formal decision-making begins. 

Nemawashi is a part of Japanese business culture, similar to - but not an exact parallel of - consensus building. Photo by Timo Volz (https://unsplash.com/@magict1911?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText) on Unsplash (https://unsplash.com/s/photos/business-japan?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText)

Toyota uses this system across its workplaces worldwide as the first step in decision-making processes, according to Toyota UK Magazine. Employees are consulted during the decision-making process so that changes can be carried out with the consent of all involved. 

One thing Hooper did find in her experience with nemawashi, is how her background of a Western working way, could complement the process.

“What I worked out with nemawashi is that I would cut to the chase and ask the question where the Japanese couldn't do that in the meetings, but then they would go away and conduct nemawashi,” she says. 

"I would be respectful and say ‘you guys go away, and then come back to me and tell me how that solved the problem.’  You know that once the decisions made, everyone's bought into it,” Hooper says.  

“Number one for me was understanding the culture, understanding how the Japanese work, and then working with them in the way that they want to be worked with.” 

- Asia Media Centre