Nemawashi: A Japanese Business Custom

For any business to be a success, one of the key tactics is the free exchange of ideas that can provide improvement. Nemawashi (根回し) is a Japanese process being implemented by numerous companies to arrive at a consensus. It is a subtle alternative approach to the Western-style business meeting which can publicly display a clash of opinions.

In English, the term “nemawashi” means “going around the roots.” It comes from the word “ne (根)”, which means “root” and “mawasu (回す)” which means “ to go around (something)”.  The term originally and literally meant the act of digging around the roots of a tree so that it could be transplanted.

Nemawashi consists of a conversation, either in small key groups, or one-on-one, to minimize the show of public conflicts. It can begin with someone who has a proposal he wants to share, and who will then seek out the decision-makers in the company to get their opinion. This could be tricky since in a Japanese company, there are several people that take into account the decision-making process that will impact a business. There could be no specific person whose voice weighs more than the others.

For the nemawashi strategy to work, there must be a number of nemawashi meetings with small groups of people until all concerns have been covered, and core aspects have been established.

Nemawashi meetings can either be formal or informal. One can either bring up a conversation in an elevator, or during lunch, or in a social gathering. It can also have been planned beforehand to discuss a certain agenda.

The main goal of nemawashi is to give one’s point of view regarding a proposal or idea, and to get feedback and suggestions from people that you are doing the nemawashi with. Based on the feedback gathered, you can then further refine your proposal or no longer pursue it based on the gathered consensus.

You can learn more about the practice of nemawashi by attending KCP International’s 4-week Summer course on Business.  It aims to help students who are interested in developing Japanese business acumen to further their careers.  To learn more this new course, visit our KCP website.