2011年11月14日
The Olympus Scandal
Thanks for all your comments and suggestions about the book title. I'm not sure what I will decide to do, but I will probably just go with something that sounds like a translation of the English title.
This week's topic is the Olympus scandal. I'm sure you have all read about it or seen it on the news. I was very sad when I heard about it because I really like that company. My first SLR camera was an Olympus OM-10 that I bought when I was 14 years old with money from my part-time job on a farm, and I have had Olympus cameras ever since.
When the story first broke, I didn't really understand what was going on. Actually, I don't think anyone did. I remember reading that the company had fired their British CEO because he "didn't understand Japanese business culture and the Japanese way of doing things." It now turns out that what that basically meant was "because he refused to cooperate with our illegal activities"!
Having lived in Japan for a long time, I know that there is a tendency here to hide problems or brush them under the carpet rather than deal with them directly. It seems to be a part of the culture of wanting to avoid conflict and maintain harmony. I believe there is even a proverb for it - 臭い物にふたをかける - is that right?. Anyway, I have seen examples in all the universities I have worked at. Even so, I was amazed to hear that a global company like Olympus was doing this kind of thing on such a big scale. Is it really possible that they could have done these things without the knowledge of their accountants?
Anyway, I would love to know what you all thing about this story. Were you surprised, or do you think that this kind of thing is common in Japanese companies? Is it really "the Japanese way" as the boss of the company claimed, or was that just an excuse?
Look forward to reading your comments.
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Hi David and everyone,
Olympus scandal has been a big issue, and I have read about it, and yet I don't think I have understood it well. It's very difficult to talk about it even in Japanese...Business topics are not my forte! (I guess I've been repeating the same excuses.) Well... I'd like to write something later.
By the way, it would be more natural to say, "臭い物にふたをする."
See you later,
Anne
- Anne
- 2011年11月15日 09:16
Hi everyone,
“Sweep-things-under-the-carpet” culture is everywhere to a certain extent, but how could a worldwide company do a thing like that on such a big scale and for such a long time? What have the board members been doing? What are the outside board members for the company?
Olympus is a manufacturer famous for its excellent digital cameras, voice recorders, endoscopes, and so on. The company boasts the lion’s share (75%, if I remember correctly) of the world market in endoscopes. I am so sorry for the company’s excellent engineers!
Jazmín
- Jazmín
- 2011年11月15日 17:22
Hi David and everyone,
Of course, I've heard about Okympus scandal on the news but I didn't much notice about it. So I need to study about it. I read some articles.
I think what the British CEO did was a very brave thing. As Jazmin said, a tendency to cover up the scandal is everywhere to a certain extent but this incident might happened because of the Japanese culture of wanting to avoid conflict and maintain harmony. "Old habits die hard." This tendency was mitigated but it still exist. Maybe this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Fumie
- Fumie
- 2011年11月16日 05:23
What a fun pattern! It’s great to hear from you and see what you’ve sent up to. All of the projects look great! You make it so simple to this. Thanks
- abercrombie and fitch deutschland
- 2011年11月16日 12:17
Hi David and everyone,
Sorry. When it comes to this kind of topic, I am a real dunce.:( I don't quite follow the Olympus scandal. If you find some simple and easy explanations on that, please let me know. Hopefully, see you soon.
- tsuneko
- 2011年11月16日 13:41
Hi David and everyone,
There have been these kinds of scandals at Enron,Lehman Brothers,Citibank's scandal and most recently Daio Paper, but it's surprising why such a huge amount of losses have been covered up for many years. It's strange why these frauds have been uncovered. Have no board members questioned to the management?
I think what is going on at Olympus is also going on at some other Japanese companies even though the amount of losses might be different because the economic bubble burst and economy has stagnated. Having said that, I'm not sure this kind of thing happen only in Japan.
When this kind of scandal is disclosed, it is often the case that there is a whistle-blower, but most cases are employees, not the boss of the company.
One thing for sure is that the products they make are still good.
Bye for now,
Anne
- 匿名
- 2011年11月16日 23:47
Hi Anne,
Yes, you have a point. You’ve heard of the Cayman Islands in some news about money laundering or book cooking cases, haven’t you?
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and one of the tax haven states located in the Caribbean Sea. Because there is no income tax, capital gains tax or corporation tax there, it is said that the system is often a convenient recipes for companies to cook the books.
The Olympus case might be just a tip of the iceberg?
Jazmín
- Jazmín
- 2011年11月17日 12:29
Hi Jazmin,
Yes,I have.
Cayman Islands themselves look nice to visit, but apart from that, you might often hear the name whenever these kinds of scandals such as money laundering are disclosed.
Anne
- Anne
- 2011年11月17日 14:32
I don't remember any scandals regarding Citibank falsifying its loss.
- S
- 2011年11月17日 15:35
Hi S,
Oh, it's not Citibank but CitiGroup, and different type of scandal. I should not have put on the same table. Thank you for reminding me.
Anne
- Anne
- 2011年11月17日 18:21
Hi David,
This topic is tough for me. I bet you know that this kind of topic is not my thing;( Anyway, I have seen this scandal on the news lately, so I might be able to write a comment on it. I can just say that I was surprised when I learnt this news at the first time.
It's getting to be crowded here(I am on a train) so I am off to go.
Have a good day.
amo