Overview
Facing a decrease in potential growth due to the aging of the population coupled with a low birthrate, the Japanese economy has slipped into a downward spiral of continued shrinking. We should maintain and increase the per-capita national income even amidst the population decline and realize a society in which a matured and enriched lifestyle can be enjoyed. The economy should shift to creating and expanding value added.
In order to increase their international competitiveness, Japanese businesses must rid themselves of the inward-looking attitude based on a rather homogeneous Japanese society which is typical of Japanese organizations. By increasing the transparency of their operations and evaluations and reviewing their business culture and labor practices, companies can recruit high quality personnel domestically and abroad irrespective of gender, age, and nationality.
Some of the driving powers for value creation are knowledge and experiences in different fields, respect for different values, and an increase in the labor force participation. We should create a society in which more people participate in value creation and enjoy working in accordance with their respective surroundings and abilities through diversification.
The project aims to clarify the impact of women's participation and leadership on economic growth and business competitiveness. We address this issue from the following two directions. First, using an econometric approach, we will clarify the impact of women's participation and leadership on firms' performance or productivity. Second, using a case study approach, we will interview the personnel division of companies on their efforts to recruit high quality personnel by taking full advantage of women's ability and promoting diversity and work-life balance management.
September 12, 2012 - March 31, 2014
Major Research Results
2014
RIETI Discussion Papers
- 14-J-055
"Does Board Diversity Influence Firms' Innovative Activity? Evidence from the firm-level micro data in Japan" (INUI Tomohiko, NAKAMURO Makiko, EDAMURA Kazuma and OZAWA Junko) - 14-J-054
"Corporate Disclosure of Non-financial Information and Ownership by Foreign Shareholders" (KODAMA Naomi and TAKAMURA Shizuka) - 14-J-042
"Increasing Organizational Performance through Diversity and Organizational Climate Initiatives: What works, what doesn't" (TANIGUCHI Mami) - 14-J-032
"The Potential for Women's Career Development through Overseas Employment and Accumulation of Management Know-How" (USHIO Naomi and SHIMURA Kotaro) - 14-J-031
"Organizational Informatization and Promoting the Active Participation of Women in the Workplace" (USHIO Naomi and SHIMURA Kotaro) - 14-J-030
"An Introduction to Affirmative Action Policies in Korea: Consequences and implications for Japan" (OSAWA Machiko and KIM Myoung Jung) - 14-J-029
"Does Gender Diversity in Management Contribute to Profitability, Productivity, and the AA system in China and Korea?" (ISHIZUKA Hiromi)
2013
RIETI Discussion Papers
- 14-J-017
"Workplace Environment and Female Employment: An empirical analysis using firm panel data" (HIGUCHI Yoshio and YAMAMOTO Isamu) - 14-J-016
"Female Employment and Firm Performance: An empirical analysis using firm panel data" (HIGUCHI Yoshio and YAMAMOTO Isamu) - 14-J-015
"Do Women-owned Start-ups Have a Lower Probability of Obtaining Loans? An empirical analysis using panel data from Japan" (HIGUCHI Yoshio and KODAMA Naomi) - 14-J-010
"Real Conditions and Themes of Gender Diversity in Management in Japan, China, and South Korea: 605 results from the 'Corporate Survey of Human Resource Utilization (China and Korea)'" (ISHIZUKA Hiromi)
