Guinea pig - meaning

According to your textbook (p. 77) a guinea pig is a person used for a test. Here is an example of a guinea pig - Mikey in a commercial for Life cereal.
Watch it and see what the test is:

"Let's get Mikey. He won't eat it. He hates everything. Hey Mikey! He likes it!"

Suntory taps Lawson boss for president job

Quickly read the article about a change in the leader at Suntory below from The Japan Times and with a partner, scan the article to find the answers to the 6questions below.
(Scanning means to search quickly to find specific information. It is different from skimreading, which means to quickly read a passage to get the main idea.)

1. Who will become Suntory President?
2. When will he start?
3. Why was he chosen?
4. Why is this choice unusual for suntory?
5. What is the latest (recent) trend for choosing company leaders reported in the article?
6. What is your opinion about this trend?

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/06/24/business/corporate-business/suntory-taps-lawson-boss-president-job/#.U6rk-4kazCQ
Suntory Holdings Ltd. is set to appoint the chairman of convenience store operator Lawson Inc. as its president, the first time someone from outside the founding family.

Takeshi Niinami will step into the role on Oct. 1. By choosing the 55-year-old, Suntory hopes to accelerate its business expansion, sources said.

Niinami “has an international outlook, vigor, and an ability to crisscross the world, and connections,” current chairman and president, 68-year-old Nobutada Saji, told reporters in Tokyo. “I have big hopes for him.” The appointment will be finalized at a board meeting on July 1.

Saji said he chose the Lawson chairman partly because the younger generation of Suntory’s founding family did not have sufficient experience.

Niinami comes from trading house Mitsubishi Corp., which he joined in 1981. As Lawson president, he oversaw impressive results for the convenience store chain. He became Lawson chairman last month.

As a member of the government panel on industrial competitiveness, Niinami is also a member of the government panel on industrial competitiveness. He recently proposed agricultural reform and deregulation. He is expected to leave Lawson soon to prepare for his new job.

The leadership change comes as Suntory aims to roughly double its group sales, which are now ¥4 trillion, by 2020.

Presentation #1 guidelines

The purpose of the presentation is to give you practice making a presentation. The content is important, but it merely requires you gather, choose, and organize your information. There is no indepth research involved. You will be graded mostly on the organization of your talk, your slides and your presentation style. The content (the information) will be considered when deciding your grade, but it will be less important than the other things.
This presentation is 5 minutes max. Keep that in mind as you prepare.
Target date for presentations: July 8

Prepare 4 slides for your presentation. They don't need to be elaborate (fancy). Save time and keep them simple.
Slide #1: title page
Slide #2: introduction and outline
Slide #3: information that will be in your main section (points or pictures)
Slide #4: conclusion

Technical points for your slides
1. suitable sized font - 24 point minimum?
2. keep text to a minimum - too much text on the slide is NG. Points or single words only (no full sentences). Max 3 or 4 lines?
3. check English - spelling and grammar - this is a MUST

Sample overview of  a presentation about a restaurant you like. SAMPLE ONLY
Intro - the name, location and type of restaurant
Outline - 3 points
1. point #1
2. point #2
3. point #3
Main section - explanation about the three points in your outline. Use key words/phrases in a list on your screen
Conclusion - say why you would recommend it and give advice about going there. End the presentation by asking audience for questions.

USE THIS TOPIC FOR YOUR PRESENTATION OR ANOTHER TOPIC, WITH APPROVAL
Sample overview of  a presentation about a product or company you think is successful OR why you like it. 
Intro - the name of the product/company and some background information about it
Outline - 3 features
1. feature #1
1. feature #2
3. feature #3
Main section- explanation about the three points in your outline. Use key words/phrases in a list on your screen
Conclusion - why you would recommend it or buy it again in the future. End the presentation by asking audience for questions.

Presentation style - 
1. Look up at your audience and look around at all of us.
2. Speak loudly and clearly. The projector for the screen is noisy, so make sure to speak loudly enough.
3. Do not speak too quickly. Add longer pauses between phrases and sentences than you think. When you present, you are usually nervous, which makes you speak more quickly. Slow down!
4. Look at us - DO NOT LOOK AT THE SCREEN. You have the screen in front of you and behind you. Do not look at the screen hanging from the ceiling.
5. You may use a sheet of paper, but you must hold it in your hands and not read it continually.
6. Practise! This is a must. You must get comfortable with your materials, with standing and talking, and with using good presentation style.

Notes and vocabulary for Nike article (p. 25)

Achilles' heel - weakness
"Air Jordan running out of air" - the model of shoes called Air Jordan is losing sales (not popular anymore)
Skechers - U.S. chain that sells clothes and shoes cheaply, targeting at teenagers
Nike HQ - Nike Headquarters

Just doing it differently
running buddies - buddies are friends
core attributes - main strengths
pitch (v.) - appeal to do something (when you are taling about marketing/business)

How to design for women
stay in step with - keep up with
turnoff - negative factor

Final paragraph - It is interesting that Hoke didn't care so much about the number of people who went to these new Nike Goddess stores. His purpose of making Nike Goddess was to change the way of thinking of the people at Nike. He wanted them to rethink the market and attract women customers in their business strategy.

More news on efforts to make Japan a more tourist friendly place

From the Japan Times June 18, 2014

On duty free shop expansion
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/06/17/national/duty-free-reform-boost-tourism/

On Narita express service to Mt. Fuji
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/06/17/business/corporate-business/narita-express-train-headed-mount-fuji/#.U6GQoIkazCQ

Wi-Fi blitz planned for Olympics

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/06/13/national/wi-fi-blitz-planned-for-olympics/#.U52XbokazCQThe government unveiled plans Thursday to provide more foreign visitors with speedy wireless Internet access before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

It will promote the spread of free Wi-Fi hot spots but also “encourage” the purchase of Japanese SIM cards for incompatible smartphones bought overseas.
The plan also envisages a cut in international roaming charges, said Yoko Kamikawa, state secretary for communications.
A panel of telecommunication company representatives will be set up as early as this summer to discuss ways of developing public Wi-Fi networks and simplifying user access.
A panel of experts will meanwhile discuss how to make and market the Japanese SIM cards needed to provide full service to foreign smartphones.
The plan also seeks to lower the connection fees charged by Japanese and foreign telecommunications providers so foreigners can more easily use free calling apps.

The transcultural leader: Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Renault, Nissan

Source: http://knowledge.insead.edu/leadership-management/operations-management/the-transculturalleader-carlos-ghosnceo-of-renault-nissan-1904

May 26, 2008“I think one of the basics of transcultural leadership is empathy,” says Carlos Ghosn, the man who is credited with turning around major Japanese carmaker Nissan.

“I would say even though the term today is not very popular, love the country and love the culture in which you are in. And try to learn about its strengths, don’t focus on the weaknesses, and make sure that all the people you are transferring with you are of the same opinion.”

The CEO of Renault and Nissan, and the 2008 recipient of the INSEAD Transcultural Leadership Award, Ghosn told INSEAD Knowledge that the fact he had the experience of being raised in different countries – not by choice, but by coincidence because of his family circumstances – had helped him in life a lot.

Ghosn was born in Brazil to Lebanese parents in 1954. Later he moved to Beirut where he completed his studies in a Jesuit school. He then graduated with engineering degrees from the Ecole Polytechnique and the Ecole des Mines de Paris and is a French citizen.

He stresses the importance of cultivating a certain mindset or character that truly enjoys the challenge of living in new environments:

“If you have to work and particularly do something significant in a country it is much easier if somehow you connected with the country and you like the country and you respect the people and you are curious about the culture.”

He maintains it makes a big difference because people in the country working around you may notice whether or not you are connected to the country and are happy to be there, that you are curious and are listening. “Well, they’re going to forgive you a lot of things,” he says.

When Ghosn went to Japan, he had some ideas about the culture, he says, such as the language and the food. But he found there were some concepts that were totally new to him – such as walking into an elevator before a woman. He says that while it would be considered “very gross” in a Western country, not to do so could be deemed to violate the code of Japanese culture.

While his task was to help revive an icon of the Japanese car industry, he says, the experience wasn’t simply about performing a job – it was about discovering a new culture and it was very rewarding.

“When you have a very diverse team – people of different backgrounds, different culture, different gender, different age, you are going to get a more creative team – probably getting better solutions, and enforcing them in a very innovative way and with a very limited number of preconceived ideas.”

Questions for discussion for June 24
Read the above excerpt from the article and prepare your answers to these questions - they are for discussion, not to hand in, but please prepare well.

1. According to the article, Ghosn is a transcultural leader. What is a transcultural leader and what makes Carlos Ghosn one?

2. He says that one key to being a transcultural leader is having empathy (being empathetic). According to the article, what does he mean?

3. What does he think about diversity? What do a lot of Japanese think about diversity?

4. Besides being a transcultural leader, what do you think makes Carlos Ghosn a good leader?

Making requests (Unit 2)

Here is more information and some suggestions for making requests. They are for general communication in English, not just in the workplace. Please try some of them out when you are communicating in English. Be careful to use the appropriate one for the situation.
Sorry for the poor visuals. Please try your best to read them on your own.

Sample email to the Transal board (Unit 1 Delimma and Decision)

From: macgregor@transco.com
Date: Jun 6, 2014
To: board@transco.com
Subject: Safety Charity Challenge

Dear Members of the Board

I am writing to recommend my team's favored option, the Safety Charity Challenge, for developing a safety-conscious culture within Transco. There are several reasons for this choice:
1 We have already tried more traditional solutions. These have all failed.
2. The proposal is unusual and is likely to capture the interest of a large number of workers.
3. This approach reinforces positive action: each time an idea is successful, staff will see an improvement in safety and they also will see a contribution to the charity they have chosen.
4. The solution should be cheap in comparison with the other options.
Of course, the idea has not been tested, while the other options are more familiar and return results more quickly. However, we argue that in order to have a dramatic impact, we need a dramatic solution.

Sincerely,

Laura MacGregor

Team Leader



Note to students: Two important things to include: the cost to implement your proposal, and the time it will take to see improvements in safety. If there are weaknesses in your proposal, it is important to point them out, even though they weaken your argument. Being honest is more important.

Another point is that in your email, you must explain the reasons for your choice; simply stating the characteristics of the program is not stating the reasons. They are different. Make sure you understand that.

Tokyo is voted #1

From The Japan Times,  May 31, 2014: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2014/05/31/editorials/tourists-rate-tokyo-top-city/#.U4n-uIkazCQ

Tourists rate Tokyo top city

(1) Tokyo was voted the world’s most satisfying tourist city for 2013, according to a poll by online travel site TripAdvisor. Tokyo came in number one of 37 major world cities for overall satisfaction based on tens of thousands of online reviews by travelers.

(2) That top spot should be a boost for the still struggling tourist industry in Japan. It will surely encourage more travelers to come to Japan in the coming year.

Tokyo received positive reviews in a number of areas that put it ahead of New York City (second) and Barcelona (third) followed by Istanbul, Prague, Vienna, Berlin, Rome, Paris and Dubrovnik in Croatia.

(3) Tokyo came out on top in five sections: local friendliness, taxi services, cleanliness, transport and overall satisfaction. Tokyo also came out in the top 10 in another eight areas including restaurants, shopping and suitability for families.

(4) However, Tokyo was ranked lower for cultural attractions and sightseeing activities. Instead of emphasizing shopping only, the tourist industry here should strive to increase accessibility to and information about the many cultural sites in the capital city.

(5) A tourist industry built primarily on shopping is not as durable as one built on interesting cultural attractions. Certainly no one will travel across the globe just to see how clean Tokyo is or how friendly the taxi drivers are.

(6) Tokyo has many sites of tremendous interest, though they are often spread far apart. Building up a tourist industry involves a lot of work to communicate to potential visitors. That hard work of revealing key points and explaining their interest is more important than large shopping complexes. The tourist industry should also ensure that hotels, restaurants and attractions are ready for people from many different countries.

(7) Most tourists to Japan last year came from Taiwan, China and South Korea. Visitors from those three countries accounted for 68 percent of all tourist spending.

(8) Progress has been made in easier transportation and friendliness, but more importantly Tokyo people should learn how to stop and help lost, or even not-yet-lost travelers, as happens in other travel destinations.

(9) Even a short, helpful conversation can mean a lot to a lost traveler anywhere, and become a wonderful vacation memory. Perfect English is not required.

Most travelers are ready to communicate at any level. With the right improvements, a travel industry that is built on human interaction and cultural pride will be one that Tokyo can be even more proud of than the first-place ranking last year.

Questions to answer in writing and hand in on June 10:

1. What makes Tokyo a good place to visit, in your opinion? Think of this question from the viewpoints of tourists from abroad and tourists from other parts of Japan.

2. In paragraph 4, the writer says that Tokyo needs to improve accessibility (around the town) to places of interest, and improve the information about these sightseeing places. Suggest how Tokyo should do that.

3. The article stresses communication between the locals and tourists. Do you think this is important? Explain your answer.

4. In paragraph 6, the article says, "The tourist industry should also ensure that hotels, restaurants and attractions are ready for people from many different countries." How can it do that? Make two suggestions. If you have any examples, please include them.