0 oo $S .._r-________F4:"._______ " . :.?r .,J . 0Y .:1;,r r.. Yi,:_? - - - - - . Car Cares Honda Motor: The Men, Management, the Machines By Tetsuo Sakiya the Kodansha International Press, 234 pp. By Dave Levine M'S ROGER Smith and Toyota's Eiji Toyoda signed an agreement last month to build cars together. The agreement says (between its lines) that America's elephantine auto industry is in need of help. More than anyone else, Smith knows the punishing success of Japan's small- car technology. Harvard's Robert Reich thinks it would take $80 billion for the U.S. auto industry "to retool suf- ficiently to regain competitiveness with Japan." So, instead of retooling, U.S. automakers buy their way back into business. Even Japanese technology has a price. These agreements among the world's auto giants are just beginning. The auto industry will probably be remade, perhaps even to the point where tran- soceanic mergers take place. Moreover, this state will in turn be changed; it follows with pathological certainty. How large a change? That depends on the automakers' decisions. Before, an automaker was a cheerful traditionalist living in Detroit. He quoted the Bottom Line. He read the Free Press like the rest of us. But now the traditionalists are also in Tokyo and Paris, and they are rapidly lowering Detroit's Bottom Line. They read newspapers whose front pages are not colored. And in their board rooms, they are determining the future of the U.S. auto industry. Who are these foreign automakers? More to the point, how is a foreign auto company managed? Tetsuo Sakiya's book, Honda Motor: The Men, the Management, the Machines, provides some answers to these questions. As Sakiya points out again and again, corporate management is a product of culture. In Japan equality is valued above everything. The head of a com- pany and his employees differ in that they play different roles in the com- pany. Nothing beyond their roles in the company separates them. Take Honda Motor as an example. Soichoro Honda and Takeo Fujisawa, the co-founders and former heads of Honda Motor, vowed to block their sons from entering the company. The two men reasoned that, once in the com- pany, their sons would be treated dif- ferently by the other employees. In short their sons would upset the balance of equality among the employees. Equality means, too, that an em- ployee's ideas are as worthy as those of the head of a company. Honda and Fujisawa rarely attended the board of directors' meetings. Because the other directors would parrot their opinions at these meetings, the two men stayed away; they didn't want to prejudice the meeting's discussion. In this way the two men showed their respect for the other directors' ideas. Unfortunately, Sakiya contrasts Japanese companies with a stilted pic- ture of Western companies. For instan- ce, in the West individualism is prized. Thus, he argues, top management (one or several persons) unilaterally decides the company's future (see Bendix takeover). Other employees are handed its decisions and must implement them. Put simply, Sakiya thinks the Japanese will fight for the emperor or build a terrific camshaft with the same collective gusto. In a Japanese compa- ny, the livelihoods of all employees are put above the livelihood of any single employee. The opposite is true in the West. All these pictures of Western and Japanese companies are incomplete and very crude. Sakiya ignores a great deal in both societies. For instance, he overlooks the movement toward profit sharing and Chrysler-like deals in the West. Top management is losing its total hold on the company. And what about Japan? Did the habits of feudalism completely die away in the late 1800s? Despite its drive for equality, perhaps distinction and rank are yet a part of Japan. Sakiya includes an interesting story on the development of Honda engines (written for the nonmechanical-min- ded) and a short biography of Soichoro Honda. In the book's finest chapter, Sakiya describes the isolation of his country and the strong influences of China and then America on its culture. This chapter alone makes the book wor- th reading. This book is a success story. It details the successes of Honda Motor and Japan in general. It shows that history takes very strange turns. Though we remade Japan in our own image, Japan is now remaking us. Japan has already remade the economic landscape of this state. In time, as the agreements between the automakers continue, we can probably expect a new and different Occupation period. VUI I ILLI The Fashion Look From N CITIZEN £ * I ~-I * . . 1 fl 1 eIff 1 Come in and see our beautiful collection. They have every feature you want: scratch-resistant, accurate, thin and Ae beautiful. For dress, for work, for sports-whatever the occasion, we have the Citizen watch for you. From $55 to $350.Trn 4 y theo e - 32eWeekend/Aprili8,1983 . h Ctienwtc- fr . From $5 to 35. ..' . Spring Fashion Forecast A distinct shift to the individual NDIVIDUALITY, self-expression, and personal style sum up the fashion outlook for spring 1983. Annie Bower of Saks Fifth Avenue states that this is "the season of choices, the way you put your clothes together is most important." She foresees no single look but rather a projection of oneself through one's clothes. Linda Sikorski of Ayla suggests that the crisp and clean feeling of spring is exemplified by striking combinations of black and white. A jolt of bright color splashed in intermittently makes a statement about one's individuality. Splashes of color deliver impact and have the effect of adding uniqueness. As a nice contrast to the bold black and white statement Winkelman's forecasts that bright white and soft baby pastels compete for a role in the color scheme for spring. Comfort is particularly stressed this season. The boxy Japanese look that Ayla features, and the em- phasis on linen and natural fabrics support this notion. The range of choices left open to the buyer is amazing. Trendiness is out. Fashion conscious in- dividuals are enticed to concoct their own style in dressing. Selections run the gamut from short jackets By Mara Moradoff to longer rear-end level ones. Extremely high heeled shoes can be worn as can the basic flat pump. Mini skirts are fine yet so are calf length ones. "Impressive," that is how Linda perceives the manner in which students are dressing. She feels that they are "cleaning up their act" and dressing with an eye to fashion. They seem to be taking more care in their dressing. Linda notes that while in Ann Arbor anything goes and people tend to look alike, many students are striving to look good and pursue style as opposed to remaining ordinary. This spring's relaxed look lends itself to dressing up, so why not? Annie, on the other hand, fails to note any changes in student habits. She is hoping to see students take a little more care in putting their clothes together. She suspects that with the recent influx of students in the job seeking arena a more formal look will prevail. Perhaps cotton pants and khaki skirts will make a more sophisticated statement than denim. Annie views denim as a "wonderful staple" and she feels that "there is a time and place for casual wear." Linda of Ayla sees denim as basic. Thus, while she claims "It is the attitude of our store that denim is not number one," she acknowledges that it is a good complement nonetheless. M4 Wt Jeans will always promoting the popular the tight bodied Marilyr Accessorizing is cruc d. Wide cinch belts an( than the waist are big. 2 that adds color and is c earrings and bangles, a in. A striking innovation clean matte effect for t adds dazzle to any outfit Detail and inventiv spring's array of socks i intricately designed ani Some definite outs f metallic or "too cutesy the high school cheerle this spring. She also suggests so when establishing your aware of what looks go concerned about the wa There are a number i variety of looks to crea all can be used to detern