Yale MBA Students Get a Lesson in Japanese Management

New Haven, CT, March 12, 2002 - Fifteen Yale MBA students are enroute to Japan for a weeklong study trip to an array of Japanese firms and multinational corporations as part of their business studies of current strategy, operations, financial institutions, and general management in what is arguably the world's second largest economy.

The study trip is being funded primarily by grants from the Edward Ladd '59 Fund and Timothy C. Collins (Yale SOM 1982), Chief Executive Officer and Senior Managing Director of Ripplewood Holdings, L.L.C. Additional funding is from JMA Consultants Inc., Globis Corporation, Kyushu Electric Power Company, Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K., the Yale School of Management, and the Yale School of Management Alumni Association.

The Yale MBA students are being accompanied by Arthur J. Swersey, Professor of Operations Research at the Yale School of Management. Professor Swersey is an expert in quality management, production and inventory management, and mathematical modeling. He has 15 years' experience consulting in statistical process control and quality management. His expertise in the printed circuit board (PCB) industry is the basis for his study of quality practices and results among Japanese and U.S. PCB firms.

The Yale MBA group is scheduled to visit both Japanese firms and multinational corporations' operations; with hosts including NTT DoCoMo, Inc., NTT Data, Toyota Motor Corporation, Showa Shell Oil, Shiseido, AtWork Corporation (a subsidiary of Softbank Corp.), McCann-Erickson, and Boston Consulting Group. They will also visit the Bank of Japan and meet with officials from the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI).

According to Margaret Hotopp, a second first-year MBA student participant in the Japanese site visits, "In the late 80s, Japanese management was a hot topic, due to a collusion of currency strength and a market bubble in conjunction with rising productivity. But these days," she added "with economic volatility an accepted feature of the world economy as viewed by business management students, Japan is being re-examined both with objectivity, and with respect for its place among world economies."

For an interview with a participant of the Yale MBA group, contact Media Relations som.extra@yale.edu