Work style in Japan: How engineers work

One widespread fact about people in Japan is that they are exceptionally hardworking and dedicated to their work. Yet you may encounter many Japanese people who say that they are still not giving their 100% to the work. There is no doubt, though, about their ability to be completely absorbed in a task, or about their perseverance when there is a problem to be solved. What do Japanese Engineers, Inventors, and Otakus (Fans of Anime and Manga) have in common? They all understand the importance of flowing with their inner self at all times.

One of the first words a Japanese language student learns while starting learning the Japanese language is “Ganbaru” which means “to persevere” or “to stay firm and not give up”. Japanese people apply this to themselves since their childhood in any form of activity be it sports, extra-curricular activities, and of course in their Jobs to the extent of obsession. No wonder why Japan has the history of the fastest recovery from war and developing into a nation many people look forward to visiting.

If we take this into examples of Japanese engineering companies, there are a large number of examples like Toyota, Sony and Mitsubishi, etc we can consider as a role model to any engineering growing company. The level of their precision, dedication, and discipline in making a product or even the smallest product part is unmatched. Even an IT engineer, who has a long experience of working and making IT products, has to go through a rigorous interview while entering a Japanese company. No wonder for a non-Japanese native IT engineer, it will be even more difficult as he has to clear the Japanese language round also.

Not only for engineers but even for artisans, there can be a strictly productive work style from day one of joining a new company. I remember my few days of internship experience at a Japanese company that made us experience the work style of a magazine producer. Some normal rules were as follows:

1. Divide each activity into groups of related tasks
2. Assign each group its own place and name
3. If you are writing a magazine article, you could do research and takes notes at home in the morning
4. Write in the library in the afternoon
5. Edit on the couch at night
6. Be productive by thinking of innovative ways to save time

Now since we were new to the culture, we were handled softly and not for a long time. But for the real interns, most of them were Japanese, there was no looking back once they are assigned a particular task. After all, it was going to be their permanent job and they wanted to establish themselves as a professional magazine editor in the long run.

So for many of those who have understood the value of hard work and dedication to work in Japan as an engineer, it is now the time to prove it to yourself that really you can do it.

And the way to test you is to start finding a job as an engineer in Japan. You have to search in large quantities and for long hours. You have to keep improvising your resume and there is a lot to learn before actually landing for a Japanese interview.

How to become an Engineer in Japan

In Japan, since the corona-virus pandemic, there is a rapid growth in software-based technologies and website services and therefore the demand for IT engineers has risen significantly.

For example, Japan has the largest number of industrial robots in the world – so if your coding skills are good, you can see yourself being an IT engineer in Japan.

Some of the useful sites to find Jobs are:

1. Hello work
2. com
3. Gaijin Pot
4. Indeed
5. Bizreach

They don’t necessarily require Japanese language skills but yes your chances will become high if you can learn to an intermediate level. Hard work in Japanese society often pays you well as told in the above section, efforts are valued in Japan.