Title: Striving for Kakushin (continuous innovation) for the 21st century

Authors: Shuji Kondou

Addresses: Japan Management Association Consultants Inc, 1-38 Shiba Kouen, 3-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-8534, Japan

Abstract: This paper deals with the problem of how to ensure continuous Kakushin through a management consulting approach. Kakushin, a Japanese concept that generally corresponds to the word ||innovation|| in English, has been one of the key factors in the growth of Japanese enterprises over the last decade. It refers to the process of change and improvement from the perspective of the organisation in order to solve the management issues continuously brought on by a fluctuating environment. The Kakushin approach proposed in this paper includes three parts: a full-cycle approach, organisational learning, and company-wide commitment. The effectiveness and limitations of this approach in terms of management consulting practices can be highlighted with respect to Japanese industries, and, from this discussion, future conceptual research for global management consulting for the 21st century can be pursued.

Keywords: Kakushin; continuous innovation; management consulting; industrial reconstruction; organisational learning; company-wide commitment.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.2003.003117

International Journal of Technology Management, 2003 Vol.25 No.6/7, pp.517-530

Published online: 11 Jul 2003 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article