New Job in Toyko, Mistakes on the First Day at Honda: Laura Kriska

<p>Author of <a href="https://amzn.to/3sDDq1s"><em>The Business of We: The Proven Three-Step Process for Closing the Gap Between Us and Them in Your Workplace</em></a></p> <p>Show notes: <a href="https://www.markgraban.com/mistake61">https://www.markgraban.com/mistake61</a></p> <p>My guest for Episode #61 is <a href="http://jenwelter.com/">Laura Kriska</a>. When she was just 22, Laura became the first American woman to work in the Tokyo headquarters of Honda Motor Company.</p> <p>Her experience working with thousands of middle-aged Japanese men inspired her to write her first book <a href="https://amzn.to/32CftNj"><em>The Accidental Office Lady</em>:<em> An American Woman in Corporate Japan</em></a>.</p> <p>Inspired to create a ‘WE building’ revolution, Laura wrote her latest book <a href="https://amzn.to/3sDDq1s"><em>The Business of We: The Proven Three-Step Process for Closing the Gap Between Us and Them in Your Workplace</em></a> – a new approach to diversity, cultural difference, and inclusion that will increase employee retention and productivity and prevent misunderstandings that lead to lost revenue, lost time and increased legal risk.</p> <p>In today's episode, Laura and host Mark Graban talk about her experiences working Japan and what she has learned about working across cultural and organizational divides.</p> <p>Laura also discusses topics including:</p> <ul> <li>How her mistake could have been avoided with one sentence</li> <li>Failing to see how “cultural data” matters – the ways people are different</li> <li>Why did she offend the “most important office lady”?</li> <li>A “quality circle” project about getting rid of the women's uniforms</li> <li>What do you mean by a “we” culture?</li> <li>What's the connection between “we” and the Japanese word “wa” (harmony)</li> <li>Is a “we culture”? more prevalent in Japan and other Eastern cultures?</li> <li>What does she mean by being on “the home team” in a country or a culture?</li> <li><a href="https://www.leanblog.org/2021/04/habitual-exc