{"id":89153,"date":"2026-08-25T08:30:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T23:30:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/?p=89153"},"modified":"2026-08-25T08:32:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T23:32:46","slug":"podcast-column-trust-training-and-the-making-of-employees-in-japan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/news\/89153","title":{"rendered":"[Podcast Column] Trust, Training, and the Making of Employees in Japan"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In this podcast column, we introduce the final episode of Season 2 of\u00a0Waseda University\u2019s English-language podcast \u201cRigorous Research, Real Impact.\u201d Professor Yuhee\u00a0Jung (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/fsss\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Faculty of Social Sciences<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">) joins the program to discuss organizational socialization, human resource management, and how newcomers transition from outsiders to insiders within organizations.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:true,&quot;134233118&quot;:true,&quot;134245417&quot;:true,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Focusing on the Japanese employment context, Professor Jung explores how long-term employment, seniority-based promotion, and company-based labor unions shape a distinctive HR system built around large-scale annual recruitment and intensive newcomer training. In the excerpt below, she explains\u00a0the \u201csimultaneous hiring system,\u201d its assumptions about employee loyalty, and how shifting attitudes among younger generations are challenging traditional organizational expectations in Japan today.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:true,&quot;134233118&quot;:true,&quot;134245417&quot;:true,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Institutionalized Socialization: How Companies Help Newcomers Belong (Prof. Yuhee Jung)\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"152\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/episode\/28F54Qg3XFobT4EbvCJgwv?si=eavzmO4sSTiRPeejPTUkyg&amp;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">All eight episodes of Season 2\u00a0of\u00a0Waseda\u00a0University\u2019s English podcast \u201cRigorous Research, Real Impact\u201d\u00a0are\u00a0currently streaming for free on\u202f<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/61VF3lETynCBuXt1AxXjXK?si=3eba847f8061431e\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Spotify,<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u202f<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/music.amazon.com\/podcasts\/e0aa1340-7af7-4227-9361-88eecc575214\/waseda-university-podcasts-rigorous-research-real-impact\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Amazon Music<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,\u202f<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/waseda-university-podcasts-rigorous-research-real-impact\/id1777915569\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Apple Podcasts<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, and\u202f<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLeA0hDJkLYZDjs3b58eEZ1WnkvNJf9e9R\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">YouTube<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_89154\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/news\/87022\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-89154 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2026.6.29-Eng-pod-ep-8-cropped-banner.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1638\" height=\"954\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2026.6.29-Eng-pod-ep-8-cropped-banner.png 1638w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2026.6.29-Eng-pod-ep-8-cropped-banner-610x355.png 610w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2026.6.29-Eng-pod-ep-8-cropped-banner-768x447.png 768w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2026.6.29-Eng-pod-ep-8-cropped-banner-1536x895.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1638px) 100vw, 1638px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">You can read the full transcript by clicking the above episode banner.<\/p><\/div>\n<h2><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Question: What makes Japan such an important context for studying organizational socialization and\u00a0human research management (HRM), especially given its distinctive employment systems?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Professor Jung (8:34):<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Japan is always a unique country in terms of culture, people\u2019s behaviors, customers, and\u00a0even the\u00a0good food. So many people from all over the world are interested in Japan. In the same way, Japanese companies have\u00a0a very unique\u00a0management style. A long time ago, scholars already mentioned this unique Japanese management style.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Professor Jung (9:11):<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u2026<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">long-term employment, which we call \u201clifetime employment,\u201d seniority-based promotion, and company-based labor unions\u2014interestingly, these three pillars characterize Japanese management. This is related to the\u00a0very unique\u00a0HR practice that I call the \u201csimultaneous hiring system.\u201d Simultaneous hiring system means that Japanese companies hire\u00a0a large number of\u00a0newcomers at once, just once a year.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">For example, I remember two years ago, Toyota, a large company, they\u00a0hired 1,300 newcomers at one time. This is, interestingly,\u00a0a totally different\u00a0practice from other countries where companies hire their newcomers if they have a need for specific\u00a0positions,\u00a0they hire some people.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Professor Jung (10:08):<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">But Japanese companies, they hire\u00a0a large number of\u00a0newcomers every year at the same time. Mostly, these newly graduated newcomers\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0have any industrial experience; they have no idea. This means that Japanese companies\u00a0have to\u00a0take the responsibility to educate and train the newcomers until they can independently conduct their tasks.\u00a0So\u00a0it means that it costs,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0expensive and\u00a0takes time,\u00a0at\u00a0least over\u00a0one year.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">So why do Japanese companies\u00a0still keep\u00a0doing this traditional thing? Because most Japanese managers strongly believe that those newcomers will stay with them until they retire, showing high loyalty to their company.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Professor Jung (11:13):<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Actually, that was true, maybe for their parents\u2019 generation. But nowadays, Gen Z in Japan is the same as Gen Z in other countries. Most of the young generation\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0believe they should stay with only one employer\u00a0through\u00a0their whole career. If they have a better chance, why not? They can move and change companies easily.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">So now we have a big gap between the\u00a0individuals\u2014the newcomers\u2014and the company managers\u2019 perspective. Many HR managers are now worrying about this situation, wondering whether they should keep this same simultaneous hiring system or not.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">So, Japan is now dynamically changing and transforming, and\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0why most researchers are focusing on these socialization issues in the Japanese context.<\/span>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Waseda Podcasts: &quot;Rigorous Research, Real Impact&quot;-- Season 2, Ep. 8 Teaser\" width=\"422\" height=\"750\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9YJIyxfYPA8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">About the Guest:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter  wp-image-89155\" src=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0Z8_0498-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"415\" height=\"277\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0Z8_0498-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0Z8_0498-610x407.jpg 610w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0Z8_0498-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0Z8_0498-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0Z8_0498-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0Z8_0498-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 415px) 100vw, 415px\" \/><br \/>\n\u00a0<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/w-rdb.waseda.jp\/html\/100001786_en.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Professor\u00a0Yuhee\u00a0Jung<\/span><\/a><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Professor\u00a0Yuhee\u00a0Jung holds a PhD in Business Administration and specializes in organizational behavior and human resource management. She\u00a0has previously served\u00a0as an associate professor at\u00a0Ritsumeikan\u00a0University and a professor at\u00a0Gakushuin<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">University, and\u00a0began teaching at the Faculty of Social Sciences at\u00a0Waseda\u00a0University in April 2020. Professor Jung also spent one year as a Visiting Scholar at the UCLA Anderson School of Management.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134245417&quot;:false,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this podcast column, we introduce the final episode of Season 2 of\u00a0Waseda University\u2019s English-language pod [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":89157,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[81,117],"tags":[166,355,379,178],"class_list":["post-89153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-topic","tag-business-en","tag-highlight-en","tag-podcast-en","tag-research-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=89153"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89153\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":89159,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89153\/revisions\/89159"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}