# Japanese Cultural Awareness Training > Japanese cultural awareness training: how Japanese organisations operate, how communication and decisions actually work, and how relationships develop.… - **Source:** https://www.silkdrive.com/training/japanese-cultural-awareness - **Cluster:** cross-cultural training Takashi Kawatani, lead trainer for Silkdrive Japanese cultural awareness training Cultural Awareness Structured introduction to how Japanese business culture actually works. Designed to give a team a shared vocabulary and the ability to recognise the major patterns. Delivered by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute, 35+ years) and Silkdrive (EU-Japan Centre expert). [Book a Discovery Call](/book-a-call) [What the Training Covers](/training/japanese-cultural-awareness#modules) Teams trained by Kawatani-sensei across 35+ years include - Toyota, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - Sony, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - Panasonic, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - Nokia, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - Mitsubishi Electric, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - MUFG Bank, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - NEC, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - Fujitsu, teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - All Nippon Airways (ANA), teams trained by Takashi Kawatani (Diversity Management Institute) - - - - - - - - - Takashi Kawatani, President of Diversity Management Institute Silkdrive is the preferred European delivery partner of Diversity Management Institute (Tokyo). Takashi Kawatani-sensei leads the Japan-side curriculum and trains directly; Silkdrive scopes engagements, contributes European-side context, and runs delivery. Co-delivery in Europe began in 2023. [More on the partnership →](/about-us#partnership) What the training covers ## Five modules built around how Japanese business actually works Each module is a working framework, not a list of dos and don'ts. The goal is for participants to leave able to read Japanese counterpart behaviour correctly and act accordingly. ### How Japanese organisations operate Hierarchy, seniority (senpai-kohai), group orientation (wa), the role of the meeting (to confirm, not to decide), and why this looks slow on the front end but reliable on the back end. ### How Japanese communication works High-context, low-volume, asymmetric. Honne and tatemae. Silence as response. Indirect refusal. Why "that might be difficult" almost always means no. ### How Japanese decisions actually happen Nemawashi (informal pre-meeting consultation) and ringi (formal document circulation). What you can and cannot accelerate. Where the European sales motion goes wrong and what to do instead. ### How Japanese relationships develop Trust on a multi-year horizon, not a multi-quarter one. The role of dinners, off-sites, and informal time. Why the first six months feel like "nothing is happening" and why that is exactly what is supposed to happen. ### The cultural concepts that explain the patterns Nemawashi, ringi, honne, tatemae, wa, HoRenSo, senpai-kohai, BaMaWa. Each one is a working concept in Japanese business, not a museum artefact. The training covers what they mean and how they show up in your team's actual engagements. Who it is for ## Departments that commission cultural awareness training Awareness training works best as a baseline cohort across multiple departments, with deeper specialist programmes layered on for the teams in active Japanese engagements. ### Sales and account teams Pre-meeting awareness for sales teams who run Japanese accounts. Sharper than a one-page country brief, lighter than a full programme. Half-day virtual is typical. ### Customer success and support teams Customer-facing teams who handle Japanese clients in writing. Covers communication patterns, escalation conventions, and how to recognise when a customer is signalling dissatisfaction without saying so. ### Product and design teams Product, design, and research teams working on Japan market features or customer research. Covers the cultural assumptions baked into European product defaults and what changes for a Japanese audience. ### Leadership and management Cultural foundation for leaders who oversee Japanese subsidiaries, partnerships, or accounts but are not in the day-to-day. Pairs naturally with executive coaching for senior leaders running specific Japanese relationships. Expert Trainer ## Meet Takashi Kawatani, 河谷隆司 35+ years helping professionals succeed in Japanese business culture, in partnership with Silkdrive on the EU↔Japan corridor. Takashi Kawatani, Diversity Management Institute, Japanese cross-cultural training expert ### Today - President, Diversity Management Institute (1989 to present) - Founder, Success Japan Initiative - Host of 'Japan Spirit', English-language internet show - Trains Fortune 500 clients, business associations, and government bodies across 20+ countries ### Publications & Recognition - Author of 13 books, incl. Winning Together at Japanese Companies (Beyond-Global, 2015) and titles published by Nikkei, PHP, and SANNO - Creator of 10 e-learning products on Japanese business culture - 13,000+ students enrolled across Udemy courses, 4.4★+ ratings - Global HR Excellence Award, World HRD Congress 2011 ### Background - Lecturer in international business, Sanno Institute of Management - Special Advisor, Japan Overseas Enterprises Association - Visiting researcher, ISIS Malaysia (Institute of Strategic and International Studies) - Doctoral studies, Human and Organizational Development, Fielding Graduate University (USA) Pricing & Formats ## Indicative pricing Priced per group session, never per participant, so the per-person figure follows from the group size rather than being a rate. Sessions cap at ten because they are interactive; a larger team runs as more groups. Starting figures, excluding VAT, with travel and accommodation billed separately, and the final amount confirmed in writing after the intake call. Most Common Multi-session programme From €7,600 4 sessions, 2 groups of 10, over 2 to 4 weeks - €380 per person for the whole programme - Typical engagement €11,400 to €19,000, three to five groups of ten - Online, the format most programmes run in - The sum of its sessions, with no separate minimum Full day on-site From €3,500 6 to 7 hours, one group of up to 10 - €350 per person - Travel and accommodation separate Half-day on-site From €2,700 4 hours, one group of up to 10 - €270 per person - Travel and accommodation separate Half-day online From €1,900 3 hours, one group of up to 10 - €190 per person [Book a Scoping Call](/book-a-call) FAQ ## Frequently Asked Questions Common questions about Japanese cultural awareness training. ### What is Japanese cultural awareness training and how is it different from cross-cultural training? ### How long is a typical awareness training session? ### Who should attend? ### Will the training make a real difference if we are not in deep Japanese engagements yet? ### Who delivers Silkdrive's Japanese cultural awareness training? ### What does the training cost? ### Can you scale the training across multiple departments? ### Further Reading - [Cross-Cultural Training for Japan](/training/cross-cultural-training-japan) , full programme catalogue including negotiation, sales, executive coaching, DEI. - [Japan Intercultural Training](/training/japan-intercultural) , the methodology and competence-framework lander (Hofstede, Bennett DMIS, four-dimension model, optional formal assessment). - [Japan Business Etiquette Training](/training/japan-business-etiquette) , narrower etiquette focus for pre-trip preparation. - [Japanese Work Culture Explained](/insights/japanese-work-culture) - [Japanese Business Culture: A Working Guide](/insights/japanese-business-culture) ## Get Your Team Onto the Same Page on Japan Tell us the cohort, the departments involved, and the Japanese engagements at stake. We will come back with a programme proposal, named trainer, and a clear budget. [Book a Discovery Call](/book-a-call) [See Cross-Cultural Training for Japan](/training/cross-cultural-training-japan) Insights ## From our insights Deeper reading on this topic from the Silkdrive team. [Japanese Business Culture: A Working Guide for Europeans](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [Cross-Cultural Training](/insights/japanese-business-culture) ### [Japanese Business Culture: A Working Guide for Europeans](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [How Japanese business culture actually works, hierarchy, nemawashi, ringi, wa, and the specific operating differences European companies need to understand before engaging with Japan.](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [Apr 26, 2026](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [Patric Sawada](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [19 min read](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [japanese business culture](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [japanese work culture](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [japanese business etiquette](/insights/japanese-business-culture) [Japanese Work Culture: What European Companies Get Wrong](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [Cross-Cultural Training](/insights/japanese-work-culture) ### [Japanese Work Culture: What European Companies Get Wrong](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [How Japanese work culture actually operates, hierarchy, decision-making, communication, and working hours, explained for European companies preparing for Japan engagement.](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [Apr 28, 2026](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [Patric Sawada](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [14 min read](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [japanese work culture](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [japanese business culture](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [japan work life balance](/insights/japanese-work-culture) [7 Cross-Cultural Mistakes That Kill EU-Asia Deals](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [Cross-Cultural Marketing](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) ### [7 Cross-Cultural Mistakes That Kill EU-Asia Deals](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [Learn the most common cross-cultural communication pitfalls between European and Asian business partners, and how to avoid them for successful international partnerships.](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [Mar 05, 2026](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [Patric Sawada](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [8 min read](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [cross-cultural](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [communication](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes) [europe](/insights/eu-asia-communication-mistakes)