Japanes SMEs and Independence: A Different View

摘要

In the October 1998 issue of this Journal, Dana (1998) discusses the role of Small and medium-sized enterprises (chusho kigyo) within the Japanese busi- ness structure. Attention is chiefly direct- ed towards industrial SMEs, defined by the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency as having no more than 300 Employees or capitalized at less than ￥100 million. The contention is that the strong inclination of Japanese firms to form linkages has resulted in a unique small business sector which plays a more prevalent part and employs a much larg- er percentage of the workforce than in, for example, the United States.