JOURNAL OF MITSUBISHI RESEARCH INSTITUTE No. 35 1999 (03)3277-0003 FAX (03)3277-0520 E-mailprd@mri.co.jp
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Research Paper Group Management in the Development of Decentralized Management Satoshi Komatsubara, Shoichi Ito, Yuji Mizuta Summary Interest in the reconstruction of group management has been growing recently as a result of the introduction of the disclosure system by consolidated settlement, and reform of the corporate management system, such as the lifting of the ban on holding companies, and the introduction of a consolidated tax system and share exchange system. The trend toward change in the various systems signifies a growing choice of styles of company management, but the essential problem is the need to maximize the value of the entire group. The aim of group management should be autonomous, decentralized management by consolidation of operations, and the increased value of business by raising the competitiveness of each decentralized organization to the highest level possible. Attempts are being made to reconstruct the management system, such as transferring authority to the decentralized organization and introducing a method for evaluating business performance. Amid the progress being made in decentralization, however, there is growing awareness of the need to improve the function of group headquarters and maintain the centripetal force of the group. At a time when techniques for decentralized management are being established, the improvement of the function of the group headquarters could be said to be the more important issue. Group management in future is not only expected to lead to improved performance due to the autonomous vitality of the decentralized organization, but to the pursuit of structural reform of group operations through the leadership of the group headquarters, maintenance of the capital efficiency of the entire group, and a management style that incorporates the opportunity for future growth. Contents 1. Recent trends in group management 1.1 Internal and external environment surrounding the review of group management 1.2 Recent trends towards reform of group management 2. Trends in decentralized management in Japan 2.1 Implementation of decentralized management by company type 2.2 Analysis of types of management promoting decentralization 3. Trends and issues in group management 3.1 Setting of decentralized organizations (consolidation of business) 3.2 Control of decentralized organizations 3.3 Consolidation of group 4. Conclusion 4.1 Features of group management in the development of decentralized management 4.2 Future issues 77
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