Contact details

• Ph: DDI 06-951-8767
  Location: 2.01, BSC
  Campus: Manawatu

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Business Studies - Massey University (1992)
• Certificate in Arts - Massey University (1992)
• Doctor of Business Administration - Massey University (2013)
• Master of Commerce - Kyushu Sangyo University (1994)

Fellowships and Memberships

• Member, Higher Education Academy (Associate Member/Fellow) (2022)

Certifications and Registrations

• Licence, Supervisor, Massey University

Research Interests

The origin of ‘lean’ sits with kaizen in Japan, a long established, deeply held and culturally rooted commitment to continuous improvement in the workplace. My research began with the examination of kaizen in domain name companies in Japan. In particular the transfer of kaizen, complete with all its antecedent variables, from one generation to another was explored through doctoral research. That research recognised that the visible tools and techniques of either kaizen (in Japan) or lean (in New Zealand and elsewhere across the Anglosphere) present only a superficial understanding of the phenomena itself. In Japan kaizen was found to be underpinned by a complete array of cultural, spiritual and philosophical beliefs, understandings and commitments. Despite numerous research contributions to the fields of business excellence, continuous improvement, and process engineering such parallels across the Anglosphere are yet to be observed. One example of this very dichotomy is provided by the translation into English of Ohno’s “The Toyota Production System”. The original (in Japanese) was found to bear little resemblance to the subsequent publication consumed by English speaking industrialists. Yet those same industrialists have adopted the Toyota Way with little hesitation. 

Ongoing research is designed to understand the relationship between the visible tools and techniques and the underpinning organisational culture in both Japan and the Anglosphere, in particular New Zealand. Outputs from my research are expected to better inform management of the actual attributes of kaizen, and recognise that the gains from the implementation of lean are likely to be short-lived. Therefore, extending the impact of lean on business performance, in a strategic sense, remains a critical objective of this research. 

Thematics

Resource Development and Management

Area of Expertise

Field of research codes
Business and Management (150300): Commerce, Management, Tourism And Services (150000): Corporate Governance and Stakeholder Engagement (150303): Entrepreneurship (150304): International Business (150308): Logistics and Supply Chain Management (150309): Organisational Planning and Management (150312): Quality Management (150313): Transportation and Freight Services (150700)

Keywords

Japan, kaizen, quality management, strategy, sustainability

Languages

• Japanese
  Last used: Daily
  Spoken ability: Excellent
  Written ability: Average

Teaching Statement

Currently I am a senior lecturer in the Massey Business School (MBS) School of Management (SoM) and offering coordinator (OC) for 152894 Professional Practice, 114702 Human Resource Management & Workplace Relations and 152233 Entrepreneurship & Innovation. I was previously the OC for 152336 Leadership Practice, 152261 International Business and 152702 Advanced Strategic Management. I developed the courses 115389 Business Internship and 295700 Examining Business Dilemmas. Prior to joining Massey in 2016, I spent 20+ years working in Japan­–15 years implementing international initiatives for multinational enterprises and five years lecturing in international business. I am active in business-academia engagement by facilitating on-campus workshops and research projects and supervising doctoral research projects.

Aligned with MBS strategy, I design and deliver applied (practice-oriented) education programmes that engage with industry and contribute to the New Zealand economy and international business. I take a multifaceted approach­–active, blended, collaborative, interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary–to teaching across my courses so that my students achieve course learning outcomes. I engage with the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Japanese philosophy. My student experiences in both NZ and Japan allow me to understand the hurdles experienced by domestic and international students, and appreciate educational, dispositional, circumstantial and cultural diversity. I complement these with my personal and professional experiences, and persona and passion, when I plan, teach, assess, support students and undertake my continuing professional development (CPD).

Graduate Supervision Statement

As a senior lecturer in the Massey Business School, my teaching, research and supervisory roles are very rewarding. Each element of my position is interconnected and complementary to the other. My supervisory philosophy takes a transformational approach that gives the candidate and myself ownership and responsibility of the requisite processes and outcomes. Trust and competency are of utmost importance. I actively seek to develop and maintain networks with candidates and faculty in my School and across Colleges and Universities. Personally and professionally, each supervisory relationship should be ground-breaking in the field of study, participatory for all members, reliant on trust and competency, transparent, ensure open communication, provide for nurturing the next generation of faculty member or business expert, employ adaptive processes, be mindful of others but fair, set expectations early, and be engaging dependent on resources available (expertise, time, motivation).

Current Doctoral Supervision

Co-supervisor of:

• Atif Baig - Doctor of Philosophy
  An exploration of the organisational excellence architecture required to support an award-winning business excellence journey

Completed Doctoral Supervision

Co-supervisor of:

• 2022 - Lei Zhang - Doctor of Philosophy
  Fulfilling The Curious Omission of the Host Company Responses to Reshoring