This study examines the link between Kaizen practices and different culture dimensions in Vietnamese manufacturing companies. The study follows the cultural framework suggested by House et al. (2004) and three typical Kaizen practices implemented in Vietnam such as Small Group Problem Solving, Process Control and Employee’s Suggestion. | Asian Social Science; Vol. 11, No. 4; 2015 ISSN 1911-2017 E-ISSN 1911-2025 Published by Canadian Center of Science and Education Empirical Study on Transferability of Kaizen Practices in Vietnamese Manufacturing Companies Phan Chi Anh1, Tran Thi Hoang Yen2 & Yoshiki Matsui3 1 Vietnam Japan University, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam 2 University of Economics and Business, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam 3 Yokohama National University, Vietnam Correspondence: Tran Thi Hoang Yen, University of Economics and Business, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam. E-mail: Received: August 19, 2014 doi: Accepted: December 4, 2014 Online Published: January 14, 2015 URL: Abstract This study examines the link between Kaizen practices and different culture dimensions in Vietnamese manufacturing companies. The study follows the cultural framework suggested by House et al. (2004) and three typical Kaizen practices implemented in Vietnam such as Small Group Problem Solving, Process Control and Employee’s Suggestion. Statistical techniques such as path analysis and regression analysis are applied to analyze the data collected from 124 Vietnamese manufacturing companies through a questionnaire survey during 2011-2012. The findings indicate that there is positive correlation on Kaizen practices and culture’s dimensions in relation to performance of manufacturing companies in Vietnam. Keywords: kaizen practices, culture, manufacturing 1. Introduction In Japanese management, Kaizen means “continuous improvement”, a business strategy involving the entire workforce from the top management to middle managers and workers. Everyone is encouraged to come up with small improvement suggestion on a regular basis. This is not a once a month or once a year, it is continuous. Kaizen is often seen as a key element in Japanese management and has been presented as one of the sources
