FOREWORD

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Brand management has a long history. However, the rapidly changing business environment, intense global competition, and more demanding and sophisticated customers have given brand management new significance as a platform through which a corporation can quickly claim and sustain a niche in the market. In other words, a strong brand will give a corporation the cutting edge it needs to survive.

Among Japanese companies, the initial thrust to penetrate the world market was based on price competitiveness through the mass production of goods and services. As competition intensified globally and standards of living improved throughout the world, there was a strategic shift to producing quality goods and services. “Made in Japan” became synonymous with quality and reliability. Despite this, however, there were then only a very few Japanese brand names of worldwide renown. The watchmaking industry is a good example of the importance of brand recognition. Today, Swiss brands dominate the wristwatch market thanks to their aggressive brand management campaigns. In light of past experiences, Japanese companies realized the importance of brand management and since then the field has come a long way in the country. Among the 100 top brands listed by Interbrand, seven are Japanese. Some Japanese brands have become household words, like Sony, Toyota, Toshiba, Seiko, and others.

The current publication is a compilation of presentations made at the 2006 Top Management Forum by distinguished speakers, and it is my hope that readers will gain new insights on how Japanese corporations have made relentless efforts to achieve the essence of productivity in making “tomorrow better than today” through corporate brand management.

I would like to express the APO’s deep gratitude to the Government of Japan for the generous financial support for this annual forum, to the distinguished panel of speakers who shared their insights and experiences on corporate brand management, and to the Japan Productivity Center for Socio-Economic Development for its assistance in organizing the forum.

Shigeo Takenaka
Secretary-General
Tokyo, February 2007