Today’s working environment has found us scrambling for improvement. Employees around the world work long hours and are not appreciated for their work. Moreover, customers are often sold products that may be deemed of lower quality for an exorbitant price.
Japan is no exception when it comes to working long hours as well. Although the average working hours per month have fallen to an average of 139.1 hours, that is still well over a 40-hour workweek. Thankfully, the country already has a 400-year-old system that might assist companies reevaluate this problem: “Sanpo Yoshi.”
What is Sanpo Yoshi?
Sanpo Yoshi, created during Japan’s Edo period, literally stands for “good for three parties,” concerning the buyer, the seller and society. Specifically, Sanpo Yoshi is when the selling party profits from items sold, while also making sure that buyers and the community benefit. This philosophy was established among merchants within the Edo and Meiji periods and was quite popular at the time. However, businesses have since moved away to a more modern method of doing business. Unfortunately, the modern way of conducting business, especially in Japan, may be quite stressful for many.
After WWII, the Sanpo Yoshi philosophy began to lose steam in Japan. The country was able to quickly become one of the largest economies on the planet by adopting a western-style system known as shareholder capitalism. Unlike sanpo yoshi, shareholder capitalism prioritizes aligning executive pay with shareholder value. Such an ideology ballooned CEO salaries and created an unbalanced distribution of wealth to employees and families. It is also a primary reason why the standard of living throughout the world has plummeted over the past 50 years. While employees’ salaries have stagnated, it is hard to keep up with inflation.
Although business mentality in Japan has shifted to be more in line with western culture in many ways, this does not mean that everyone can benefit from this new way of conducting affairs. Since companies are so large today, there are adverse effects to employees, and the planet and environment.
It is easy to see how Sanpo Yoshi would help out the environment. For a society to thrive, protecting our ecosystem and planet is of the utmost importance. Every year, large corporations are responsible for swaths of litter in our oceans, as well as air pollution in larger cities. Without clean air and a healthy ocean, it is impossible for society to thrive. Having a shift toward the Sanpo Yoshi philosophy would provide benefits in terms of fighting climate change. The heavy use of fossil fuels is also setting us on a path to long-term environmental destruction.
Although it may not be obvious in Japan at the moment, we definitely see Sanpo Yoshi resurging. More business owners are using sustainable practices that benefit employees, local workers and communities. They provide some platforms to include a circular economy, fair trade, and apps that reduces food waste.