RESEARCH-AND-DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT IN JAPANESE RESEARCH INSTITUTES

To perform creative R&D, an improvement in the productivity of R&D in Japan is being pursued, and it is necessary for this purpose to determine the actual situation of R&D management. A survey was carried out to find the facts in Japanese research management as quantitatively as possible; this was conducted in private entities and national laboratories. The results were processed statistically by computer. Questionnaires were sent to 108 companies belonging to the Japan Society of Science Policy and Research Management, and to another 158 enterprises and national laboratories. They were asked to answer questions concerning R&D projects, both successful (226 projects) and unsuccessful (106 projects). The answers to the questionnaires were received in February 1987. The Reports were presented at a Summer Seminar at MIT and the results of a similar survey in the U.S. were used for comparison. A considerable similarity in the results was found for R&D management in Japan and for R&D management in the U.S. Six preliminary factors which resulted in success in R&D management have been recognized, although it may be too early to draw conclusions from this survey. It is necessary to conduct more research in this area in Japan, as has long been done in the U.S.