A Study on Record Management and the Compilation of “Shashi” in Modern Japanese Companies

Abstract

Many companies in Japan are known to have published “Shashi” compiling their histories. At the same time, certain deficiencies in Japanese companies’ record management have also been pointed out. It is important to examine how this seemingly contradictory situation came about. This paper examines the relationship between the compilation of “Shashi” and record management practices from the Meiji period to the early Showa period. First, this study found that Japanese companies’ record management gradually shifted from centralized management to separate management during the Meiji period. Next, corporate compilations were published in various forms including business records and company guides, but they gradually developed into “Shashi,” which describe the history of the company. The first “Shashi” publishing boom occurred in the 1930s, and top-down “Shashi” compilation projects were organized as anniversary projects. These corporate history projects do not seem to have been connected to record management as part of routine work, and the person in charge of the project began work by collecting the relevant materials. Faced with a shortage of materials, they initiated various measures such as recording oral history and the collection and conservation of materials. One company also took the step of disclosing internal information in its company history. It can be said that the first “Shashi” publishing boom during the early Showa period posed important challenges to companies, and the following challenges are still relevant today: understanding and preserving company-wide records and disclosing information.