Despite the ’GVC governance theory’ by Gereffi et al. (2005) being a highly influential theory in GVC research, there has been little empirical testing of the theory. However, in order to understand today’s global networks of division of labor in manufacturing and production and the realities of inter-firm transactions in these networks, it is necessary to critically and empirically examine such GVC governance theories and attempt to construct a more valid theory. This study aims to empirically test the GVC governance theory of Gereffi et al. (2005) using survey data on suppliers in the Japanese electronic device industry. The results of this study show that there are governance types those are consider-ed theoretically non-existent, and that the relationship between such types and governance is different from the theor-etical explanation.

The purpose of this study is to elucidate the strategy of Fanuc that is a leading industrial robot manufactures in the world, to build and keep a competitive advantage. In this study, analyzing the factor of competitive advantage base of industrial robots to elucidate the strategy of Fanuc, ABB, and Yaskawa Electric. The results of the analysis show that Fanuc achieves both standardization strategy and customer adaptation strategy. In contrast, ABB achieves standardization strategy. Yaskawa Electric achieves customer adaptation strategy. Fanuc is the only robot manufacture that has both standardization strategy and customer adaptation strategy. That is the reason Fanuc has built and has kept competitive advantage in the three industrial robotics manufacturers.

Starting a company and sustaining its operations to achieve performance gains is no easy feat. There are companies that fail and those that grow into large corporations. What strategies and management policies do successful companies have? This study aims to elucidate the characteristics of management strategies of IT companies listed on the Mothers (Growth Market ) market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (2013). Understanding the strategies of successful companies in the Mothers market, which serves as a market for emerging companies, allows us to explore the factors behind their success. In this study, we conducted interviews with the management of particularly successful IT companies within the Mothers market to explore their management strategies and features. The factors identified by the executive management as critical to success include: ① Capturing a niche market and Differentiating products, ② Business transformation through M&A, ③ The importance of human resources within the company, ④ Adherence to management ethics, ⑤ maintaining a robust financial foundation, and ⑥ The Importance of Sales and Marketing.