The use of Japanese in the workplace.
16
votes
1answer
1k views
How do I politely ask my boss for a moment of his time?
My boss is a native Japanese speaker.
In English, when I have a question or an issue to bring up, I can ask "Do you have a minute?" to see if it is an appropriate time to interrupt them. In ...
15
votes
4answers
477 views
How would I respectfully disagree with a superior?
If my manager says something that I know to be factually incorrect, how can I point that out without sounding disrespectful? (Is ~違います appropriate in this context or is that too strong?)
Is this a ...
13
votes
2answers
680 views
How should I start an email when requesting something from someone I don't know well?
In English, there is a certain etiquette to follow when writing a business letter. From what I've seen so far, the same seems to be true in Japanese as well.
If I was making a business-related ...
13
votes
2answers
489 views
How to say: “I am returning your call”
Title says it all!
If somebody called and left a message, when calling them back, is there a set expression for that?
I generally just use "さっきにお電話頂いた...", but wondering if there is a more idiomatic ...
11
votes
1answer
324 views
At work, when is it not ok to finish an email with どうぞよろしくお願いします?
Whenever I communicate with my Japanese coworkers, I always finish my emails with どうぞよろしくお願いします。I guess in the context of an email in English it could be akin to saying "Cheers" "Regards", so I unless ...
10
votes
1answer
227 views
Should I use keigo in this situation:
I work in an American subsidiary of a Japanese company. I met a few Japanese colleagues while working at the home office on an exchange. Do I need to use Keigo for:
Colleague A: 1 year younger in age ...
9
votes
7answers
287 views
IT system renewal: Can I say 更新 for “renewal”?
I am starting a new project and have to come up with a name for it so that everybody knows what we are talking about.
The project is the renewal of an IT application that I will call エックスワイゼッド. ...
9
votes
5answers
342 views
What to say when leaving the table before everybody else?
For example, while having lunch with your coworkers and you have to attend some matter soon, what would be a natural way to leave the table? I think that in this case saying お先に失礼します would be wrong.
9
votes
2answers
5k views
When is it appropriate to use お疲れ様 (otsukaresama)?
I know the general meaning of using お疲れ様です／でした to express gratitude for some work, but I'm a bit fuzzy about appropriate times to use it.
I know it is a common saying when leaving for the day, and ...
9
votes
1answer
729 views
Ways to end a phone conversation
Despite its being one of the most basic element of daily-life Japanese, I often find myself looking for a proper way to end certain phone conversations.
Of course, I know the standard: [それでは]失礼します, ...
9
votes
1answer
236 views
usage of「ご迷惑をおかけ・・・」variants for a business apology
I have to apologize for a procedural error at work, and am unsure about selecting the right form of apology from the variants of 「ご迷惑をおかけ・・・」:
1.「ご迷惑【めいわく】をおかけして申【もう】し訳【わけ】ございません。」
...
8
votes
2answers
260 views
How to answer someone else's phone?
I am in a Japanese office setup sitting next to my boss. He often gets phone calls but most of the time he is not in his seat. How do I answer his phone say that "This is Mr. XX's seat and this is YY ...
8
votes
2answers
136 views
Which is better for a sales budget: 予算, 推計, or something I haven't even thought of yet?
I'm writing a short (3-5 page) business plan in Japanese.
I'd like to include an "estimate" of the sales for the next 3 years.
The question: what would you choose for the graph titled:
2012 ...
7
votes
4answers
366 views
What is the correct usage of 承知しました, 了解です and かしこまりました, the more formal forms of 分かる?
At work, it is wrong to simply say 分かる to say that you understand something. In what situation should I opt to use one of the previously mentioned forms?
7
votes
2answers
241 views
What's the word to use for “confidential”, as in a company report?
I'm preparing a sales presentation; it contains some company data and I want to indicate that the entire presentation is confidential. In English, this would likely be accomplished by stamping the ...
7
votes
3answers
547 views
What are common mistakes made by Japanese kombini employees speaking “manual keigo” (バイト敬語)
I hope this question is not too open-ended, but please don't hesitate to suggest edits if it is...
Mainly inspired by this question on what seems to be the misuse of a standard idiom by a Japanese ...
7
votes
2answers
311 views
Business Japanese: what's the proper way to say “please visit [this URL]”?
I'm writing a business e-mail to a Japanese speaking person, and I need to direct them to a certain URL. In English I would write "please visit http://www.example.com". I'm not sure the best way to ...
6
votes
3answers
413 views
Does the (USA) English metaphor “Unable to see the forest for the trees” keep its meaning if translated verbatim into Japanese?
The phrase "Unable to see the forest for the trees" implies one is too entangled in a situation to understand what is transpiring from a larger context, and thus, unable to determine the correct ...
6
votes
3answers
89 views
difference between 打ち合わせ and 会議 and ミーティング
What's the difference between 打ち合わせ and 会議 and ミーティング?
To me it seems that 会議 may be more formal, but I'm not entirely sure.
6
votes
3answers
139 views
What is the difference between 指摘される and 突っ込まれる?
I always get this two whenever I make a mistake. I think that more or less they are similar but kind of have the feeling that 突っ込まれる has a bit stronger meaning than 指摘される, is this correct?
For ...
6
votes
1answer
406 views
When asking for holidays, should I be more polite than usual?
I saw an colleague's email asking for a few days of vacation, and I was surprised by the ultra-polite level. This colleague is usually on relatively casual terms with the boss, so it was quite ...
5
votes
1answer
141 views
How should I respond to a client after receiving materials?
A client sent some materials and I have to respond, so I want to give a quick thank you acknowledging that I have received the materials and will email again once I have reviewed them. (It's always ...
5
votes
1answer
206 views
How should I bid farewell to a superior?
My boss is leaving soon after years of service. What would be a good way for me to express my gratitude for all of his guidance and help?
I am somewhat familiar with the expression お世話になりました but am ...
4
votes
2answers
136 views
Pronunciation of 締 in 月末締／翌月末払
If I understood well, 月末締／翌月末払 means "close the deal before end of a given month then get payment before end of the following month"
Is the pronunciation "げつまつしめ よくげつはらい"
I am especially unsure ...
4
votes
2answers
141 views
入社 equivalent for a research internship
When writing in some formal Japanese CV (学歴/職歴), it is common to be asked to put each job/university/etc. on a single dated line, with a second line to indicate when one ...
4
votes
1answer
5k views
How to say "Please direct all your future correspondence to _email_?
Soon I am leaving my job and I would like to leave an e-mail for future correspondence with my colleagues. How do I write in Japanese something like "Please direct all your future correspondence to my ...
3
votes
1answer
158 views
When speaking with client, how to say “I will tell my coworker”
I have found this in a phone usage manual (電話対応マニュアル) written by a Japanese person:
かしこまりました。必ず田中に申し伝えます。それでは失礼いたします。
(speaking to customer over the phone) Understood. I will tell Tanaka (my ...
3
votes
1answer
132 views
Asking superior to mark a document with 印鑑{いんかん}
What is the proper way to ask a superior to sign their hanko for approval? When I need a superior to sign their hanko for a routine log (not for reviewing a document or stuff, just routine logging off ...
