Mitsubishi

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For information on Mitsubishi brand computer monitors, see NEC-Mitsubishi Electronics Display of America Inc.

Image:Mitsubishi logo.png The Template:Nihongo, Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies, all refer to a large grouping of independently operated Japanese companies which share the Mitsubishi brand name. While the companies are autonomous, they share the brand name and trademark, as well as a common legacy.

The Mitsubishi group of companies form a loose entity, the Mitsubishi Keiretsu, which is often referenced in US and Japanese media and official reports; in general these companies all descend from the zaibatsu of the same name. A keiretsu is a common feature of Japanese corporate governance and refers to a collaborative group of integrated companies with extensive share crossholdings, personnel swaps and strategic co-operation.

The top twenty-nine companies are also members of the Mitsubishi Kinyokai, or "Friday Club", and meet monthly. The Mitsubishi.Com Committee is charged with maintaining the overall integrity of the brand as well as maintaining the portal web site.

1 History
- 1.1 World War II
- 1.2 After the war
2 Problems
3 The Mitsubishi companies
- 3.1 Core members
- 3.2 Related Organizations
4 External links

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History

The first Mitsubishi company was a shipping firm that Yataro Iwasaki established in 1870. In 1873 it took the name Mitsubishi Shokai (三菱商会). The name Mitsubishi (三菱) has two parts: "mitsu" means "three" and "bishi" means "water chestnut", and hence "rhombus", which is reflected in the company's logo. Another translation is "three diamonds".[1]

That company soon diversified into coal mining, shipbuilding, banking, insurance, warehousing, and trade. Later diversification carried the organization into such sectors as paper, steel, glass, electrical equipment, aircraft, oil, and real estate. As Mitsubishi built a broadly based conglomerate, it played a central role in the modernization of Japanese industry.

At the start of the 20th century the company, which by itself accounted for over half of the Japanese merchant fleet, entered into a period of diversification that would eventually result in the creation of three entities:

Mitsubishi Bank (now a part of the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group) was founded in 1919. After its mergers with the Bank of Tokyo in 1996, and UFJ Holdings in 2004, this became Japan's largest bank.

Mitsubishi Corporation, founded in 1893, serves the internal financing needs of the group

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which includes these industrial companies.
- Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, the 4th largest Japanese auto manufacturer.
- Mitsubishi Atomic Industry, a nuclear power company.
- Mitsubishi Chemical, the largest Japanese chemicals company
- Nikon Corporation, a well-known brand of photographic equipment.

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World War II

During the Second World War, Mitsubishi manufactured aircraft, including the famous Zero that was used in the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and many other occasions. Also, like many other big Japanese corporations at that time, it made use of slave labor from the Japanese captured territories, like Korea and China. With poor working conditions, many people died during this period. Approximately twenty thousand Korean slave laborers died in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and NagasakiTemplate:Fact.

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After the war

Mitsubishi split itself into independent companies in 1946 under the postwar government policy of decentralizing industry. The newly independent companies used their accumulated technology and other strengths to pursue growth under separate business models. As independent corporations, the Mitsubishi companies cooperated in some ventures, as in petrochemicals and nuclear power, and competed with each other in other sectors. The Mitsubishi companies form a loose entity known as the Mitsubishi keiretsu, or Mitsubishi group.

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Problems

Mitsubishi has been criticized for some of its corporate practices, most notably with respect to work-place discrimination, environmental pollution and the use of slave labour, including that of prisoners of war (POWs), during World War II [2]. A disgruntled former employee, Kamal Sinha, has started a website called Mitsubishi Watch to report such complaints. For a more balanced view, Niall Murtagh's book, "The Blue-Eyed Salaryman", describes both positive and negative aspects of what it is like to work as a foreign Mitsubishi employee in Japan.

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