What is ‘Nemawashi’?
Nemawashi means “The preparations for transplanting a large tree“.
It refers to the persuasion of related individuals prior to a formal decision making meeting.
Before going into a meeting where (important) decisions have to be made, ‘nemawashi’ is the process of carefully checking where everybody stands, who would like to do what and how and to make sure you will not create any friction in the meeting itselves. In the informal gatherings alliances can be made, it is possible to try and persuade people or hear about arguments that can be interesting.
It is a process to influence decisions without challeging the group-cohesion.
See also: Japan Intercultural