Japanese workplace terms foreigners should know

Keigo: the three forms

Keigo (敬語) is honorific language, and it shows up even in offices that otherwise run in English, because Japanese colleagues default to it with clients, senior staff, and people outside their team.

• Sonkeigo (尊敬語) - respectful language, used to elevate the person you're speaking to or about.
• Kenjougo (謙譲語) - humble language, used to lower your own position when describing your own actions.
• Teineigo (丁寧語) - the general polite form (-masu/-desu) - the baseline level most learners reach first.

The single most common mistake foreigners (and plenty of Japanese speakers) make: using sonkeigo for your own actions, or kenjougo for someone else's. The fix is just remembering whose action you're describing before you pick the form.

Structure terms you'll hear constantly

• Senpai / kōhai (先輩・後輩) - senior/junior by length of service, not age or title. A senpai relationship outranks org-chart position in a lot of day-to-day interactions.
• Nenkō joretsu (年功序列) - the seniority-based system for promotions and raises that still shapes a lot of traditional Japanese companies, even ones that officially say they're merit-based.
• Nemawashi (根回し) - informal groundwork done before a decision, building agreement one-on-one so the actual meeting just confirms what's already settled.
• Ringi (禀議) - the formal multi-level approval process that often follows nemawashi.

Business card etiquette (meishi)

Exchange business cards with both hands, read the card before putting it away, and don't write on someone's card or pocket it immediately - small things, but they're noticed.

If you're studying for work specifically

JLPT N2 is the practical minimum target for most professional roles, and N2/N1 test keigo knowledge directly. Most learners need 6-12 months of focused study to reach basic workplace competency from an intermediate starting point, or 2-3 years starting from scratch.