That's really interesting... That bears out my experience working with a heavily Chinese- influenced workforce.
Differing communication styles Germany vs Japan vs France vs China.
Takes a moment to work this one out, but worth it. Unsure of the source, so hold lightly.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1293426898806619
Discussion
I was trying to figure out what explains the apparent discrepancy between "hierarchical" leading but "consensual" decision making in the Japan context...
Then I remembered that in a lot of Japanese companies, there is what's called a "Ringi" system, where important business decisions are circulated among a variety of business stakeholders. Everyone signs off, in order of their importance in the hierarchy.
It's a way of illustrating both broad internal support, but also "who's in charge" by the literal ordering of the sign-offs.