In 1966 he created a sensation by publishing a book of the same title. At that time in Japan, it was common knowledge that people were differentiated by their academic background (and the situation still exists today). College graduates took priority over High School graduates, and top-flight universities took priority over second tier universities. Akio objected to this way of thinking and from “gakureki muyo-ron”, introduced a number of published writings.

“What on earth does educational background mean? Does it carry any value? For people working in the cut-throat world of business, you have to fight using all of your abilities, and however I look at it, I’m can’t see the value of judging people on the place they studied before joining the company.”

“What a person studied and where they studied is just an asset, and it is how that person uses that asset and what contribution they make to society that decides the value of that person.”

“No matter how much demand there may be in business for specialist learning found in universities, in reality, it is a fact that the smartest kid in school will not necessarily become the most gifted person in society.”

From:The Sayings of Akio Morita, published by Sony Magazines.