This paper presents the findings of an empirical investigation into three related themes which have dominated recent business thinking: marketing orientation, planning and the Japanese way. The marketing strategies and organizations of a sample of Anglophone and Japanese businesses are investigated and compared with their success rates. Marketing and planning oriented companies are found to be relatively successful but not as strong as businesses which balance them against technological orientation and entrepreneurship. This route to success was found to be dominated by Japanese companies but not their exclusive domain.