A government push for governance reform is adding to the momentum. The experience of conglomerate Toshiba Corp is on the minds of many Japanese bosses. At that company, activist shareholders have forced board changes, rejected the management's turnaround plan and prompted the company to consider going private to remove them. Law firms and investment banks such as Nomura Holdings have typically advised companies on how to defend themselves from activist campaigns as part of their mergers-and-acquisitions advisory businesses.