Diversity & Inclusion
Message from the Management on Diversity and Inclusion(D&I) Promotion
Diversity & Inclusion in our company means that diverse employees, not only diverse in race, nationality, gender, age, or disability, but also diverse in ability, individuality and values of each individual, respect each other, demonstrate and integrate their abilities, and create new value.
The environment surrounding the Nippon Shokubai Group has constantly been changing, with factors including soaring raw fuel prices, movements toward carbon neutrality, and the reorganization of the petrochemical industry. These changes will continue to occur, making it increasingly difficult to predict what is going to happen next.
Under these circumstances, I believe that what is important is flexibly responding to changes, helping customers resolve increasingly diverse issues from their perspectives and offering multiple technologies and product lines as solutions to them. D&I will play a key role to achieve our long-term vision “TechnoAmenity for the future”, and this is why “Promote the active participation of diverse human resources” was positioned as one of the initiatives for organizational transformation.
In the 80-year history of Nippon Shokubai, an environment has not been developed until recently, which enables women to play an active role at manufacturing sites, so the ratio of men in workplaces is extremely high. Also, a very small number of foreign employees are working in the company in Japan. I fear that we may lose our competitive advantage if we continue to allow our existing, homogenous workplaces to develop products and businesses. When employees with diverse backgrounds, regardless of gender, age, nationality, individuality, and sense of value, gather, speak from different viewpoints, and share ideas, we can have in-depth discussions and findings, and make it leads to the creation of innovation.
In addition, we declare “developing autonomous talent” for organizational transformation in the long-term vision. This means fostering individuals who are capable of paving their way and walking on their own. I also believe that it is important to develop autonomous talent by promoting D&I and thereby transform ourselves into an autonomous organization.
The D&I Promotion Policy was established in August 2020. And in April 2021, we established the D&I Promotion Group within our Human Resources Department.
These three policies are required to reach solutions to some of the management challenges facing Nippon Shokubai, but it also reflects the proposal to the president by the “Women’s Empowerment Project,” in which five women in core managerial positions served as project members in FY2019.
Its proposal to the president was not only focusing on women’s participation but also promoting the active participation of broader employees. And this aim was developed into these three policies which aim at developing a workplace environment where diversity is ensured, respected, and fully utilized.
In the new human resources management system introduced in April 2022, we have introduced a grade and evaluation system that appropriately evaluates individual abilities and performance and leads to promotions, which is not based on educational background and seniority standards. We have also introduced the self-reporting system that provides opportunities for employees to autonomously think about their career plans and share them with their superiors, and the continuity of work location system that leads to flexible work styles according to individual circumstances. In addition, we expanded open application-based learning support programs in order to encourage all employees to develop their own career plans and actively acquire knowledge, including employees who were not provided enough opportunities before. We also have created a work environment that allows highly flexible work styles through a flextime system without core hours and a teleworking system.
In our current situation, I believe that the first indicators to measure the progress of D&I promotion are the ratio of women hires, the ratio of women in managerial positions, and the ratio of men taking childcare leave. The ratio of women hires is 24.1% in FY2022, and the ratio of women in managerial positions increases from 1.6% in 2015 to 4.4% in 2022. Since around the year 2000, we have been increasing the number of women in workplaces, and the area of playing an active role has gradually expanded. We are also working to ensure having excellent talent through mid-career recruitment regardless of gender or nationality.
We support the target set by Japan Business Federation for 30% of executives to be women by 2030. Although the target is extremely far from now, we believe it is important to walk toward these milestones, even if little by little, and have started considering various measures with an eye to the future.
We continue to promote D&I, so that strive for the mutual growing and development of Nippon Shokubai and its employees and to provide new value to society in the future.
Member of the Board, Managing Executive Officer
Administration, HR, Finance, Accounting, General Affairs & HR Division.
Kuniaki Takagi
Respecting diversity
D&I Promotion Policy
We have formulated a D&I Promotion Policy in order to respect the diversity of our employees. We recognize diverse ability, individuality, and value of each individual and unify them to enhance collective strength of Nippon Shokubai Group. We are implementing various measures to become an organization in which everyone can flourish in their own way.
< D&I Promotion Policy>
- We will create a working environment and culture where employees can work with diversity and mutual respect, and grow together.
- Each employee, as a professional, will make every effort to show his or her individuality and ability, that will lead to innovation.
- By enriching and balancing employee’s work and life, each employee will improve his or her motivation and maximize their ability, thereby make great achievements
Promoting active participation of diverse talent
D&I Promotion Roadmap (to FY2030)
We formulated a roadmap to FY2030 after setting out four key challenges for promoting D&I (fostering a D&I mindset, promoting the further empowerment of employees, supporting work-life balance, and the diversification of the corporate system). The human resources department’s D&I Promotion Group established in April 2021 is leading our planning and implementation of various measures.
We conduct D&I management training targeting officers and managers with the aim of the “fostering a D&I mindset”. Through work and discussions, the participants deepen their understanding of the importance of managing diverse talent, unconscious bias, and psychological safety. In addition, we provide lectures and work on D&I in training for new employees and other Level-based training to foster a D&I mindset.
As part of the “Supporting work-life balance” initiative, we are also working to create an environment where it is easier to take leave for nursing care or child care, by deepening understanding of these topics through the enhancement of the work-life balance support guidebook and its dissemination within the workplace.
| Session 1 | Introduction Lecture: “Working in My Own Way – Vitalizing the Company and Enriching Life” |
| Session 2 | Career Training (Career Design) Proactively directing yourself to lead a professional life that is uniquely your own |
| Session 3 | Career Training (Self-Leadership) Learning the elements of leadership that engage others in problem-solving at the workplace and in your career |
| Session 4 | Exchange with internal and external role models |
| Session 5 | Declaration of action by participants |
Promoting women’s participation and advancement in workplaces
Nippon Shokubai has been working actively to ensure gender neutral talent promotion and institutional development. In FY2019, a team of women implemented a project to identify and recommend solutions to the president regarding challenges against the active participation of women at the Company. The project eventually led to our current efforts to promote D&I. As one of the measures, a women employee network training program was launched in FY2021. Through the training, we are not only helping participants develop their skills and shape their careers in a way that allows them to be themselves while finding fulfillment and job satisfaction, but we are also facilitating networking among women employees.
Effective use of re-employment system
Aiming to help stabilize the lives of retired employees, we set the period of re-employment until the age of 65, ensuring employment in a familiar work environment. This initiative, intended to provide employees with a sense of security and improved motivation for work, has encouraged over 100 experienced seasoned employees to contribute to the handover of core techniques and the development of young talent.
* Re-employment rate of retired employees: 83% (FY2022)
Promoting employment of people with disabilities
We are committed to employing people with disabilities, who are playing active roles in various jobs at each of our workplaces.
Moreover, NS Green Co., Ltd., our designated Group subsidiary established from the perspective of promoting the employment of people with disabilities, is in charge of the management of green spaces of manufacturing plants, and also grows seedlings of chrysanthemum in small pots every year. The pots are distributed to approximately 300 organizations for free, thereby supporting the urban greening project by the prefectural government.
Employment of foreign nationals
In anticipation of further expansion of our business across the globe, we continue to hire foreign nationals in Japan as well as in our Group companies in other countries.
Ensuring the diversity of talent
The Nippon Shokubai Group searches far and wide for diverse talent to underpin our sustained growth. Our hiring policy is to open our doors to everyone—regardless of gender, age, nationality, race, ethnicity, social status, origin, ideology, beliefs, religion, physical attributes, sexual orientation, gender identity, or the presence or absence of illness or disabilities—and to engage in fair and equitable hiring practices based solely on applicants’ aptitude and abilities.
Initiatives under the Next-Generation Children Act and the Women’s Participation and Advancement Promotion Act
Based on the Act on Advancement of Measures to Support Raising Next-Generation Children (Next-Generation Children Act) and the Act on Promotion of Women’s Participation and Advancement in the Workplace (Women’s Participation and Advancement Promotion Act), we set goals and an action plan for the period from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2025.
