Sustainability

To realize our Company Mission “Promoting ‘TE-A-TE’ Culture Worldwide,” we believe it necessary for all employees to think about what they can do through work and what they want to achieve through work and take actions (= making the work their own affairs).For this purpose, based on the recognition that it is important for each employee to balance work and private life and to build a rich life, we will increase job satisfaction through the creation of employee growth opportunities and a comfortable work environment, realizing a virtuous cycle of self-reliant career development by employees and resolution of social issues, and growth of the Hisamitsu Group.

Strategies for Human Resources

Securing Human Resources

We will conduct recruitment activities for both new graduates and mid-career workers with the keywords “diversity,” “global,” and “job” as our challenge to respond to the changing environment within the company and the increasing mobility resulting from the development of diverse workstyles. We will continue to review our working environment within the company on an ongoing basis.

Policy for HR Development

Important keys to realizing our management strategy are how we can spread the culture of “TE-A-TE” to people around the world and how many ideas we can generate. In order to do so, we need human resources who are able to listen to customers’ voices, see issues as their own, and present and try specific solutions. Therefore, the basis of our human resource strategy is the development of human resources who can care about others and the development of human resources who see our duties as their own. In addition, considering the business expansion and the globalization of the supply chain, we will work on developing the organization into one that accumulates knowledge, experience, and skills in the global field to overcome hurdles that were previously insurmountable.

Policy for HR Development and Desired State

Challenges and Direction of Human Resource Development

Based on the policy for human resource development under our management strategies and our current situation, we recognize the following points as important issues.

• (1) Expand
  Discovering and training human resources for the next generation of leaders who want to play an active role globally for overseas expansion of our products including Salonpas_Ⓡ.
• (2) Exceed
  Establishing a basis for improving each employee’s job satisfaction because it is indispensable to attract and engage diverse human resources and move them to solve challenges on their own so that we can grow sustainably.
• (3) Enhance
  Fostering an organizational culture that embodies the spirit of “TE-A-TE” in all of our business activities, and securing and developing human resources with specialized skills (R&D, manufacturing, sales) and human resources who plan and promote value maximization through digital application and utilization.

Major Efforts for HR Development

We are providing various opportunities for HR development from the perspectives of the organizational culture to be fostered, the personality of each employee, and the organization structure.

□ Activities for Fostering an Organizational Culture

As a symbolic activity for promoting "TE-A-TE" culture worldwide, we are working on the company-wide activity in which our employees hand our products (samples) directly to customers in the presence of a pharmacist at various sports events for the purpose of getting people to experience of our products. We will continue this activity in the future as an important opportunity for HR development where employees can come in contact with customers directly and listen to their voices.

□ Self-reporting System and Internal Job Posting System

Employees are to report on their intentions such as future career plans, relocation, and things they want us to understand every year. In addition, in order to realize employees’ motivation and enthusiasm and lead them to solving issues we should address, we implement an internal job posting system for the overseas business departments on a regular basis.

□ Internal Venture System

Employees themselves plan and try a new business venture to embody the spirit of “TE-A-TE” for realizing commercialization and fostering an organizational culture. We respect free ideas that are not constrained by existing businesses, and work to create growth opportunities for both employees and the company.

□ Creation of Opportunities for Acquisition of Expertise

To establishing a basis on which employees can acquire expertise by themselves to solve social and management issues, we cover the costs of taking exams for IT passport and language proficiency, increase the payment amount of duty allowance to employees who take charge of duties necessary for business management, and enhance the system for supporting employees’ self-learning further.

□ Development of Global Human Resources

If we try to enter a new market or want to secure an advantage in the existing market by strengthening competitiveness, it is important to accumulate knowledge, experience, and skills in the global field. Therefore, besides training opportunities to acquire and improve English proficiency, cross-cultural communication, and management skills, we provide motivated employees selected from domestic and overseas group companies with opportunities to learn how to solve various problems.

□ Level-specific Training

●New Employee Development

After joining the Company, we conduct training for new employees that focuses on helping them understand the Company's Corporate Philosophy, Company Mission, and Basic Policy and learn how to take proactive action. Additionally, senior employees act as “Mentor” to help new employees grow as members of society and as corporate citizens.

●General Management Training

In order to develop human resources to achieve performance targets, which is one of the roles that managers are expected to fulfill, our curriculum emphasizes the importance of raising awareness and motivating the managers themselves. Our capacity building aims not only to manage the organization but also to realize the management strategy of bringing the issues of each business area down to the field level as more advanced skills to lead the organization while accurately assessing the situation. In addition, In order to establish a good workplace and further realize employees’ growth, we conduct training on harassment and training for evaluators on a regular basis.Training programs are offered tailored to the purpose and their needs, including training for newly appointed managers, as well as training for all managers and selective training.

□ Training for Selected Employees

●Step-up Training

The step-up training targets management staff candidate employees to let them experience team building and raise their awareness as next-generation leaders by demonstrating leadership.

●Studying-abroad Program

We expect employees to foster global and multilateral perspectives through domestic business schools and studying-abroad programs so that the employees can solve challenges based on their flexible thinking about environmental change.

Training Programs

Evaluation System

□ Evaluation System Linked to Business Results

We introduce a bonus for evaluated performance that reflects the business results of the whole Group as well as each department to make the work of each employee their own affair, enhance motivation to achieve their goals, rewarding growth and increasing organizational unity.

□ Evaluation for Rewarding the Behavior and Performance Results of Individuals

The growth of our company is the result of accumulated individual efforts; therefore, we evaluate individual work in terms of both individual growth (behavioral management) and contribution to the company (target management), in order to enhance individual motivation for everyday duties and promote self-growth.
Behavioral management assesses whether the behavior for demonstrating high performance is shown consistently, and is reviewed through an annual interview with a superior.
For target management, a target is set based on an interview with a superior at the beginning of each term for evaluation. After the term ends, a self-assessment is made first of all, followed by an interview with a superior held to discuss the degree of target achievement and future endeavors for further performance improvement.
This evaluation is reflected in the treatment of each employee and leads them to have a sense of fulfillment in their work by giving feedback on the final result.

To Enhance Job Satisfaction

We conduct a morale survey annually for the purpose of identifying the strengths and issues of the organization so that employees’ voices can lead to improvement in management, training, and the work environment in order to promote the development of a better work environment where employees can continue working.

Job Satisfaction Score

Internal Environment Improvement Policy

For enabling each individual to demonstrate their potential and achieve self-fulfillment through business activities, we think that respect for personality and promotion of using diverse human resources will lead to the development of an organization that can adapt to environmental changes promptly. Therefore, we are working on establishing a basis for enhancing job satisfaction through improvement in workplace comfort, effort for performing tasks within a limited amount of time, and instillation of DE&I.

Promotion of Diversity

We educate employees on the importance of supporting a work-life balance and using diverse human resources through training for managerial positions and training at each level to deepen the understanding of diversity.

□ Promotion of Women’s Empowerment

The percentage of female employees in management positions of our company is 7.8% (FY2023), and the causes include no role model around them and concerns about balancing work and family life. We regard the promotion of women’s empowerment as one of our important issues to be tackled and encourage women employees to take another look at themselves by offering the HWL (Hisamitsu Women’s Leadership) training to the candidates for the next managerial positions in order to encourage them to change their behavior in the workplaces.

□ Employment of the Disabled

As part of our efforts to utilize diverse human resources, the employment of people with disabilities is promoted. Besides light-duty work on the manufacturing floor, employment has been expanded to include planning divisions and research laboratories to create jobs that allow people to play an active role according to their abilities. It is our aim to create a comfortable workplace environment by installing multipurpose restrooms and eliminating steps, as well as by maintaining close communication in the workplace.We will continue to actively work on creating a workplace environment where employees can play an active role according to their individuality and abilities.

□ Empowerment of Senior Human Resources

In order to solve various business issues, the needs for active senior human resources who have a high level of expertise and skill are increasing year after year. Employees increasingly use their experiences and skills to work on fostering young employees and solving management issues actively after retirement, widening their appeal.

□ Career Return System

We established the Career Return System in August 2023 so that employees who left our company due to life events, such as child-rearing and caregiving or their own career development, can join us again after accumulating experience outside of our company. The system provides an opportunity for empowering diverse human resources and deepening the understanding of diversity.

In Order to Produce Successful Results in a Limited Amount of Time

Based on the hope that each employee should enrich their entire life, including their job, we have set not only the Family/Self-Education Day (every Wednesday) to encourage employees to leave the office on time but also the 'Leaving On Time Month' to promote the review of operation processes to increase the productivity of the company. We are expecting that employees will put forward ideas, such as reviewing operations, helping each other, and collaborating across organizations, to lead them to activities for improvement on their own motives.

Telework System/Staggered Work Hours System

We introduced telework in March 2021 as one of the work-style options, and employees think and practice the best mix of effective work styles by themselves to fulfill their own roles. In addition, we also allow employees to use a staggered work hours system (starting and ending work earlier/later) depending on their work schedules.

Promotion of Taking Leave

As part of creating a culture where employees can easily take annual paid leave, we have set ‘Family Bonding Day’ to allow employees to take leave on their birthdays and six months after the birthdays for the purpose of thanking their families and parents who support them, as well as ‘WAKUWAKU’ consecutive leave that encourages employees to take leave for at least three consecutive working days in order to refresh the body and mind.In addition, we have also established an accumulation system for annual paid leave and an hourly basis paid leave system so that employees can work with peace of mind even in cases that any other unexpected events occur, such as medical care and caregiving for employees and their family members, to respond to individual situations.

Major Employee-Related Indicators

*1 The self-report submission rate is the percentage of employees who report their intentions such as future career plans, relocations, and things they want us to understand.
*2 The self-study implementation rate is the percentage of employees who work on reskilling, which covers the number of employees who used our self-education support system, the number of employees who took the exam for IT passport, and the number of employees who took a TOEIC test.
*3 With the fluctuations in the number of employees every year in mind, the continuous employment ratio is set as a target for building a stable organization where diverse human resources, including employees who balance work and family life, can continue working.

Life Event Programs

We have established a system to enable employees, regardless of gender, to continue to demonstrate their abilities as they face various life events. It is our aim to create a workplace environment that allows employees to balance work with life events such as childbirth, childcare, and long-term care and to continue working with motivation.

Other

□ Recreation Facilities

Yufukogen Villa in Yufu City, Oita Prefecture, is available as a recreation facility for our employees. Located on a hill overlooking the Kuju Mountains, the facility is equipped with lodging, hot springs, and training facilities. In addition to recreation for employees and their families, it is used for employee training.

□ Company-Owned Dormitories for Unmarried and Married Employees

In the areas with our head offices and laboratories, we have company-owned dormitories for both unmarried and married employees to ensure a comfortable living environment. In other areas, we have rental housing to address the living anxiety of transferees who either need to move away from their existing housing or need to live apart from their family.

□ Hisamitsu Club

□ Management of Employees’ Health

We conduct stress checks for all employees so that they can become aware of their own stress levels and use the results to take care of themselves. Moreover, we have a monthly workplace patrol conducted by a company doctor as a third-party evaluation to check the safety and health of employees. For those with unfavorable stress inspection results and those with mental health problems, we ensure that counseling from a company doctor is available as needed and provide follow ups. Furthermore, we have a support program to help employees on leave return to work smoothly.

□ Encouragement to Receive Comprehensive Medical Examination

We pay a portion of the cost of comprehensive medical examination or medical checkup of the brain to employees who want to get it in addition to regular health examination, supporting early detection and the early prevention of illness.