FY 2012 Stakeholder Dialogue (Session 2)

Session 2: "Diversity and Human Rights"

With the goal of achieving management that values people, the Fujitsu Group is continuing its stakeholder dialogue. Following on Session 1 of the dialogues (see URL below for an overview), Session 2 focused on "Diversity and Human Rights" as its theme. An overview is presented below.

CSR Policy
Stakeholder Dialogue, Session 1 (January 10)

Date held: February 27, 2013

Participants:

Experts
Osamu Shiraishi, Director, Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center
Yayoi Masuda, Former Asia-Pacific Head of Human Resources for Nike, Inc. (background attached)

Fujitsu
Masami Fujita, Corporate Senior Executive Vice President and Representative Director
Hiroyasu Takeda, Corporate Vice President and Head of Purchasing Unit
Yoshiki Kondo, Corporate Vice President and President, Business Management Operations Group
Akio Uekuri, Head of Corporate Affairs & Human Resources Unit
Makoto Kouno, Vice President, Public Policy and Business Development Office
Noriko Shiono, Vice President, Diversity Promotion Office
Satoshi Ogiso, Manager, HR, Corporate Functions
Sogo Fujisaki, Director, CSR Department

* The positions and titles of participants are as of the time of the dialogue.

Fujita: On the topic of human rights and diversity, it seems to me that we are prepared in terms of systems and operations, but not in terms of firmly establishing these. With respect to human rights, too, the response in Japan is progressing, including in the area of buraku discrimination. Overseas, however, we recognize the ongoing issue of whether we can equip ourselves with the wisdom to act at the global level, such as in our business expansion in emerging countries.

Masami Fujita, Corporate Senior Executive Vice President and Representative Director

Shiraishi: What's important for companies is an understanding of not only discrimination and harassment but also international human rights issues. Human rights tend to be understood in terms of caring about each other, but this is a mistake; the root issues of human rights lie where morals or caring would not work at all, as seen in a dictator's abuse of authority. The three steps in human rights education are 1) understanding human rights at the international level; 2) acquiring the skills to protect human rights; and 3) nurturing an attitude of respect for human rights.

Osamu Shiraishi, Director, Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center

Takeda: In 2009, Fujitsu made a Siemens' computer division a wholly-owned subsidiary, thus establishing a global procurement organization with Germans and Japanese working together. The staff is about 200 people with a multi-ethnic makeup that consists of 40% Japanese, 40% Germans, and 20% Chinese, South Korean, and Taiwanese. We hope to incorporate the good points of their respective cultures into our work.

Hiroyasu Takeda, Corporate Vice President and Head of Purchasing Unit

Kondo: I'm in charge of the Solution Business Management Unit that supervises Fujitsu's sales and SE business management divisions, and of Fujitsu IS Service (FISS), which was established in February. It's a company with a unique employment composition, in which nearly 90% of the 700 employees are women and 200 are temporary staff. One of my missions as the President of this company is creating flexible work systems matched to women's work styles, and making the company an advanced model for diversity within the Fujitsu Group.

Yoshiki Kondo, Corporate Vice President and President, Business Management Operations Group

Masuda: Diversity consists of attribute data seen from the outside, such as ethnicity, gender, age, and so on, expressed in terms of "who I am." However, what's important for the organization is the inclusion expressed in terms of "how I feel." Motivation increases when individuals feel they have a place in the workplace, with results seen in actions such as taking ownership and making active suggestions for improvement.

Yayoi Masuda

Fujisaki: Society and companies in Japan maintain an almost homogenous state, which makes for an environment without much of a feel of diversity. It's also en environment in which it's difficult to get a direct feeling for global human rights issues such as child labor or forced labor. What should Japanese companies do in order to address global human rights issues?

Shiraishi: It's important for companies to give serious thought to the matter of protecting human rights. Toward that end, (1) it is important that top management, together with relevant departments, decide on a policy of promoting human rights, and that this policy be disseminated throughout the company. (2) Next, the company should introduce "human rights due diligence," or mechanisms to check where human rights risks may lie within the company. (3) Finally, in the event that abuse of human rights occurs, the company should immediately make inquiry to the victims of the abuse and eliminate the abusive situation.

Masuda: I think there are two relevant approaches: that of directly addressing human rights and diversity, and that of addressing performance management. Of the two, I think the performance management approach yields faster results by far. Transparency and consistency are the key points for successful evaluation systems and performance management. The personnel division should indicate the basis for its evaluations (transparency) and should conduct thorough training of the management ranks, so that personal factors do not impact evaluations and promotions (consistency).

Uekuri: From what Mr. Shiraishi has said, it seems to me that executing human rights due diligence and operating the PDCA cycle are important. Moreover, with regard to evaluation systems and performance management, which are always key topics for us, in my future actions I hope to refer to what Ms. Masuda said about "transparency" and "consistency" while adding my own point regarding "agreeability."

Akio Uekuri, Head of Corporate Affairs & Human Resources Unit

Kouno: I think that overcoming diversity issues is possible when the standards for performance management are clear. I want to set clear performance standards and, by thoroughly sharing these within the company, establish fair standards. I also realize that these standards are what ensure diversity.

Makoto Kouno, Vice President, Public Policy and Business Development Office

Shiraishi: In my opinion, one of the most pressing issues facing Japanese companies is that of work styles. I think that one of the things that make it difficult to provide environments for work by women is the matter of men demanding that women work in the style of men. We need to consider agreeable work styles by which women can work normally, through means such as cooperation from men in lessening the load on women. European companies have already been achieving this while maintaining high international competitiveness.

Kondo: I hope to put what I've heard here today into use in management from here out. More specifically, I hope to leverage the advantages of FISS having been spun off from Fujitsu, introduce systems and mechanisms that bring variation to work styles for women, and create an organization where every employee feels he or she has a place and will want to contribute actively to the company.

Takeda: Working with Germans, every day I experience issues of inefficiency. Working with diligence is something we could point to as a good point of Japan's culture, but it also runs contrary to working with efficiency. However, if we cannot achieve both of these, we cannot move ahead as a global company. I hope to continue tackling the matter of improving work styles.

Fujita: In this discussion, I've been very motivated by what the two experts have said. I learned that although we conduct our diversity promotion activities with an awareness of diversity and inclusion, before we can unify our terminology and people's sense of value, we should think of inclusion in terms of whether people feel they have a place in the workplace. This has also been a good opportunity to deepen my understanding of the concepts of respect for human rights that are at the foundation of inclusion, and to consider how management should value people.