Develop a Rewarding Work Environment

Having clearly identified human resource strategy as a key component of its management strategy, ITOCHU’s management team is committed to creating a company that is challenging but rewarding to work for, where meeting the demands of work is not only challenging but also rewarding in many different ways.

ITOCHU disclosed detailed content of its suite of unique work-style reforms, which began from 2010, to pique the interest of society and meet its expectations. We try to connect this action to the benefit of society as described in the Company’s corporate mission of “Sampo-yoshi.”

As well as improving employee motivation and labor productivity, our successful creation of a frontline-focused rewarding workplace environment in which every employees can fully realize their capabilities, while strengthening our front-line capabilities, is creating a virtuous cycle that results in a favorable external reputation enabling us to recruit outstanding human resources.

The number of non-consolidated employees at ITOCHU is the lowest among Japan’s general trading companies, and the Company will, as a policy, remain a small select organization of capable individuals. To rack up even more successful accomplishments with a small number of nonconsolidated employees, we are focusing our recruitment activities on securing excellent human resources who embrace the corporate mission of “Sampo-yoshi.”

In recent years, ITOCHU has clinched the top spots in company rankings among jobseekers, which is proof that students regard ITOCHU as a sustainable company worthy of entrusting their own lives to.

The first measure for our unique work-style reforms was to establish “I-Kids,” which is a childcare center for employees, in January 2010. At the time, there were such social problems as rising numbers of children on waiting lists due to a shortage of certified daycare facilities. We decided to open “I-Kids” next to our Tokyo Headquarters, with the aim of removing barriers to continued employment and bolstering employee motivation to keep working after childbirth. After then-President Okafuji became president in April 2010, a suite of work-style reforms was begun in full gear.

Following the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, we also decided to return to work styles focused on the front lines where we would be close to customers, and so we abolished the flextime system. Then, in FYE 2014, we introduced the Morning-Focused Working System. We prohibited overtime work past 8:00 p.m., in principle, and if people had to work overtime, we encouraged them to instead do so early the next morning between 5:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. By coming in early, they have enough time to prepare for sales consultations with customers and can work more effectively. We urged employees to change their behavior by providing employees who begin work before 8:00 a.m. with a higher wage rate and free breakfast, as an incentive. In the ensuing decade, the Morning-Focused Working System has become entrenched in the Company. This has not only changed employee mindsets regarding time but also supported the activities of employees who have restrictions on their work hours due to childcare, nursing care, illnesses, or other factors. The system has also helped enhance employee job satisfaction in part by creating time to spend with family and for self-improvement.

Recently, the declining birthrate is becoming a major social issue in entire Japan. Since ITOCHU introduced the Morning-Focused Working System, the birthrate for female employees has risen. In FYE 2022, the rate was 1.97, compared with a national figure of 1.30^* and 1.08^* in Tokyo. We consider this a major accomplishment of our suite of work-style reforms, especially the Morning-Focused Working System. We will continue striving to further enhance labor productivity through the evolution of work styles in line with the diverse values of employees.

* Total annual fertility rate for 2021 in demographic statistics released by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare

We consider enhancing health the foundation of strengthening personnel capabilities to achieve the Guideline of Conduct: “I am One with Infinite Missions.” Accordingly, we have formulated the ITOCHU Health Charter and promoted many measures related to health and safety, such as Support Measures for Balancing Cancer Care and Work. This measure was introduced in FYE 2018 in an effort to create an environment where employees can work with peace of mind. They include regular special screenings conducted in cooperation with the National Cancer Center Research Institute, support for educational costs to graduate school in the event that there are bereaved children, and work support within the Group for bereaved children and spouses.

Moreover, the cancer incidence rate is higher for women in their working years. Therefore, we are promoting Support for Balancing Cancer Care and Work, which are also expected to support the advancement of women. To establish a work environment where women can actively work over the long term, we encourage female employees under 34 years old to get cervical cancer tests. These are typically compulsory for women 35 years and older at ITOCHU, but we have been providing a subsidy to cover the test fees since FYE 2021. In FYE 2023, we established a help desk where employees can anonymously consult with external midwives hired by ITOCHU on matters related to women-specific health concerns, as well as issues of balancing work and life.

In recognition of these steadfast efforts, we garnered high praise from society. For example, we received the medical exam category award for FYE 2023, from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s Cancer Countermeasure Promotion Company Action program, and ITOCHU was selected as a Health & Productivity Management Outstanding Organization (White 500) for the seventh consecutive year since FYE 2017. Going forward, we will continue to prioritize the health of every employee and realize a work environment where employees can work with peace of mind.

Women’s Advancement

In October 2021, to further accelerate women’s advancement, we established the Women’s Advancement Committee as an advisory committee for the Board of Directors. The committee was chaired by Atsuko Muraki^*, who was at the time an Outside Director, and half of its members are outside officers. In addition to investigating various measures the Company has taken to date, the committee hears the opinions of employees and the front lines. It also holds regular deliberations on necessary countermeasures, as well as the future direction for policies on accelerating training for managerial promotions and evolving toward flexible workstyles.

Going forward, after meticulously assessing the situation of every female employee, we will continue to steadily encourage female employees as we work to perpetuate the cycle of collaboration with the front lines, discussions at the Women’s Advancement Committee, and reporting to the Board of Directors.

* Atsuko Muraki, former Outside Director of the Company, provides advice on the business management of the Company in her capacity as a member of the Advisory Board, enabling her extensive experience and expertise to be utilized in the business management of the Company.

Gender Pay-Gap

Nearly 80% of career-track female employees, who are assigned core roles of ITOCHU, are still in their 20s and 30s. While the primary factor behind the gender pay-gap is the low percentage of women in managerial positions. There is, however, no gender pay-gap for the same position and duties under the Company’s human resource system.

ITOCHU set quantitative targets for the total number of career-track women recruited in the early 2000s. While we succeeded with certain hiring targets, we failed to establish a receptive environment on the front lines, which led to attrition. In light of this situation, we consider it necessary to establish a work environment, rooted in the front lines, that enables career-track women to work actively over the long term. Since 2010, we have promoted a suite of work-style reforms. At present, we are steadily advancing promotions. Career-track female employees who joined the Company since the late 2000s, when recruitment numbers expanded, have built up their careers and they are successfully cultivated. The appointment of female employees to manager positions has been promoted, and for example, a female president was appointed to overseas office in April 2023.

ITOCHU provides each employee with opportunities for self-directed study and challenging experiences, and promotes Groupwide career-building support and personnel development suited to diverse capabilities and characteristics. The Company systematically provides locations for diverse experiences beyond the boundaries of the headquarters, such as dispatches to Group companies and overseas experience by the eighth year of joining the Company. Since FYE 2000, we have positioned training costs as human capital investments for the sustainable enhancement of corporate value and invested around ¥1.0 billion every year. We conduct periodic reviews across the Company to help create more effective personnel training measures. In addition, in support of career development, we introduced elective online training programs with roughly 9,500 courses that can be taken freely with no limits on time or location. The programs are also provided overseas, not just for employees stationed overseas, and are utilized every year by around 1,000 employees of overseas offices and branches. In addition, we expanded the Challenge Career System (in-house recruitment system), which enables employees to transfer between organizations, and introduced the Virtual Office (in-house dual jobs system) as a platform for cross-organization collaboration. （→ ITOCHU Announces Strengthening of its Femtech Initiatives with Virtual Office）

Virtual Office

Cross-organization collaboration platform to promote projects across organizations and accelerate the creation of new businesses

ITOCHU introduced a salary structure highly linked to the Company’s performance. In line with the steady expansion of the Company’s results, average yearly income was ¥17.30 million in FYE 2023, firmly in the top level in Japan. From FYE 2025, to increase employee motivation and competitiveness for recruitment, we will focus on personnel evaluations and rewards based on achievement by revising personnel system.

In addition, from FYE 2014, we introduced the excellent employee award system to honor employees who have made notable quantitative and qualitative contributions. In FYE 2021, we introduced the Infinite Missions Award to honor teams who have made major accomplishments or promoted SDGs initiatives and businesses based on a market-oriented perspective. We have also introduced systems that help enhance the job satisfaction of Group employees, such as the Excellent CEO Club, to honor the presidents of the Group companies who demonstrate excellent management skills, and the “Group Companies Management Awards Program” for the Group companies that helped enhance corporate value of the Group.

To raise awareness of participation in management among employees, we provide financial incentives for owning ITOCHU stock through the Employee Shareholding Association. Since FYE 2020, we have provided special financial incentives through this mechanism when the Company’s results exceed a certain threshold as ITOCHU introduced a stock compensation scheme that provides a commensurate amount of shares. Through these measures, the participation rate is almost 100%, at the high level rarely seen in Japan. This supports the asset formation of our employees, and successfully links the Company’s performance with their own personal assets, ensuring employees stay attuned to changes in share price and management. In this way, individual employees and the Company will work in unison in an ongoing effort to enhance corporate value going forward.

PDCA Cycle for Promoting Human Resource Strategy

We regularly conduct engagement surveys to capture employee feedback on the company, organization, systems, etc., in order to utilize it for future personnel measures and beyond. Taking the results into consideration, we review human resource strategies, and decide on countermeasures to issues at the Executive Committee. In fiscal years when we do not conduct engagement surveys, we conduct simplified surveys with carefully selected questions to swiftly and accurately assess progress on these measures, report the identified issues, etc. to the Executive Committee, and decide on new measures and improvements. In this way, we assess issues every year and conduct PDCA cycles to promote human resource strategies and make improvements.

In the engagement survey conducted in FYE 2022, we continued to receive a high level of positive responses. Compared with FYE 2019, however, there was a decrease in the figures in cultivation (engagement). After analyzing the factors, we recognized the need to respond to the diverse values of junior and female employees in particular. Therefore, as the second stage of work-style reforms starting from FYE 2023, we evolved the Morning-Focused Working System and introduced the Morning-Focused Flextime System and the work from home system (available to all employees). Recognizing support for junior and mid-career employees and female employees as an issue, ITOCHU will continue implementing various initiatives, such as support for career continuation in consideration of life events. By adhering these measures, ITOCHU will work to further enhance corporate value.

Engagement Survey Results

Major Indicators on Human Resource Strategy