Human Resources Development

Regarding “The Sumitomo Spirit,” which is at the core of our human resources development, we provide regular training for all employees including new hires, using a video titled “Our Sumitomo Spirit.”

We provide a wide range of training programs for our employees, aiming to develop human resources who have the appropriate character and knowledge as employees of the Group and who can play an active role on a global scale.

As for education initiatives for career-track employees, an education program based on "logical thinking" is now in its third year of introduction, with a greater focus on "communication skills" in consideration of internal issues and employee needs. In addition, in order to strengthen the education of our younger employees, we have begun introducing content that allows employees to learn languages (Japanese and English), IT, and financial knowledge, which are essential for business people, on a voluntary and ongoing basis. Aiming to develop employees into full-fledged professionals within three years of joining the company, we provide training by on-the-job trainers and continue company-wide regular dialogue with trainers and supervisors at workplaces.
For clerical staff, career training and lectures for all clerical staff by age and rank in a systematic manner were conducted to support autonomous career development. E-learning programs such as "data analysis" have also been actively introduced, with the aim of acquiring skills that will lead to more efficient operations and the provision of added value.
In addition to the promoted technical staff, we have repeatedly provided detailed training for current employees, and have been able to offer training opportunities to a wide range of personnel. We are focusing on the early development of the next generation of management executives who will be responsible for the future of Sumitomo Riko. We are strengthening our human resource development by systematically developing selective training programs for young employees and candidates for the next generation of executives. For managers (technical staff), we started training for candidates for managerial positions, such as pre-supervisory training, and also conducted periodic follow-up training on the themes of communication and policy management after they actually assumed the position of manager.

We have launched a new education system aimed at developing leaders who can lead the organization while transforming themselves in a rapidly changing business environment. In the first year, a lecture focusing on mindset was implemented, and the content was designed to promote an understanding of the environment surrounding the company and their role in responding to that environment. In addition to making participants keenly aware of the need for self-transformation, the lecture helped foster an awareness that they must continue to learn and grow together with their peers.

In order to strongly promote human resource development, we believe it is essential to understand the skills gap between the present and the future that we are aiming for. Therefore, in the first year of the initiative, we conducted a skill check test for key personnel.  Based on the results, we have promoted support for autonomous learning and the development of educational content suitable for employees. In the future, we intend to expand the scope of the program to include re-skilling and relearning opportunities.

We expanded E-learning content that contributes to the development of personalities appropriate for the Group's employees, such as by having all promoted employees view a learning video aimed at instilling our corporate philosophy “the Sumitomo Spirit”, and by distributing video content of lectures by executives for administrative staff to promote stronger role recognition. We also started company-wide distribution of an e-learning program titled "IT Basic Education" with the aim of accelerating corporate transformation through DX.