Human Resources Development

The Sumitomo Spirit is the foundation and standard of judgment for all Group employees in all of our business activities.
Our Group places the Sumitomo Spirit at the core of its human resource development, and conducts regular training for all employees, including new hires, using the video "Our Sumitomo Spirit" to ensure that the philosophy is widely understood.

Based on the belief that “there is no business strategy better than human resource development,” the Sumitomo Riko Group aims to develop human resources who possess the character and knowledge appropriate for employees of our Group and who can play an active role on a global scale. To achieve this goal, we are expanding educational content and providing a variety of learning opportunities to enable employees to acquire the knowledge and skills required at each stage of their careers.

We have established a company-wide education system consisting of four areas: “Selective Education for next-generation executive candidates,” “Global Human Resource Development,” “Specialized Education for each Division,” and “Company-Wide Cross-Sectional Education,” and provide education to a wide range of employees. In FY2024, we focused on reviewing and optimizing the education system that has been in place since 2022, as well as analyzing the current situation and providing educational opportunities for the issues identified in order to improve the education for the next generation.

Sumitomo Riko Company-wide Education System Chart

For the sustainable growth of our company, we are focusing on the development of leaders who will lead the next generation. In the Sumitomo Riko EMP re-co (Executive Management Program), one of our programs for next-generation executive candidates, in addition to improving conventional leadership skills, we have newly implemented training to strengthen decision-making capabilities for promoting global management and fostered the ability to make management decisions from a more international perspective.
In addition, the Mirai Create Program (MCP), a management school, is designed to develop more future-oriented leaders. In FY2024, we focused our activities on the creation of new business models for our sustainable growth, with an emphasis on training on the themes of innovation and organizational transformation. We will continue to expand our training programs and strengthen the development of the next-generation management executives.

Focus Area	Indicators	Actual Results (FY2023)	Actual Results (FY2024)	Target (2023-2025 cumulative)
Strengthening management education	Number of participants in executive training (Sumitomo Riko EMP re-co/ Management School MCP/Young Human Resources Development Program)	31 persons	32 persons	100 persons

Securing and developing human resources to drive DX is positioned as one of the most important issues for our group. In FY2024, we focused on providing educational opportunities for DX human resources.
The concept of DX human resources education is "visualization and cycle.” First, a DX assessment is conducted for DX personnel. We have prepared an environment where each participant can clearly envision his/her own career in DX based on an understanding of his/her strengths and weaknesses. We have also prepared educational content that enables the development of strengths and overcoming of weaknesses, and created a learning environment in which the target group can learn and grow autonomously. On the other hand, it is not easy to create results through self-directed learning and the practical application of acquired knowledge.
Therefore, we have also expanded our support system by establishing an internal SNS where employees can easily consult with us about their studies, holding biannual results presentations, and sharing best practices internally via our intranet site. As a result, 693 employees have taken the assessment in the form of candidacy rather than nomination, and 337 employees have taken the DX training course. In addition, we are supporting key personnel who are leading DX initiatives to obtain IT Passport certifications, and approximately 50 employees have obtained IT Passport certifications. In addition, we are continuing to expand and improve educational videos on digital technology, and are working to create an environment in which the entire organization can raise the level of DX capabilities.
Until now, we have mainly provided services to employees who voluntarily wish to grow into DX human resources. In fiscal 2025, however, we will approach the employees who drive our business, and by promoting the “creation of human resources” and “creation of an environment” that will enable the entire company to work together to promote DX, we will contribute to the realization of the 2029 Sumitomo Riko Group Vision (2029V) through DX.

Focus Area	Indicators	Actual Results (FY2024)	Target (2023-2025 cumulative）
DX Human Resources Development	DX core personnel training	DX education participants 2,333 persons*	200 persons
	DX data analyst training		700 persons

*In FY2024, we focused on identifying and fostering future DX human resource candidates by providing a wide range of educational opportunities without dividing core and data analysis personnel.

From FY2024, we have introduced a new program called “Lecture by Overseas Assignment Advisor” as part of our education program prior to overseas assignment.
This program is an interactive training session where participants can feel free to discuss their concerns and questions about overseas assignments with advisors who have abundant practical experiences. The program has received high evaluation from participants, who commented that the opportunity to hear specific advice based on real-life experiences “reduced my anxiety,” and "the real-life stories were very helpful.”
We plan to continue this program in the future so that those who will be posted overseas can take on the challenges of a new environment with peace of mind.

In FY2024, we offered an English language program to all applicants in order to develop global human resources. This program enables interactive English learning with characters utilizing AI technology. By having an AI as a conversation partner, the program realizes a new learning style in which students can practice English conversation without being restricted by time or place, and without worrying about nervousness or mistakes. This system has also helped create an environment where people can work on improving their skills on their own initiative.
As a result, 473 employees participated in the program, showing a more casual and continuous effort to improve their English skills while balancing it with their daily work.

For key personnel, we created a new education system and promoted the provision of educational opportunities with the aim of developing leaders who can lead the organization while transforming themselves in a rapidly changing business environment. The training program included lectures focusing on mindset. The content was designed to promote understanding of the environment surrounding the company and their role in responding to that environment. The program also sought to improve engagement by providing opportunities for dialogue with top management and discussion among participants.
This new educational program helped participants strongly recognize the need for self-transformation and fostered their awareness that they must continue to learn and grow together with their peers.

For career-track employees, we have renewed our education system, focusing on ① developing portable skills that are important for each grade level and ② providing learning opportunities in line with each individual's learning challenges.
Regarding ①, training is provided to each promoted employee to acquire skills appropriate to their expected role. The training is based on “logical thinking” and covers a wide range of themes such as “communication skills” and "problem-solving skills.” As leaders of teams, employees will learn how to communicate with members and external stakeholders, and how to think about what they should do as leaders, in order to broaden the scope of their work and improve the quality of their results.
Regarding ②, we have introduced a system that allows employees to set their own tasks and learn on their own, with the aim of “breaking away from uniform education,” which is required by companies these days, and “developing autonomous human resources” in accordance with our 2029V. Specifically, we are creating an environment where employees can learn continuously and autonomously by visualizing their own abilities and skills through assessments, and by developing e-learning programs covering a wide range of learning themes. We will continue to promote education that takes into account the external and internal environment.

To support autonomous career development, a new education system for clerical personnel has been developed under the theme of "Carve out your own career with your own hands.”
Under the new education system, in addition to conventional training for promoted employees, we have introduced a new “needs-specific training” program to meet individual needs. In an increasingly diverse business environment and changing times, the skills required and the skills that people want to hone differ from person to person. We aim to strengthen the skills of each participant according to his or her individual interests and challenges.
This initiative, which took shape in response to the voices of those in the field who wanted to “improve their skills” and “broaden their experience,” was attended by 100 employees. The training was designed to encourage all who wished to participate to take the course and apply what they learned to their work so that they can play a more active role in their respective positions.

For technical personnel, we focused on the Sumitomo Riko Group as a whole, and received many participants from each Group company for each training course. In addition, by making the training face-to-face in principle, we were able to create a secondary effect of training participation by providing an opportunity for active communication and awareness through contact with members of other workplaces. In addition, as a new system of training for supervisory positions, role-playing training was conducted for the purpose of “consensus building with related parties as a leader” in the new-supervisor training. And factory manager training included “problem-solving and problem-setting to improve engagement in the workplace,” and participants' satisfaction with the training also improved.
Based on the results of FY2024, we will actively incorporate training on the thinking side at each level in FY2025 toward the goal of technical and supervisory positions, and promote the development of human resources who are willing to reform the manufacturing site.