Social Human Resource Development and Empowerment

Our group considers talent development and career advancement to be a priority management issue. We develop diverse human resources to support the group’s future growth and also put significant effort into building an organization capable of maximizing the vitality of its human resources.

Human resource strategies for enhancing corporate value

According to our founder, “The foundation of the business is people.” We recognize the need to make the most of each other’s strengths while respecting the values of every employee to continue meeting the diversifying needs of our customers amid the rapid pace of globalization. We will develop workplaces where employees can flourish and will seek to maximize the strengths of the group’s human resources by hiring and developing diverse talent. We will support the themes of “Challenges for Change” and “Promoting Regional Management” under the 5th Mid-Term Management Plan from a human resources perspective and strive for sustainable improvement in our corporate value.

Desired Candidate Profile

With the aim of realizing Vision 2030, “Transforming a diverse range of surfaces with chemistry,” and based on the image of an ideal employee, our group is pursuing transformation into an organization that continues to grow and into a company where diverse human resources can thrive. Accordingly, we are continuously investing in human capital. Our image of an ideal employee is summarized in the three qualities described above.
1) Able to keep changing in line with the changes of the times.
2) Highly specialized, resilient to environmental change and self-discipline.
3) Have a global perspective, examine different ideas and technologies from around the world, learn in a self-directed manner and put them to practical use.

Key initiatives for human capital

1. Developing globally competent human resources

Within our group, more than 80 Japanese employees have been assigned to overseas group companies. Our group’s overseas sales ratio exceeds 40%, and the development of globally competent human resources is becoming increasingly important. We aim to operate globally and to expand business through close ties with regions. We will seek to develop global staff by increasing domestic and international exchanges while stepping up the development of local staff at overseas sites. Globally competent human resources are those who, through sound knowledge backed by experience, problem-solving skills and effective communication, can provide support. They are capable of leading the way in achieving targets in both domestic and international settings. We are strategically promoting the hiring and development of those global human resources.

Key Initiatives

• Enhancing language training aimed at strengthening speaking skills
• Supporting early participation in overseas business through overseas training for young employees
• Providing training in Japan for the local technical staff of overseas group companies
• Increasing motivation by improving the working conditions of expatriates living overseas

Training and Education System

Our group has developed a structured training system tailored to each employee’s stage of growth and is advancing systematic human resource development. In particular, we emphasize cultivating the next generation of leaders who will play a central role in the company’s future management, and we promote their capability development through a well-designed, comprehensive training program.

Our Training Programs

• Capacity building training programs/list of training programs
  We offer various training programs tailored to employees’ duties and job classes.
• Training of new graduates
  In the group training provided immediately after joining the company, new graduates learn the mental attitude they should have as working members of society, basic business etiquette, and knowledge needed to work for our company, among other information. Then, they receive onsite training at laboratories, sales offices, and plants. After they are assigned to a department, senior people mentor them in on-the-job training (OJT), and new graduates learn about their duties as they gain practical experience.
• Mentoring training
  We have introduced this training program, in which trainees learn frames of mind and critical points needed for mentoring and developing new employees and understand the importance of mentoring junior colleagues in the workplace and how to engage with them as mentors.
• Career paths
  We assign, develop, and transfer employees based on their capabilities and aptitudes and implement career development measures so that they can grow personally and live up to their potential while gaining experience and skills.
• Internal TOEIC program
  We have a program under which employees who have fulfilled specific requirements can take the TOEIC IP Test.
• Language training
  As pre-assignment training for expatriates, we provide language training to help them acquire language skills.

• Qualification acquisition incentive system
  To support employees’ personal development, we incentivize employees who have acquired qualifications.

• In-house recruitment system
  We have a system under which we recruit employees who will widely specialize in specific operations from within the company to provide opportunities for them to demonstrate their capabilities proactively and develop a willingness to take on new challenges, among other purposes.
• IIn-house commendation system
  We have introduced an in-house commendation system to enhance employee motivation. The method includes the president’s award granted to individuals, groups, and business sites that have significantly contributed to the improvement of the performance of the company’s business or the development of its business and category awards for new developments, sales and technological developments, cost reduction activities, and other activities. An award certificate and a monetary reward are granted to each winner.

Number of Hours Allocated to Employee Capacity-Building Training

The number of hours allocated to capacity-building training for our employees was as follows.

We primarily conduct training through in-person sessions, using online formats when necessary to ensure employees can participate in a safe, comfortable learning environment. Through these efforts, we provide employees with the most suitable opportunities and a learning and development environment.    

2. Promoting Active Participation of Diverse Talent

Our group is committed to promoting diversity by respecting each employee’s individuality and enabling them to maximize their potential.
We promote flexible and diverse working styles that allow all employees to demonstrate their abilities, regardless of age, gender, or personal circumstances, such as childcare or nursing care responsibilities.
We continue to develop systems and workplace environments that help them balance their work and personal lives, supporting employees in continuing their careers under various circumstances and enabling them to choose working styles that fit their individual lifestyles. Recognizing the promotion of women’s participation and advancement as one of our key management priorities, we have set a goal of achieving a 10% ratio of women in managerial positions by 2030. For section chiefs and other employees who are potential future management candidates, we offer training programs to enhance key competencies required for managerial roles, such as decision-making, organizational management, and consensus-building. These initiatives reinforce our efforts to cultivate the skills steadily necessary for effective leadership. By fostering a workplace environment that enables employees of all genders to balance work and childcare, we will continue to actively promote these initiatives.

Promotion of Diversity: Initiatives and Achievements

1) Promoting the career advancement of female employees

We set a target of having 10% of our managerial-level employees be female by 2030, believing that advancing the career of female employees is a critical managerial issue we face. Employees at the assistant manager level who are considered candidates for managerial positions receive training to improve their decision-making, organizational management, consensus-building, and other skills required for managerial positions. We provide these employees with strong career development support to help them steadily acquire managerial skills. We aim to actively drive these initiatives by developing workplaces where both male and female employees can balance work and childcare.

Initiatives	Results
Improving hiring and retention rates In addition to striving to hire more women, we are taking measures to improve the retention rate, such as promoting shorter working hours for childcare and teleworking so that even employees who have time and space constraints due to childcare can work flexibly.	FY 2024 Number of female new graduates: 2 (of 22) Number of females hired mid-career: 0 (of 19) Total: 2 (of 41) Percentage of newly hired female employees: 4.80%
Career development support and work-life balance support In April 2022, we held the “Parker Group Special Lecture Meeting for Promoting Active Participation of Women” for female employees and their male superiors to encourage female employees to develop further and demonstrate their capabilities. We invited a female officer of one of our trading partners who is active at the forefront of corporate activities to speak about their careers and how they face their work. We also provide new managers with training related to unconscious bias and diversity management to develop a workplace culture that facilitates employees’ healthy balance of work and their family lives. We will continue to examine measures and support systems related to the active participation of women and promote diversity, aiming to be a company where diverse human resources can participate actively.	FY 2024 Percentage of female employees (excluding dispatched employees): 17.30% Percentage of female mangers included in the above: 2.60% * As of March 31, 2025
Promotion of paternity leave for male employees The percentage of male employees taking paternity leave in FY 2024 increased sharply to 55.6%, reflecting the introduction of partially paid paternity leave and improvement in the corporate culture. By sharing the experiences of male and female employees who have taken childcare leave and their superiors and colleagues, to foster greater understanding in the workplace and encourage an environment where employees feel comfortable taking childcare leave, we will continue to evolve into a supportive group where employees can balance their work and family lives.
Award for companies promoting the career advancement of female employees We received the Excellence Award in the Corporate Category of “WOMAN'S VALUE AWARD ~Supporting the Women in STEM~ 2024,” hosted by the Japan Women's Value Training Association. This award honors companies and individuals who support women in STEM. To lay the foundations for ongoing women’s career advancement, we are working to increase the number of women recruited.	FY 2024 “WOMAN’s VALUE AWARD – Supporting Women in Science and Engineering 2024” Received the Excellence Award (Corporate Category) See the Award Recipient Page
Received the Second-Level Eruboshi Certification (Two Stars) In recognition of our initiatives based on Japan’s Act on Promotion of Women’s Participation and Advancement in the Workplace, we have received the second-level Eruboshi Certification (two stars) from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. The Eruboshi Certification is a program that evaluates corporate initiatives in five categories: recruitment, continued employment, working hours, ratio of women in managerial positions, and diverse career paths. We received this certification after meeting the required standards in multiple evaluation categories. We will continue to promote the development of a workplace environment in which diverse talent can fully demonstrate their abilities, and further strengthen our diversity initiatives, including the advancement of women in the workplace.

2. Initiatives for the Employment of Persons with Disabilities

We actively employ individuals with a strong desire to grow and take on new challenges, regardless of whether or not they have disabilities. Employees with disabilities are engaged in various roles and making valuable contributions across our business sites nationwide.
To provide a more inclusive and accessible working environment, we are progressively implementing barrier-free improvements at our offices and factories. We are also working toward achieving an employment rate of 2.7% for persons with disabilities by the end of FY 2030.

FY 2024 Employment Rate of Persons with Disabilities: 2.5%
* As of the end of March 2025

Initiatives

Results

Introducing farm-based employment services for people with disabilities We introduced a farm-type service to employ people with disabilities, offering workplaces where they can work energetically. Harvested vegetables are donated to nonprofit organizations and are provided to local consumers at food pantries. This is just one of the ways we contribute to society and the regions where we operate. In Diversity & Inclusion training, employees experience working alongside people with disabilities on the farm. The training aims to instill a greater understanding of disability and diversity through natural communication.

FY 2024 Employment Rate of Persons with Disabilities 2.5%

(2) Other initiatives

Basic Approach to Recruitment

Nihon Parkerizing Group’s basic policy is to respect human rights and conduct recruitment activities without discrimination based on race, religion, gender, age, nationality, language, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, and other attributes. We select and hire candidates fairly and equitably by eliminating matters unrelated to vocational aptitude and job performance from the factors considered during selection. We believe hiring people with diverse values, backgrounds, and skills will lead to innovations and the sustainable growth and development of the Group and society.

Employee engagement

We conducted an Employee Attitude Survey to identify the actual state of employee satisfaction and the issues that need to be addressed to further improve it. Compared to the previous study, we confirmed that satisfaction with training in skills and know-how, internal development systems, and contribution and discretion in work has improved. We will use the results of the survey to create a workplace where employees can feel fulfilled and work as the most important source of corporate activities.