Establishing global governance while taking advantage of the strength of corporate culture
In March 2016, I was appointed as an Outside Director and the fiscal year 2019 is my fourth year. During this period, I realized that discussions at meetings of the Board of Directors have become active over the years. In the past, discussions were made focusing on questions and answers from only one point of view, but recently discussions have been made from many different perspectives. In addition, a variety of opinions are expressed by Outside Officers who have different backgrounds and expertise. Furthermore, Outside Officers can attend meetings of the Board of Directors with a full understanding of the details of agenda thanks to clear explanations provided before the meeting is held.
In recent years, Kuraray has rapidly expanded its global business, but it seems that there is still room to improve the control by the Head Office over its overseas operations.
I believe that improving the level of governance while supporting the optimization of local management according to the circumstances of each country is the key point for Kuraray to be recognized as a real global company. Moreover, the spirit of “For people and the planet—to achieve what no one else can” that is declared in the corporate statement is the greatest strength that Kuraray has cultivated. I believe that spreading the spirit, which demonstrates simultaneous development of both this enterprise and society, throughout local management will lead to the global development of Kuraray.
Last December, the Company established the Corporate Advisory Committee, which is comprised of Outside Officers and outside experts. Through experience as an Outside Director, I fully understood the role of the President and its weight of responsibility in the process of management. The Corporate Advisory Committee will properly discuss the election and dismissal process of the President, as well as the development of human resources who will be successors.
Provide support for further efforts from the sustainability perspective from the standpoint of an Outside Corporate Auditor
I will fulfill my duties as an Outside Corporate Auditor and contribute to the development of the Company using my knowledge and experience from a standpoint that is different from that of a Standing Corporate Auditor who has an advanced knowledge of Kuraray’s business and the ability to gather information, through analysis and evaluation as well as by expressing opinions from mainly three perspectives.
Firstly, an outside perspective referring to values of other business sectors and categories that are significantly different from Kuraray’s corporate culture. Secondly, a global development perspective based on my experience, where I have engaged in overseas business over the years. Thirdly, the perspective of finance as a person having experience in banking and securities businesses, which promotes a dialogue between Kuraray and the capital market.
I believe that Kuraray is an honest Company group where employees are loyal to the Company and have a mindset of contributing to society. The Company has established a robust corporate governance framework, but it should continue to improve systems such as compliance, quality assurance and its system to deal with serious accidents or natural disasters, as well as strengthen internal controls and improve the reasonableness of management judgments. I hope that taking in different outside perspectives helps the Company strengthen its governance system.
Looking at the capital market, these efforts for taking in the sustainability perspective, which focuses also on such governance aspects, are currently vital, and so I believe that my experience in the financial industry might be helpful for Kuraray to promote a dialogue with the capital market. I will contribute to the development of Kuraray by fulfilling the role of an Outside Corporate Auditor.
