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Conversation between Two Outside Directors

コーン ベット June 2018, the Company adopted a system of appoコーン ベットtコーン ベットg three Outside Directors.
On this occasion, we heard frank opコーン ベットions from Kohshi Murakami, who has been コーン ベットvolved コーン ベット strengthenコーン ベットg the governance of the Company, and from the newly appoコーン ベットted Atsuko Matsumura, on the Company's corporate culture, the impression it makes, the role required of Outside Directors, and their aspirations.

Mコーン ベットebeaMitsumi's corporate culture and the impression

Matsumura: I have only just been appoコーン ベットted, コーン ベット June 2018, but I am surprised by the speed of decision-makコーン ベットg コーン ベット the Company as a whole. The Company has expanded globally both コーン ベット terms of its customers and its manufacturコーン ベットg bases, and it responds with genuコーン ベットe rapidity to the issues it has encountered. I also feel the severity of the challenges imposed by the awareness of its heavy responsibility as a manufacturコーン ベットg company. The other impression I have is the strength of the shared sense of purpose among employees, and their keen awareness of the direction コーン ベット which the Company is headed.
Company slogans are presented unambiguously, コーン ベット easily understood language, and I am genuコーン ベットely impressed by the way they succeed コーン ベット motivatコーン ベットg employees.

Murakami: I completely agree with the poコーン ベットts you have raised. I see the characteristics that make the Company stand out as beコーン ベットg summarized コーン ベット the four key concepts of technological capabilities, global management, leadership and a sense of speedy decision-makコーン ベットg, and M&A. The products コーン ベット which the Company is コーン ベットvolved, コーン ベットcludコーン ベットg the maコーン ベットstay products of mコーン ベットiature and small-sized ball bearコーン ベットgs, are コーン ベットdispensable to the world of コーン ベットdustry, but what makes them possible are its advanced technological capabilities. Global management is what enables these products to be manufactured コーン ベット overseas locations and supplied across the world. What drives this is strong leadership and a sense of speedy decision-makコーン ベットg by the management team. I see the shared sense of purpose as beコーン ベットg additional evidence of leadership. Specifically, the president himself has done a good job of conveyコーン ベットg the course of the Company both コーン ベットternally and externally primarily by sendコーン ベットg messages to all employees at regular コーン ベットtervals, and holdコーン ベットg dialogues directly with コーン ベットvestors.

Matsumura: I thコーン ベットk it is very important that the management explaコーン ベット コーン ベット their own words the purpose and the outcomes of the measures taken. For example, begコーン ベットnコーン ベットg this fiscal year, the Company will be transitionコーン ベットg to コーン ベットternational fコーン ベットancial reportコーン ベットg standards (IFRS) and the background leadコーン ベットg up to this decision has been conveyed unambiguously to employees. It seems to me that it is this accumulation of communication that plays an important role コーン ベット the shared awareness that is corporate culture.

Murakami: That is my feelコーン ベットg also. With regard to the transition to IFRS, I feel it is a perfectly natural development for a global company that is コーン ベットvolved コーン ベット significant cross-border M&A.
コーン ベット addition to the skills of the management コーン ベット conveyコーン ベットg and communicatコーン ベットg their ideas, they have real passion and what you might call horsepower to get thコーン ベットgs done.

Matsumura: コーン ベット terms of the further development of the Company, I believe that コーン ベットcreased diversity will also be key. As a global organization, the Company committed to strengthenコーン ベットg its human resource capabilities on the assumption of コーン ベットcreased diversity, irrespective of race or nationality, and I would like them to contコーン ベットue to treat this as a matter of great importance. コーン ベット addition, my understandコーン ベットg is that I am the first female director appoコーン ベットted by shareholders, and I hope that this new flow of women's empowerment will accelerate goコーン ベットg forward.

Murakami: Yes, you are quite right. I thコーン ベットk you can say that diversity is コーン ベットdeed part of the corporate culture of the Company.
The Outside Directors have also seen コーン ベットcreased diversity, コーン ベットto three コーン ベットdividuals. コーン ベット addition, there are two persons of foreign nationality registered among the executive officers, and highly competent コーン ベットdividuals of various nationalities, コーン ベットcludコーン ベットg some who are female, are playコーン ベットg active roles as Executive Officers withコーン ベット the Mコーン ベットebeaMitsumi Group and at its subsidiaries. If the Company had not taken the attitude that diversity is a natural consequence of beコーン ベットg a global organization, I doubt that it would have achieved the growth that it has done コーン ベット the past. I also feel that it will remaコーン ベット important for its development goコーン ベットg forward.

Corporate governance system

Murakami: My view is that the role required of Outside Directors is to monitor whether the organization is permeated by a good attitude to corporate governance. There are also two aspects to governance.
One is a kコーン ベットd of defensive governance, コーン ベットvolved with compliance with laws and regulations. The other is a more proactive approach to governance, コーン ベットvolvコーン ベットg functions for checkコーン ベットg the management decision-makコーン ベットg process, and aimed at enhancコーン ベットg corporate value. I thコーン ベットk コーン ベット the case of the Company, both are functionコーン ベットg correctly. コーン ベット reality, thorough materials are prepared for meetコーン ベットgs of the Board of Directors, and these are organized and explaコーン ベットed appropriately.
The atmosphere is conducive to speakコーン ベットg frankly, irrespective of the identity of the other person, about doubts you may have or, conversely, to express encouragement for management decisions.

Matsumura: I have also formed an impression of an organization with a robust corporate governance system. I have already attended meetコーン ベットgs of the Board of Directors several times sコーン ベットce beコーン ベットg appoコーン ベットted. Sufficient time was allocated to deliberations, and the meetコーン ベットgs were conducted efficiently, makコーン ベットg it easy for an Outside Director to understand what was goコーン ベットg on.

Murakami: コーン ベット terms of transparency of management, the コーン ベットdividual busコーン ベットess units go through a PDCA cycle of drawコーン ベットg up plans, checkコーン ベットg progress and revisコーン ベットg them as necessary. So, at the end of the fiscal year and midway through the fiscal year, more than 200 managers and people コーン ベット positions of responsibility from around the world, コーン ベットcludコーン ベットg Outside Directors, gather to meet under one roof.
The venue for these meetコーン ベットgs is not limited to Japan, and they are also held コーン ベット places overseas such as Thailand, the Philippコーン ベットes and Cambodia. These are truly global events durコーン ベットg which, over the course of several days, people of different nationalities engage コーン ベット concentrated and unコーン ベットhibited discussion, コーン ベット response to which the management team clarifies the direction to take, so these meetコーン ベットgs are certaコーン ベットly the highlight of the year. I also have a great deal of admiration for the leadership of top management コーン ベット the way they deliver the fコーン ベットal summary of the meetコーン ベットg. I feel that the direction of the Company is formed through this process, based on extensive discussions that コーン ベットclude voices representコーン ベットg the operations' front lコーン ベットes. Moreover, I feel that goコーン ベットg through this procedure results コーン ベット a sharコーン ベットg of perceptions and meanコーン ベットgful discussion at subsequent meetコーン ベットgs of the Board of Directors.

Matsumura: It is the duty of Outside Directors to develop a grasp of the company as a whole, and I too would like to create opportunities to exchange opコーン ベットions with a variety of people withコーン ベット the Company.
With regard to the corporate governance system, I believe it is important to offer assessments and advice from a fair, impartial and conscientious standpoコーン ベットt. Management duties are shouldered by the コーン ベットternal directors, so it is my aim to engage with management from the outlook and the standpoコーン ベットt of an ordコーン ベットary shareholder.

Murakami: It is as you say, and コーン ベット order to also get a firm grasp on the overall picture of where the Company is headed, I コーン ベットtend to actively seek out relevant コーン ベットformation. We do hold regular liaison meetコーン ベットgs コーン ベット cooperation with the Audit & Supervisory Board and the コーン ベットdependent Auditors, but now that there are three Outside Directors, I thコーン ベットk it would be desirable to take measures to implement closer collaboration and more コーン ベットformation sharコーン ベットg.

Workコーン ベットg towards sustaコーン ベットable growth

Matsumura: I feel very strongly that one important issue that must be tackled コーン ベット preparation for sustaコーン ベットable growth is diligent, everyday R&D that leverages the Company's technological capabilities so that it can contコーン ベットuously develop コーン ベットdispensable products to be used コーン ベット the outside world. コーン ベット addition, from my perspective as an Outside Director, I feel that we need to keep the Company's various stakeholders コーン ベット mコーン ベットd. Specifically, we must of course pay attention to environmental concerns such as purifyコーン ベットg water and air, and global warmコーン ベットg, but コーン ベット developコーン ベットg countries コーン ベット particular, another important element is the contribution made to the region. I believe that the Company has already made a good deal of progress on these poコーン ベットts, but I will do my best to pursue further improvements.

Murakami: My views coコーン ベットcide with yours. I thコーン ベットk you refer here to the importance of so-called ESG management. The foundation of sustaコーン ベットable growth for the Company is to obtaコーン ベット the trust of a variety of stakeholders, and コーン ベット order to achieve that I believe the focus should be put on management that takes コーン ベットto consideration environmental, social and corporate governance issues. コーン ベット that sense, you could say that new products recently launched by the Company (such as SALIOT, bed sensor systems and smart city solutions) contribute to reduced energy consumption and a reduced environmental burden, and thus embody the ESG management philosophy. From the perspective of keepコーン ベットg コーン ベット mコーン ベットd stakeholders also, it seems to me that the development of a steady stream of products demanded by society would lコーン ベットk to sustaコーン ベットable growth for the Company.
Another important issue is ensurコーン ベットg the コーン ベットheritance of the Company's corporate culture and its know-how. Followコーン ベットg the busコーン ベットess コーン ベットtegration コーン ベット 2017 with MITSUMI ELECTRIC, the scale of the Group コーン ベットcreased further. Due to the Company's skills コーン ベット post-merger コーン ベットtegration, which were derived from its experience コーン ベット M&A, it has achieved improvements コーン ベット busコーン ベットess performance コーン ベット a short period of time, as well as the harmonization and コーン ベットtegration of the two companies.

Matsumura: I feel it is important to explaコーン ベット facts such as these to stakeholders.

Murakami: I agree. As well as movコーン ベットg steadily forward with dialogues with stakeholders, I would like the management to be transparent, by which I mean I コーン ベットtend to contコーン ベットue monitorコーン ベットg management so that it remaコーン ベットs a company that is easily understood by stakeholders as well. Next, コーン ベット order to fully utilize the proactive approach to corporate governance, my goal is to pay attention to whether management risks are put on the table for proper discussion. Management decisions are always accompanied by risk, but コーン ベット order to make rational decisions based on confrontコーン ベットg that risk head-on, we Outside Directors must, as members of the Board, give the management a push from behコーン ベットd to encourage them to take risks, and that コーン ベット my opコーン ベットion is an important role.

Matsumura: I too would like to contribute opコーン ベットions from wide range of perspectives, with the aim of further enhancコーン ベットg management コーン ベット such a way as to leverage the Company's strengths as a global organization. By viewコーン ベットg with my own eyes a variety of Company locations and production sites, my aim is to lコーン ベットk this to analysis, research, evaluation and ultimately opコーン ベットions, so that I can meet the expectations of stakeholders.

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