Society
Creating an Attractive Workplace
Development of Human Resources—Employee Journeys
Global HR Policy
To support a self-driven career, we have a job-based personnel system in place across the Group. We have implemented various measures in accordance with defined duties and personnel requirements. These human resource management activities follow our Global HR Policy as their fundamental principle.
Diverse Talent Acquisition
Recognizing that innovation comes from diversity in talent, Sysmex Corporation hires people with different experiences and values. Under the slogan of “anywhere, anytime, and anyone,” we hire people throughout the year based on their character, regardless of nationality, race, gender, age, employment history, or disability.
Our recruitment is based on job type and position, allowing applicants to apply in accordance with their specializations or work preferences. We also monitor our efforts to hire job applicants directly from overseas universities1 and set hiring targets by gender2 to actively promote the recruitment of diverse individuals.
Hiring and developing human resources who support our growth strategy is an important aspect of our human capital strategy. We have been investing in human capital, maintaining a balance between the sustainable improvement of value-added productivity (14,760 yen per hour in fiscal 2023) and total labor cost.
- 1 The proportion of employees with foreign citizenship, hired directly from overseas universities, among all new graduates hired: about 13.5% in fiscal 2023
- 2 The proportion of female employees among all new graduates hired: 45.2% in fiscal 2023 and 40% as a target for fiscal 2024
Assignment According to the Needs of Employees and Teams
At Sysmex Corporation, employees are assigned jobs by matching their desires with the requirements of divisions to promote their self-driven career development.
A matching algorithm is used to determine the divisions that new recruits should be assigned to, ensuring that both the recruit’s desires and the requirements of the divisions are considered. As a foundation for self-driven career development, we have also introduced an apprentice system* that allows our employees to undertake new roles. This offers them opportunities to develop their career prospects by broadening their expertise.
These actions yielded significant results in fiscal 2023. The three-year turnover rate for new graduates was 6.5%, and the voluntary turnover rate was 2.6%, achieving our target of less than 3.0%.
- When there is a vacant position, a specified trial period is set for an apprentice so that the employee’s potential for both the position and the team can be determined before formal assignment.
Evaluations and Commendations to Encourage New Attempts and Recognize Achievements
At Sysmex Corporation, we have introduced an evaluation system incorporating the concept of continuous performance management (CPM) to achieve agile responses to changes in the internal and external environment in times of drastic transformation. This system encourages employees to take on challenges by flexibly reviewing their targets and actions in response to changes, without sticking to the original targets that they set at the beginning of the term. We evaluate them based on a point-addition system. It assesses not only individual performance but also organizational culture, human resource development, and team performance, aiming to promote both employee contributions to our business and the growth of individuals and teams. Employees regularly have one-on-one meetings with their supervisors throughout the year. These meetings provide them with opportunities to discuss day-to-day operations and career development, as well as goal setting and evaluation. They assist with individual growth and build mutual trust. In our semiannual Corporate Culture Survey, we assess our employees’ level of confidence in leadership to develop future leaders and improve our organizational culture.
Additionally, our Group CEO Award is given to recognize divisions and teams. It annually honors individuals and teams that contribute significantly to the enhancement of corporate value and that address social issues by practicing the Sysmex Way, our Group corporate philosophy. In line with the establishment of our long-term corporate strategy VA33 and the refinement of our corporate philosophy, we launched the “Challenge & Anshin Award” in fiscal 2023. This award recognizes excellent contributions in five categories (IP･Idea, Eco-Social, Sales & service, Quality, and Operation). To motivate R&D engineers and heighten awareness of intellectual property, we have also introduced the Patent Grand Prize, the Patent Meister designation and the Filing Commemoration Prize.
Training Programs Tailored to Individuals
Sysmex Corporation has a human resource development division in the corporate management domain managed by the members of the Managing Board, senior executive officers, and senior managing directors. To respect diverse working styles and values, this division offers a wide range of learning programs that help employees develop business skills and build career plans based on their aspirations.
Employees can even join some of the programs across national borders through the availability of online courses for learning from home. In fiscal 2023, all employees participated in one of these conducted training programs. The benefits include the growth of individual employees and enhanced productivity through skill improvement and exchanges between participants, resulting in better mutual understanding and cross-functional networks. (Investment in training in fiscal 2023: 83,000 yen per employee.)
Our Corporate Culture Survey indicates that most of the employees support these training programs; 64% of them provided positive responses, noting that they were offered opportunities for growth through such programs. Sysmex Corporation also supports continuous learning by employees of all ages and ranks. Our “smart work” system, intended to facilitate diverse working styles, encourages employees to spend 15 minutes of their daily working hours on self-study. During fiscal 2023, our employees spent an average of 55.3 hours on learning.
Development of Next-Generation Leaders
Developing next-generation leaders is crucial to Sysmex’s human capital strategy for enhancing sustainable corporate value. Since the introduction of a job-based personnel system, we have conducted talent reviews to measure differences between the desired and actual roles of each position. We have also regularly monitored the sufficiency of our talent pool and the availability of successors for senior positions.
For the candidates chosen as successors, we formulate development plans to address individual issues and offer necessary leadership development programs. Among these programs, a selective leadership program for employees with the status of being “ready to be a successor” provides them with opportunities to think from a leader’s perspective, facilitating their promotion to higher positions. In fiscal 2023, on-board training* was undertaken by a total of 2,662 employees, while selective training (for candidates chosen as successors) was undertaken by a total of 157 employees.
In fiscal 2023, we restarted global training, which had been suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, promoting our cross-regional and cross-border efforts to develop global leaders.
- This program aims to retain new members, including recent graduate hires and mid-career hires, and to develop them as valuable members.
Reskilling & Career Shifts
For example, for reskilling in digitalization, we have systematized knowledge and skill sets needed for digital transformation (DX) and offer programs at different levels.
To support those who are to be reassigned at their request, our apprentice system provides a six-month trial period during which such employees can work as apprentices so that their suitability for the position and the team can be determined before formal assignment.
After the expansion of our job-based personnel system to the Group’s affiliated companies, positions in different divisions or Group companies have become more easily comparable based on common grades. Matching employees’ expertise with their preferred areas of work has effectively helped them not only pursue and establish their careers but also build their second careers through reskilling efforts and work experience.
Development of digital human resources
Sysmex started to provide digital human resources development programs for employees in fiscal 2023. These programs define types of digital human resources and level hierarchy for Sysmex based on the digital skill standards (DSS) created by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Information-technology Promotion Agency (IPA). It provides development programs suitable for each combination. In addition, we put forward the idea of cross-reskilling (“experience and knowledge cultivated to date” x “digital technology and knowledge”) and have increased opportunities and options for employees to be widely active in corporate activities. We aim to achieve specific results in active work beyond the learning, such as problem-solving, social contribution, and the like.
As one of the features of this program, we have established a digital human resource type called “Digital Rookie” and provide curricula that allow employees to start learning digital literacy widely without being tied to a specific digital human resource type. Then, we allow employees to choose digital human resource types with which they can make the most of their expertise according to their preferences and skills. In an attempt to improve digital literacy and skills, we have also introduced mechanisms to encourage mutual learning by employees by establishing a community in which employees can teach and help each other. Through these initiatives, a cumulative total of 2,500 employees participated in digital human resources development programs in fiscal 2023.
As part of our human development efforts, we also dispatched employees to our joint research partner, the University of Tokyo Market Design Center (UTMD), providing them with the opportunity to participate in studies on matching theory and market design.
Sysmex is developing an environment in which employees who have learned digital literacy and employees with advanced expertise have a common language, and digital transformation (DX) initiatives are spontaneously undertaken.
Training for Research and Development Personnel
In addition, as educational programs for R&D personnel, we also provide a wide range of curricula, including specialized engineer education programs in which participants inherit our unique technology and acquire new technology, integral training so that participants can learn the essence of technology for coordinating diagnostic agents and detection devices, and educational programs in which participants study international standard project management methods, and the like. We are committed to the development of all R&D personnel.
Sysmex EMEA Campus
For all employees in the EMEA region*, Sysmex has established the EMEA Campus, a training space offering various online and offline training programs. The EMEA Campus plans lectures and workshops on various themes, including skills for general business and technical abilities, with the goal of developing future leaders, enhancing skills, and creating internal networks. For managers, “Ready to Lead,” a customized leadership training program, was set up to help them master team management skills. Other diverse programs are available on such subjects as human resource development, coaching, and reverse mentoring to support the acquisition of skills needed for leadership.
- EMEA: Europe, the Middle East, and Africa
Other Human Resource Development Programs
| Company | Program/Measure | Objectives/Overview |
|---|---|---|
| Sysmex Corporation | “Monozukuri ” Professional Training Activities | They promote the development of human resources for manufacturing as one of our production reforms. They provide training for new employees and develop human resources with the ability to guide the next generation of those engaged in monozukuri (manufacturing). Training offers necessary skills for those who will become multifunctional workers, as well as technical knowledge necessary for monozukuri. |
| DX Literacy Education | It offers DX literacy training to develop skills to effectively use AI and other emerging technologies for the purpose of developing new ways to use data, increasing operational efficiency, and implementing innovations. | |
| Sysmex America | Sysmex University | It is a training program for all employees in the United States, Canada, and Latin America that combines online and offline sessions. It offers courses focusing on wide-ranging subjects, including business skills (e.g., leadership skills and project management), specialized skills, and mentoring. |
| Sysmex Management Academy | It is a six-month training for selected personnel, including newly appointed managers. It aims to strengthen management skills by providing insight into the roles and responsibilities of Sysmex management. | |
| Sysmex Europe | Sysmex Academy | It offers programs in which trainees acquire product-related and medical knowledge. It aims to increase trainees’ specialized knowledge and develop trainers for customer training. |
| Sysmex Shanghai | Sysmex Shanghai University | Online training is provided for all employees. The initiative started in fiscal 2019 to support professional employee growth. |
| Sysmex Asia Pacific | LinkedIn Learning | It offers around 100 online training courses using a social media platform (LinkedIn) for all employees. It is designed for trainees to acquire and improve skills such as management, leadership, critical thinking, business analysis, and data analysis. |
| Sysmex Academy | It offers online programs in which trainees acquire medical and product-related knowledge. |
Talent Management Utilizing Advanced Technology
Specifically, we promote talent management by developing an environment in which employees can work flexibly in accordance with the nature of their work and their lifestyles (such as by introducing a remote work plan and providing online training), assisting their autonomous career formation through the utilization of matching algorithms, providing real-time feedback on employee engagement surveys, and utilizing other advanced technologies.
Sysmex Receives “Human Capital Leaders 2023” and “Human Capital Management Quality 2023 Gold” Awards for its Commitment to Excellent Human Capital Management and Information Disclosure
Sysmex Corporation received “Human Capital Leaders 2023” and “Human Capital Management Quality 2023 Gold” awards at the “Human Capital Survey 2023*,” which was organized and implemented jointly by HR Technology Consortium, GIA., HR Research Institute, and MS&AD InterRisk Research & Consulting, Inc. Sysmex has thus been highly praised for proceeding with initiatives that view human capital investment as a medium- to long-term investment and implementing scientific approaches, such as setting indicators for investment and returns and verifying them using in-house data.
- Special website for Human Capital Leaders 2023: https://www.hrpro.co.jp/human_capital_survey/2023/