Society

Increasing Engagement

Setting Employee Engagement as an Important Indicator of Our Corporate Strategy

Engagement score
Every year, Sysmex conducts a Corporate Culture Survey of all employees across the Group. The survey found the Group’s engagement score for fiscal 2023 was 75%. This score is on par with those of the Fortune 500 companies, and high employee engagement is a key driver for the Group’s growth. Having set employee engagement as an important indicator in our “Long-Term Corporate Strategy 2033,” initiated in fiscal 2023, we promote innovation and improve productivity across the Group.
The engagement score of Sysmex Corporation for fiscal 2023 was 65%. To improve the engagement of employees in Japan, who account for about 40% of the Group’s employees, we have been implementing and monitoring action plans to improve employees’ support of the corporate philosophy (70% in fiscal 2023) and their satisfaction in terms of well-being (57% in fiscal 2023). We have also introduced pulse surveys conducted in shorter intervals to understand the progress of measures and promote initiatives to incorporate employee input rapidly.
In fiscal 2023, as a new measure to promote in-house communication, we introduced a web service called Sysmex Peer Bonus, through which employees can mutually send messages of gratitude, encouragement, greetings, etc., with tips and receive rewards in points. We strive to create an attractive workplace in which everyone can work comfortably, based on the concept of “making work more enjoyable.”
Confidence in Leadership, Well-being, Sysmex Way

Monitoring the Effects of Human Capital Investment

Sysmex aims to balance value-added productivity* and employee engagement. As indicators of the effects of human capital investment, we set value-added productivity and employee engagement scores and monitor them continually.
The value-added productivity per employee of Sysmex Corporation for fiscal 2023 reached a record high of 14,800 yen per hour, which demonstrates the effectiveness of our human capital investment. The return on human capital investment (operating profit divided by labor cost) also reached a record high of 167.9%. These results are accomplished as high levels of employee engagement are maintained and employees are willing to take on new tasks. Our action plans to foster an organizational culture that balances value-added productivity and employee engagement have been producing consistent outcomes.

  • (Operating profit + labor cost + human capital depreciation)/working hours

Joint Achievement of Comfortable Working and Productivity Enhancement

Working from home
Sysmex Corporation has introduced a “smart work” system to respect the diversity of individual employees, as well as to respond to the “new normal” business environment and realize productivity enhancement.
It adopts a hybrid workstyle combining onsite (office) and remote (from home, etc.) work. In addition, we promote time management to realize a strong work-life balance by allowing our employees to combine flextime, staggered office hours, and “stepping out from work” according to their business duties and individual lifestyles. As a result of these efforts, the percentage of fathers taking childcare leave was 62% in fiscal 2022 and 61% in fiscal 2023, meaning that we achieved our target of 60% for two consecutive years.

Promotion of taking paid leave and financial well-being

Sysmex Corporation uses various measures to encourage employees to take paid leave. They include the introduction of recommended dates for paid leave and a half-day paid leave system. Other measures include allowances paid under the “Cafeteria Plan1” (our welfare program) to employees who take consecutive paid leave days for travel, leisure, or courses at culture centers. In fiscal 2023, in consideration of recent price increases, we strengthened investment in human resources that support the improvement of employee wellbeing engagement and continuous corporate growth pursuant to the Multi-Stakeholder Policy. When paying winter bonuses, we implemented a special payment2 in the form of employee stock ownership, separately from regular bonuses.

  • 1 The Company provides employees with cafeteria points every year. Employees can select and use the benefits they prefer from a menu of various benefits (childcare and nursing care support, health support, self-development, etc.) depending on their lifestyle and needs.
  • 2 The Company expended incentives to contributions as part of the Sysmex Employee Stock Ownership Plan to support employees in building assets. For the special winter bonus in fiscal 2023, each employee was given the right to choose between stock and cash.

Supporting a Balance between Work and Child-Rearing

Sysmex Corporation has introduced several programs to provide family support, from prenatal care to child-rearing. These programs include leave for parenting, fertility treatment or morning sickness, a spouse’s childbirth, and the nursing of children. When childcare leave expires after an employee’s child turns two years of age, employees are entitled to reduced working hours and a work-from-home program until the child enters junior high school. We support employees returning to work after childcare leave, including with seminars before their return, as well as distribution of newsletters (including the Diversity Newsletter) to employees on childcare leave. Technopark, our R&D site, has an in-house daycare center called Sysmex Kids Park. It is also available for temporary use when employees’ spouses work part-time, children’s guardians are sick, or an employee is arranging a funeral. Through such support, we encourage all employees who desire to return to work after childcare leave to do so.
In recognition of such initiatives, we have received next-generation support certification (with a logo nicknamed “Kurumin”*) as a “company that supports child-rearing” from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. In fiscal 2023, we were also selected as a “Next Nadeshiko: Companies Supporting Dual-career and Co-parenting” by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Tokyo Stock Exchange. This program recognizes companies that make particularly outstanding efforts to support dual-career and co-parenting.

  • Based on the Act on Advancement of Measures to Support Raising Next-Generation Children, companies that formulate business plans as general business operators, meet the targets designated by such plans, and satisfy certain standards may receive Kurumin certification as companies “that support child-rearing” from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
  • Sysmex Kids Park (Japan)
    The “Sysmex Kids Park” in-house childcare center
  • Next-generation support certification logo (Kurumin)
    The “Kurumin” next-generation support certification logo
  • Next Nadeshiko: Companies Supporting Dual-career and Co-parenting
    Granted “Next Nadeshiko: Companies Supporting Dual-career and Co-parenting” awarded (fiscal 2023)

Stakeholderʼs Voice

Wonderful Moments: Connecting the Past and the Future
Kids Park Director, Ms. Kyotani

As part of Hyogo Prefecture's "Try-Yaru Week"*, we welcomed junior high school students for a childcare experience. We were extremely delighted to have the graduates of Kids Park return to our facility. Over the past 14 years, various staff members have spent time with the children, and we are honored to have shared such wonderful moments. It was a moment that made us feel the connection between the past and the future.
On the final day, we saw off the two students with cheers, as if it were their second graduation ceremony, celebrating their new journey. As childcare providers, we hope that the time spent at Kids Park will be a source of strength for all those who have graduated.
We also hope that this experience serves as a good opportunity for the parents of our current children to imagine the future growth of their own children.

Trial week
  • This is part of an educational program that helps junior high school students in Hyogo Prefecture find their own way of life through various experiential activities in the community, such as work experience and welfare experience

Encouraging Male Employees to Take Childcare Leave

GUIDEBOOK

Sysmex Corporation implements measures to increase the number of male employees taking childcare leave. These measures include the distribution of Dad's Childcare Leave Guidebook and the organization of seminars for male employees and their supervisors, inviting external lecturers. At the seminar, lectures were given and opinions were exchanged about the importance of men being involved in parenting, work-life balance, and the essentials of childcare, in addition to appropriate support by supervisors to allow male employees to take childcare leave.

Stakeholder’s Voice

Hayato Aoki, Reagent Engineering

At the time I took childcare leave, I was a development leader. In addition to two months of childcare leave, I took more than three months off in total, including paid leave and special leave for events such as weddings and funerals. By participating in childcare, I was able to experience my child's growth, and at home, the bond of cooperative parenting was strengthened. After taking childcare leave, I encouraged my colleagues to take childcare leave as well, based on my own experience. Recently, there has been an increase in the number of men in our department taking childcare leave.

Hayato Aoki, Reagent Engineering

Systems to Support Work-Life Balance

Support for continuing employment and promoting social contribution activities

Sysmex Corporation has introduced a program where employees can take up to 40 days of short-term nursing care leave and accumulated paid leave in half-day increments when they need to accompany family members who are hospitalized. We also have a work-at-home system that enables employees to care for their family members who require nursing care or other types of support. In addition, we have an income indemnity system for employees on nursing care leave lasting one month or longer and a program for re-employment of those whose careers have been interrupted by nursing care. In order to promote our nursing care systems, we hold seminars on nursing care every year to explain how to prepare when a family member requires care and to hear the experiences of the employees who have used the system.
In addition, we have a leave of absence and re-employment program designed to offer a wide range of opportunities for employees who leave our employment due to their spouses’ overseas assignments or for other personal reasons so that they can return to work.
Volunteer leave and donor leave programs are also available as support systems intended to make it easier for employees to take leave for particular purposes.

Activities at Group Companies

Our Group companies also engage in various initiatives to provide a comfortable working environment.
The companies in the EMEA region1 have all received the Great Place to Work2 award for their excellent workplace environments and employee satisfaction. At Sysmex UK, all managers have completed training on well-being so that emphasis is placed on the health of each and every employee and a positive work-life balance is ensured for all employees. Sysmex South Africa is expanding systems to support a balance between work and child-rearing. The efforts include the incorporation of a maternity policy into its human resources policies and a guarantee of four months of paid maternity leave. Additionally, Sysmex Spain and Sysmex Portugal have been selected by El Mundo as two of the “100 Best Companies to Work For.”

  • 1 Sysmex EU: Sysmex Deutschland, Sysmex Belgium, Sysmex Netherland, Sysmex Turkey, Sysmex Austria, Sysmex UK, and Sysmex France
  • 2 Rankings of companies announced by Great Place to Work (GPTW), a research institute that specializes in studies and analyses of corporate employee job satisfaction. GPTW publishes in influential media the names of companies and organizations in about 60 countries that have been judged to meet certain standards.
Great Place To Work 2022-2023
Employees of Sysmex Belgium and Sysmex Netherlands
Employees of Sysmex Belgium and Sysmex Netherlands

Other Activities at Group Companies

Company Initiatives
Sysmex RA
  • Use of company-led nursery facilities
  • Received the next-generation support certification logo (nicknamed “Kurumin”) as a “company that supports child-rearing” from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
  • Certified as one of the “Excellent Corporations for Health Management” by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
    Excellent Corporations for Health Management 2024
Sysmex America
  • Introduction of a flextime system and work-at-home system
  • Introduction of a childcare leave system exceeding statutory requirements (for both fathers and mothers)
  • Introduction of a family support system (parenting support, family holiday, and allowances for use of external support systems when family members become ill)
Sysmex Europe
  • Introduction of a flextime system and work-at-home system
  • Provision of onsite rooms for parents and children
  • Introduction of a childcare leave system (for both fathers and mothers)
  • Childcare support system (allowances for use of external support systems)
Sysmex Shanghai
  • Introduction of a flextime system
  • Introduction of various working arrangements in response to the COVID-19 pandemic
Sysmex Asia Pacific
  • Introduction of a flextime system and work-at-home system
  • Childcare support system (childcare leave extension system, subsidies for medical insurance, and provision of scholarships)
  • Introduction of a family care leave system for nursing and child care
  • Medical insurance for all employees covering 37 diseases
  • Introduction of a welfare system for contract employees
  • Introduction of a volunteer leave system