Stories
Special dialogue between Sputniko! and Hisashi Ietsugu: A corporate culture where everyone can be themselves and feel at ease in accepting challenges to create innovation
- Continuous growth for a sustainable company that respects diversity -
Sysmex provides an environment, by promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), in which diverse individuals can work with ease and are accepted. Here we present a special dialogue between Sputniko!, a person continuously active on a global level as an artist, university associate professor, and entrepreneur, and Hisashi Ietsugu, Chairperson and Group CEO of Sysmex, in which they talk about Sysmex’s ideas and thoughts on diversity management to create innovation.
Diversity & Inclusion has been mentioned as an important management strategy for some time, and in recent years, with the addition of the concept of equity, this has evolved to “Diversity, Equity & Inclusion”.
People are an important management resource for supporting Sysmex’s sustainable growth, and a source of strength for the Company. Sysmex has progressed to practicing “diversity, equity and inclusion”, which creates an inclusive working environment suitable for a wide variety of people. To support its business operations, which span more than 190 countries and regions worldwide, Sysmex attracts diverse individuals from all over the world. In 2020, we drew up the “Sysmex Declaration of a Healthy Company” to enable employees to lead fulfilling lives both mentally and physically, and have been implementing policies to implement this globally. As an example of one initiative, in fiscal 2022 we introduced the service “Cradle” to support the creation of organizations that utilize our strengths of diversity. Sputniko!, Cradle’s CEO, was invited to talk with Sysmex Group CEO Hisashi Ietsugu about Sysmex’s ideas and thoughts on diversity management to create innovation.
Integration of diversity enhances a company’s competitive advantage
| Sputniko!: | Considering the high percentage of non-Japanese employees, and that a large majority of its customers are in other countries, Sysmex is a truly global company. |
|
| Ietsugu: | With increasing testing needs and expansion of business areas, the proportion of overseas sales has risen to a high level, recently accounting for 85% of our total business. In order to provide peace of mind to customers through dependable quality and attentive support, we have established sales and service centers in various parts of the world. In addition to those in Japan, we have Research and Development bases in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific, where employees with diverse values and employment backgrounds contribute to the health of people worldwide. As an example of diversity, the Corporate R&D base where we are now has an extremely high percentage of female bioengineers. We also put a lot of effort into overseas recruitment and each year people from various countries around the world, such as India, China, Germany, and Singapore, join the company. |
|
| Sputniko!: | I see. So, Sysmex is approaching true diversity status. Is Sysmex prioritizing diversity in the sense of promoting open innovation and creating innovation through integration of various fields? |
|
| Ietsugu: |
Yes. It is important how you integrate diversity. In an age of uncertainty, integrating individuality and strengths will make faster growth possible and increase a company’s competitive advantage. |
|
| Sputniko!: | It is important to appreciate the culture and other aspects of people. In the near future, with language barriers disappearing and Japanese interacting with other nationalities more than now, environments where innovation can be created together with them will be required. |
Diversity management is the key to creating innovation
| Sputniko!: | Just as smartphones have greatly changed the way we work and live our lives, I think that, in the future, AI and other technological innovations will change Sysmex’s business environment. So, what are your thoughts on diversity management for this? |
|
| Ietsugu: | Changes are an opportunity for growth, so it will be necessary to promote change with a sense of urgency. Leaders need to keep abreast of the trends of the times, continually set high goals, and manifest their leadership. Also, in order to compete globally, I think we will be able to create new value by refining our strengths in collaboration with others in areas in which we are lacking. It is important to sift through a variety of information on your own to present a vision. |
|
| Sputniko!: | I see. So, the image of a leader is a person who watches science and technology trends in industry; who can predict future changes, think of a plan of action, and actively promote their vision for this purpose. |
|
| Ietsugu: | Yes. In Japan, the emphasis has been on overcoming weaknesses, but this is no longer appropriate in the current era of global competition. We can make up for each other’s weaknesses, so that each individual can focus on demonstrating his/her individuality and strengths. It is essential to promote diversity both in open innovation and corporate management. |
|
| Sputniko!: | In my own experience, I have felt that developing and integrating strengths leads to innovation. |
|
| Ietsugu: | I fully believe that fostering a corporate culture in which diverse individuals have a sense of unity and feel at ease in fulfilling their potential will result in providing a definite sense of security for the public and society, and lead to continued growth for a sustainable company that creates societal as well as economic value. |
In order to support our business operations, which span more than 190 countries and regions worldwide, Sysmex recruits diverse individuals who are familiar with each regional market. In addition, we continually provide working environments in which people with diverse cultures, beliefs, values, and work backgrounds respect each other and are able to demonstrate their capabilities to the full.
PROFILE
 |
Sputniko! was previously an Associate Professor at the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Media Lab and a Specially Appointed Associate Professor at the University of Tokyo Graduate School. She is currently Associate Professor at the Department of Design, Faculty of Fine Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts. She has been a TED fellow since 2019 and has been selected as a Young Global leader by the World Economic Forum since 2017. She was the 11th winner of the L’Oréal-UNESCO for Women in Science Japan Special Award. Other awards include “Vogue Woman of the Year” and “100 Japanese Respected by the World”, published by Newsweek Japan. In 2019, she established Cradle Inc., assuming the position of CEO. |
 |
Hisashi Ietsugu joined Sanwa Bank Ltd. (presently MUFG Bank, Ltd.) after graduating from the Faculty of Economics, Kyoto University. In 1986, he joined Toa Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. (presently Sysmex Corporation) and was appointed as a board member. After serving as Managing Director and Senior Managing Director, he became President and CEO in 1996 and Chairman and CEO in 2013. In 2016, he was included in the Forbes Japan “Top 5 Most Powerful Executives in Japan” award and came 2nd in the “World’s Most Innovative Companies”, Japan Division. In 2022, he received the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star. In 2023, he assumed the position of Chairperson and Group CEO of Sysmex Corporation. |
- Information contained in the stories is current as of the date of the announcement,
but may be subject to change without prior notice.