Policy Proposal by Committee on Innovative Work Styles
"Corporate Executive's Declaration of Conduct for World-Standard Work Style
— Toward Realization of Smart Work by Self-Motivated Individuals —"
Summary

April 22, 2015

Sakie T. Fukushima
Chairman,Committee for Innovative Work Styles
Keizai Doyukai
(President & Representative Director, G&S Global Advisors Inc.)

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Corporations in the globalizing economy are faced with a pressing need to review their employees’ work style toward the one sustainable under the globally changing environment from the viewpoint of enhancing productivity and creating added value. That is vital to exhibit the corporate competitiveness. Meanwhile, a system reform that allows a new work style is required as the need of each worker in work style becomes more diverse.

We have hereby created “Corporate Executive’s Declaration of Conduct” as our policy proposal. It describes what corporate executives are requested to conduct in order to review Japanese labor and employment practice toward the one that promotes individuals’ self-motivation and vitality as well as to realize the enhancement of productivity and the creation of added value.

We corporate executives are committed to conduct a far-reaching review on the labor and employment practice of our own companies for the purpose of improving white-collar workers’ productivity and creating added value, which should contribute to strengthening the global competitiveness of Japanese companies. Specifically, we shall make our utmost efforts in each optimal way toward the realization of “Smart Work” -- a new work style that promotes individuals’ vitality and self-motivation -- as shown below:

1. To create a work environment that enables each individual to exhibit self-motivation and to work focusing on customer’s viewpoints.
   We shift corporate mindset from “managing” individuals to “providing an environment” for individuals most familiar with customers “to work with self-motivation.”
2. To bring up diverse human resources to be future leaders for promotion and appointment.
   We shift from “promotion of male/new graduates/regular employees/Japanese in focus” to “people-centered promotion and appointment,” regardless of attributes such as sex, nationality, and ages.
3. To reward workers for their performance instead of the length of time spent on their work.
   We recommend corporate executives to prioritize work style of “a maximum performance within a limited amount of time” rather than “long working hours bring a maximum performance.” First, we declare in the company the commitment to correct long work hours by taking measures such as setting a maximum work hours. In addition, we review the system toward performance-orientated evaluation/compensation system.
4. To enhance the flexibility in work hours and sites.
   We increase the alternatives of diverse work style such as teleworking besides orthodox work style of “come to office every day and work with colleagues” for the purpose of saving commute hours and enhancing productivity.
5. To design a new system of flexible recruitment and retirement.
   We increase labor market liquidity by 1) reviewing “concentration on annual new graduates recruitment and mandatory retirement system”, 2) move toward a performance-based wage system from a seniority-based wage system, and 3) human resource recruitment/utilization regardless of age by exercising dynamic mid-career recruiting.

Japanese version