Human Capital: Diversity
Promoting Women’s Workplace Participation
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Konica Minolta's Approach
Background and Issues
Gender equality and women’s empowerment are key issues for the global community, and they are also vital to achieving the SDGs. In Japan, however, despite the fact that both men and women are generally highly educated, the reality is that women still face barriers when it comes to leadership and participation across the board. Konica Minolta recognizes the urgent need to develop an environment that facilitates women’s success in its industry.
Vision
Konica Minolta views the diversity of its human resources as a source of novel and innovative ideas and solutions. In this sense, diversity is the key to achieving a balance between ‘supporting people to achieve their own purpose’ and ‘realizing a sustainable society,’ as stated in its management vision. We believe that promoting the advancement of women will also foster the advancement of all social minorities, and we seek to further expand the arenas in which women can actively participate in the workforce.
Key Measures and KPIs
- Proactively recruit women
- Formulate and implement individual development plans and training for women leader candidates
| KPI | Results | Targets | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2030 | |
| Percentage of management positions held by women | 19.8% | 19.5% | 20.3% | 21.1% | 21% or more | 22% or more | 23% or more | 26% or more |
* Konica Minolta Group: As of each fiscal year-end. Konica Minolta, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries in Japan, and approximately 50 major overseas consolidated subsidiaries with 200 or more employees.
| KPI | Results | Targets | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2030 | |
| Percentage of management positions held by women*1 | 7.2% | 9.1% | 9.9% | 10.7% | 11% or more | 12% or more | 13% or more | 18% or more |
| Percentage of women among new graduate recruits*2 | 23% | 35% | 37% | 39% | Maintain 30% or more | ― | ||
| (Reference) Percentage of women among new technical graduate recruits | - | 33% | 36% | 32% | ― | |||
*1 Percentage of management positions held by women: Regular employees as of April 1 following the end of each fiscal year. FY2030 is as of April 1, 2030.
*2 Percentage of women among new graduate recruits: Regular employees of Konica Minolta, Inc. who are hired within each fiscal year and join the company as new graduates in April of the following year or later.
Supporting Career Development for Women
Konica Minolta, Inc. has worked proactively to create an organizational culture in which women can thrive, provide education and training, and augment its systems, using the percentage of management positions held by women since fiscal 2010 as one of its indicators. Since fiscal 2017, we have positioned DEI as a management strategy and the head of each business division have been directly involved in individual development plans and focused on enhancing the pipeline of women leaders based on a strong desire to foster women in leadership positions. In addition to these initiatives, Konica Minolta identifies women with high potential and systematically nurture them so that they can exercise influence in the upper levels of management.
Strengthen Training of Manager Candidates
To reinforce the pipeline of women leaders, since fiscal 2021, we have provided training to women who are close to being appointed to management positions. The training seeks to systematically develop their skills and leadership abilities to facilitate their promotion to this level.
By taking inventory of past experiences and identifying any shortcomings in experience and skill, we systematically assign duties and develop the competencies needed for career growth, including promotions to this level and above. We also conduct training for women employees to address their need for additional experience and skills and equip them to better shape their own careers.
In fiscal 2023, we trained 18 women employees. Training for supervisors, which was conducted until fiscal 2022, was merged with the Empowerment Strengthening Program. As a result of these efforts, the percentage of management positions held by women has steadily increased each year, reaching 10.7% in fiscal 2023. On the other hand, the numerical target of 11% was not achieved. In the second half of fiscal 2023, the Company began strengthening the pipeline of woman employees, including young potential talent, to meet the fiscal 2030 target.
In fiscal 2018, Konica Minolta welcomed its first woman executive officer, and as of June 2024, one outside director, two executive officers, and two corporate vice presidents were women, bringing the percentage of director (director, executive officer, corporate vice president, and technical fellow) positions held by women to 14%.
Number and Percentage of Women Managers at Konica Minolta, Inc. (as of April of each year)
Promoting Work-Life Management
The development of Konica Minolta's work-life balance support program began in the 1990s to prevent woman employees from leaving their jobs due to childbirth or childcare. We are now also promoting male employees’ participation in childcare and improving support for balancing work and nursing care, as well as changing systems and creating an environment that can flexibly adapt to the differing circumstances of each employee. As a result, the gap in the average number of years of continuous service between men and women at Konica Minolta, Inc. has been eliminated, and we have created an environment where everyone can balance work and life.
Furthermore, we provide a wide range of opportunities for women and their colleagues and supervisors to gain accurate knowledge and learn coping strategies for diseases such as premenstrual and menopausal symptonms, which are particular to the life stages of women, so that women can work safely and with peace of mind.
Support for Man and Woman Employees Balancing Childcare and Career Goals
Since its introduction in 1992, the childcare leave system at Konica Minolta, Inc. has steadily taken root, achieving a 100% take-up rate among women employees, with the rate of employees returning to work also maintaining high level of over 95%.
In response to the concern about daycare waiting lists, employees with infants are able to take childcare leave until the child reaches the age of 2 years and 3 months, ensuring that even babies born in February or March have two opportunities to get into daycare in the usual registration month of April. Moreover, the company provides salary assistance during a childcare leave period that exceeds the term of childcare leave benefit payment.
Some Group companies have installed lactation rooms to support women employees in returning to work and continuing their careers with peace of mind after giving birth, and this measure is gradually being expanded.
In addition to the childcare leave system, which allows parents to take leave until the child reaches the age of two years and three months, male employees can also take paid paternal leave for up to five days within one month before or after their spouse’s expected delivery date.
As a result of strengthening awareness-raising activities for eligible employees and their supervisors and creating and distributing childcare leave handbooks that explain the system and procedures, the paternal leave utilization rate by eligible men reached 75.2% in fiscal 2023.
| FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rate of taking childcare leave | 43.4% | 64.8% | 75.2% |
| Average number of days taken | 47.4 | 70.9 | 72.7 |
* The target is regular employees of Konica Minolta, Inc.
* Method of calculating rate of taking childcare leave: The number of employees taking childcare leave (including those continuing from the previous year) divided by the number of employees whose spouses gave birth.
Please refer to the 'Social Data (Excel)' section of the ESG Data for detailed information.
In addition to these, after returning to work from childcare leave and until the child graduates from elementary school, employees of any gender can choose from a variety of work options including part-time working hours, working from home, and remote work regardless of gender. This allows them to continue building their careers according to their family circumstances and their own approach. Furthermore, regardless of whether employees are in the child-rearing period or not, the Company introduced systems such as flexible working hours and hourly leave, enabling them to choose a flexible work style.
Payment of a “Next-Generation Fostering Allowance”
Konica Minolta, Inc. established a “next-generation fostering allowance” in fiscal 2012, replacing its family allowance and housing allowance. This provides monetary benefits to employees raising children under the age of 18 to support employees in the child-rearing generation. Employees are eligible to receive subsidies for some of the fees for nursery school and daycare center use through the "Cafeteria Plan System." Furthermore, in fiscal 2008, the Company expanded the eligibility for using accumulated paid leave to include reasons such as infant care, or staying home with a child when school is canceled.
* Accumulated paid leave: A leave system that enables employees to accumulate unused annual paid leave, which can be used with pay under certain conditions. (A maximum of 40 days of leave can be accumulated.)
| Purpose/ Timing | System Name | Overview/Target |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Pregnancy (Infertility Treatment) |
Accumulated Paid Leave (Infertility Treatment) |
Available for inpatient treatment, therapy, or outpatient care related to infertility for the employee and their spouse. |
| Infertility Treatment Expense Subsidy (Cafeteria Plan) | Subsidizes costs related to infertility treatment, such as consultation fees and medication. | |
| Pregnancy Period | Childcare Training Subsidy (Cafeteria Plan) | Subsidizes the cost of seminars and schools related to childbirth and childcare. |
| Childbirth Period | Maternity Leave | Available up to 6 weeks before childbirth (14 weeks for multiple pregnancies) and up to 8 weeks after childbirth. In addition to the maternity allowance (from the health insurance union), a company-provided maternity leave allowance is given to ensure that the total compensation during maternity leave is equivalent to 80% of the standard wage. |
| Paternal Leave | Male employees can take up to 5 days within a month for their spouse’s childbirth. | |
| Next-Generation Fostering Allowance | Provided until March 31 after the child turns 18, regardless of the number of children. Fixed allowance provided until March 31 after the child turns 6. | |
| Childcare Leave | Available until 3 months after the child’s second birthday. Employment insurance benefits provided until the child turns 2. After the child turns 2, mutual aid benefits equivalent to childcare leave benefits are provided. Additionally, up to 40 days of accumulated paid leave can be used. |
|
| Childcare Period (After Return to Work) |
Shorter Working Hours for Childcare | Available until the end of March after the child finishes sixth grade. |
| Accumulated Paid Leave (Family Care) | For care related to family members' illness, including inpatient treatment, therapy, or outpatient care. | |
| Accumulated Paid Leave (Class Closure) | For school class closures, grade closures, or temporary school closures until the child finishes sixth grade. | |
| Childcare Fee Subsidy (Cafeteria Plan) | Subsidizes fees for daycare centers, nursery schools, certified children’s centers, and after-school care. | |
| Home Help Subsidy (Cafeteria Plan) | Subsidizes home help services and babysitters. | |
| Work-at-home during Child-rearing | Available for employees with children until the start of middle school, as recognized by the Company. | |
| Remote Work | Available for employees recognized by the company for improved productivity, results, and creativity through remote work. |
Support for Balancing Work and Caregiving
Konica Minolta conducted an employee survey on caregiving in 2017 and found that 9% of employees 40 years old and over provided some kind of caregiving at the time of the survey, and that 30% of employees could provide caregiving within five years. Based on this employee survey and interviews with employees who actually provide caregiving, the Company revised its system and worked to raise employee awareness. The system was revised to enable employees to take annual paid leave in hourly units. Furthermore, to eliminate employees’ concerns about caregiving, the Company provides employees with clear information on what they should know in advance to avoid having to leave work to care for a family member, as well as details on various caregiving-related systems.
| Category | System Name | Overview/Target |
|---|---|---|
| Leave and Absence Systems | Temporal Nursing Care Leave | Available for 5 days per year (calendar year) per family member requiring care. |
| Nursing Care Leave | For family members requiring constant care or care system development, generally up to 1 year. Nursing care leave benefits are provided by employment insurance with a maximum of 93 days and up to 3 times. |
|
| Regular Nursing Care Leave | Combined with caregiving leave, up to 5 years for each case, with 1 day (or half-day) per specified day of the week. | |
| Work Systems | Shorter Working Hours for Nursing Care | Combined with caregiving leave, up to 5 years per case, with up to 2 hours per day, adjustable in minute increments from start and end times. |
| Home-based Work for Nursing Care | Available for those with caregiving reasons recognized by the Company. | |
| Remote Work | Available for employees recognized by the company for improved productivity, results, and creativity through remote work. | |
| Expense Support | Nursing Care Supplies Purchase Subsidy (Cafeteria Plan) | Subsidizes the purchase and rental costs of caregiving supplies. |
| Nursing Care Assistance System (Mutual Aid) | Assists with costs for the care of dependent or cohabitating parents aged 65 and over who are bedridden or have dementia. |
Please refer to the 'Social Data (Excel)' section of the ESG Data for details on the use of childcare and caregiving programs.
Achieving Gender Equality: Promoting Fulfillment in Work and Creating a Comfortable Workplace
Because Konica Minolta, Inc. attaches importance to demonstrated capabilities and results, personal allowances other than the “next generation fostering allowance” have been combined in the base salary, and the disparity between men and women employees has been systematically eliminated. However, the disadvantages between men and women caused by the division of labor by gender roles has not been fully eliminated. The Company considers the wage disparity between men and women, which is caused by multiple factors, as one indicator, and seeks for true gender equality through support for women's career development, promotion of work-life management for men and women, and other means, as described above.
| FY2022 | FY2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| Regular employees of Konica Minolta, Inc. | 73.9% | 76.5% |
* Calculated based on the provisions of Japan’s Act on Promotion of Women's Participation and Advancement in the Workplace
Networking and Awareness-Raising Activities
Creating a Network for Mutual Assistance
Konica Minolta promotes networking beyond organizational boundaries. Voluntary initiatives, such as company childcare communities and career workshops, help promote the active participation of women.
Employees’ Resource Group “himawari”
At Konica Minolta, Inc., more women are being hired as engineers, and women are being assigned to workplaces in which there used to be only men. As the environment changes, there are still workplaces in which there are very few women serving as engineers. For this reason, in 2020, Konica Minolta established the Network for Women in STEM. This network allows women to connect with a wide group of colleagues, including those with similar concerns, and thosee who have overcome these concerns, and those who can provide different perspectives. Male employees also participate as supporting members. In addition to online workshops on themes such as balancing home life, child-rearing and career, Konica Minolta has created an environment in which members can talk to others on the team at any time using chat and other systems.
Nowadays, it is becoming common to change one’s job, such as from a technical job to a planning or marketing job, or from a planning or management job to a systems-related job. Therefore, in fiscal 2023, we changed the name of our activities to "Himawari" (meaning "sunflower" in Japanese), as our activities are not limited to women engineers. The new name reflects our aim to create a dignified image of a sunflower standing alone and facing the sun. Leveraging past experience, we also initiated activities outside the company, such as supporting career education for junior high and high school students.
Programs linked to International Women’s Day
Since March 2018,every year Konica Minolta has held programs linked to International Women’s Day, March 8.
| Date Held | Theme | No. of Participants |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Connect | Approx. 300 (held in Japan) |
| 2019 | Respect–Understand and acknowledge each other’s differences | Approx. 1,000 (held in Japan) |
| 2021 | RETHINK EMPOWERMENT | Approx. 650 (held in global) |
| 2022 | BREAK THE BIAS | Approx. 350 (held in each region) |
| 2023 | EMBRACE EQUITY Overseas title: “Women’s Power to Change the Global Economy” Japanese title: “How to Turn Differences into Strengths” |
Approx. 480 (held globally) Approx. 200 (held in Japan) |
March 2024 - INSPIRE INCLUSION
A global program was held for Konica Minolta Group employees under the theme of INSPIRE INCLUSION. At the program, a panel discussion was held on “How to create a workplace where everyone can thrive, regardless of gender.” The discussion was led by a woman executive officer of Konica Minolta, and two women leaders and one man leader who play active roles in overseas regions, with approximately 450 participants from 27 countries in attendance.
In Japan, a guest speaker talked about "Job Satisfaction and Challenges," and a panel discussion entitled “What can you do today to prepare yourself was held with the participation of two women leaders and one man leader from Konica Minolta, "What can you do today to take full control of your own career and take action today?” About 300 people attended the program.
Group Company Initiatives
Developing Global Women Leaders
Konica Minolta, Inc. rolled out the “Women 2 Lead Program” in fiscal 2023 to select and develop the next generation women leaders who are playing active roles in the region or the country, with a view to "ensuring diversity and further strengthening equity in decision-making.” In the first year of the program, 12 candidates for next-generation women leaders from various backgrounds were selected from Group companies as the inaugural class. The participants were assessed in collaboration with top class executive development institutions in Europe and were obtained the mental attitude and knowledge of a leader. The program will continue beyond fiscal 2024, and we are forming an alumni network that will sustain mutual learning.
Initiatives at Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc.
We have maintained the “Step Forward” activities of the Women's Business Resource Group (BRG) for many years to promote higher retention and opportunities for women. The program consists of monthly lectures on topics such as the growth mindset, personal branding, and navigating career success, with approximately 4,100 employees participating in 2021.
Initiatives at Konica Minolta Japan, Inc.
Konica Minolta Japan, Inc. established the Diversity Promotion Office in fiscal 2018 and launched full-scale initiatives. Every year since fiscal 2018, we have sent women to outside training programs to support their career development. In fiscal 2022, the Diversity Promotion Office held discussions with division heads about DEI promotion, and first promoted the understanding of human resources with the aim of developing young employees and women employees in the workforce. In fiscal 2023, we will assess the current situation and organize issues to accelerate the growth of young employees and women, and plan a growth support program, which will be launched in fiscal 2024. Additional measures will be considered and implemented to achieve KPIs.
| KPI | Results | Targets | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | |
| Percentage of management positions held by women | 5.8% | 6.4% | 6.7% | 8% | 10% | 11% |
* Regular employees of Konica Minolta Japan, Inc. as of the April 1 following the end of each fiscal year
Formulate and Implement Action Plan based on Japan’s Act on Promotion of Women's Participation and Advancement in the Workplace
In Japan, we have formulated an action plan based on the Act on Promotion of Women’s Participation and Advancement in the Workplace to encourage more women to take on leadership positions and broaden their participation, and we are pursuing initiatives to achieve this goal.
Group companies that have formulated action plans and disclosed information:
Konica Minolta, Inc.
Konica Minolta Japan, Inc.
Konica Minolta Mechatronics Co., Ltd.
Kinko’s Japan Co., Ltd.
Konica Minolta Supplies Manufacturing Co., Ltd.
Konica Minolta Planetarium Co., Ltd.
Konica Minolta With You, Inc.
Konica Minolta Information System Co., Ltd.
Konica Minolta Business Associates Co., Ltd.
Konica Minolta Techno Products Co., Ltd.
Konica Minolta IJ Product Co., Ltd.
| (a) Plan duration | April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2026 |
|---|---|
| (b) Numerical targets | 13% or more women managers (section manager or above) Percentage taking annual paid leave: 75% |
| (c) Description of Initiative | 1. Selective training of manager candidates 2. Early promotion through enhanced training of young employees 3. Promote systematic use of paid leave |
| (d) Timing of initiatives | Implemented as needed |
| FY2019 | FY2020 | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Percentage of management positions held by women | 5.5% | 6.2% | 7.6% | 8.0% | 8.8% |
External Evaluation
Konica Minolta and its Group companies in Japan have been recognized by Japan’s Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare with Kurumin Mark Certification as companies that provide support to employees rearing children, and with "Eruboshi" Mark Certification as companies with outstanding records of promoting the advancement of women in the workplace.
Konica Minolta, Inc.
Konica Minolta Japan, Inc.
Konica Minolta Information System Co., Ltd.
