Management

• Print

Allow me to wish you all a very Happy New Year!

Despite the adverse impacts of the slowdown of emerging economies, the world economy is showing signs of gradual improvement, due mainly to the continued growth of the US economy backed by brisk domestic demand, a modest economic recovery that has been underway in Europe, and Japan’s robust capital investment that has contributed to the growth of GDP. However, I am aware that various geopolitical problems have increased uncertainties about economic prospects, causing the business environment to change at an accelerated pace.

Due to these increasing uncertainties, it is all the more important that we should enhance our abilities to detect signs of change in economic, market and technical trends, and take action ahead of such changes.

In recent years, we have seen the rapid advancement of new technologies such as IoT, deep learning and robotics. Since 2014, at Konica Minolta, we have been working on various projects to drive innovation under our three-year medium-term business plan – TRANSFORM 2016 – which sets forth three goals: to realize sustainable profit growth; to transform into a customer-centric company; and to establish a strong corporate structure. One project launched in our production base in Malaysia was designed to innovate the manufacturing process under the concept of “digital manufacturing.” This enables high-efficiency production by making effective use of ICT to allow the production technology department and the product development department to work in unison, and also by automating production lines. We will continue efforts to introduce new technologies in our business models so that we will be able to offer higher value-added solutions and services. In doing so, we hope to better address customers’ problems and make a more meaningful contribution to society.

Our commitment to creating innovation is critical for finding solutions to problems that face our society and for improving the efficiency of corporations disruptively. It requires time to deliver true innovation, and therefore, we will make concerted group-wide efforts from a medium- to long-term perspective to achieve this. At the same time, I am also aware of the importance of actively promoting open innovation in the market, having interactions with customers as well as working and cooperating with business partners that have strengths in respective target areas, thereby accelerating the process of creating new values. In particular, I am resolved to continue working for the further evolution of Konica Minolta by acting dynamically and speedily with the mindset of a startup.

We will ensure that all of the 40,000-plus employees of the Konica Minolta Group developing business worldwide will share the 6 Values, which are our credo and decision-making criteria, and ingrain into them our management style that encourages self-initiated action in delivering value to customers and developing differentiating advantages. We will also enhance our ability to deliver and accomplish our goals more than ever, with focus placed on improving our corporate value on a medium- and long-term basis.

In concluding my greeting, I would like to offer my sincere wishes for your health and happiness this year. Your continued encouragement and support to the Konica Minolta Group is very much appreciated.