NISSIN FOODS HOLDINGS CO. LTD.
Outside Director
Career summary
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Apr 1999
Joined Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (current) Japan Bank for International Cooperation)
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Sep 2005
Joined Bain & Company
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Dec 2009
Joined Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
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Apr 2019
Impact Officer of Institute for the Advancement of Social Innovation (current Japan Social Innovation and Investment Foundation) (Current)
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May 2022
Outside Audit & Supervisory Board Member of Rennovater Co., Ltd. (Current)
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Jun 2022
Outside Director, Independent Director of the NISSIN FOODS HOLDINGS (Current)
Leveraging Impact Investing
Expertise for Sustainability Management
The Role Required of an Outside Director
For more than 20 years, I have been involved in international financial operations related to export promotion and overseas aid at government-affiliated financial institutions, experience at a foreign consulting firm working in public interest activities supporting NGOs, overseas assistance operations at Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and impact investment work at a foundation. I am happy to have the opportunity now to support management decisions at the NISSIN FOODS Group, offering my insight toward sustainability management and corporate value improvement. Here, I believe I will be able to contribute my tri-sector expertise in generating both profit and social impact, developed across public, private, and public interest sectors.
While I have worked for a variety of organizations, the focus of my current activities is to promote impact investing. Impact investing is financing that generates financial returns, as well as positive and measurable social and environmental impacts in a virtuous cycle. In this type of investing, one confirms whether the value chain of an investee has a negative impact on the environment and what positive impact the investee may have on society. And then through engagement, the investor supports the creation of positive social impact and enhanced corporate value over the medium to long term. The significance of this investment structure makes a true and significant difference in the world from a financial perspective. I also work currently at a foundation, involved in the management of a platform that collects information about Japanese financial institutions to promote solutions to various issues. My work also involves research that promotes international impact investing, which we share with practitioners in Japan. More than anything, I hope to offer management my opinions related to my areas of expertise.
The outside directors of NISSIN FOODS Holdings consist of executives from leading Japanese companies and people with a high level of expertise in legal and financial matters. With my addition, there are now two female directors, and I feel pursuing diversity on the board of directors, including diversity in gender and age, is also an important mission. I have purchased NISSIN FOODS Group products as a consumer and a working mother, and my impression is that the NISSIN FOODS Group possesses a creative corporate culture that engages in unique marketing. Now, as a person involved in the NISSIN FOODS Group, I hope to offer my insights from a consumer's point of view as well.
NISSIN FOODS Group Sustainability
I recognize the NISSIN FOODS Group has still areas for improvement in terms of diversity. For example, the group we set a target to increase the ratio of female managers to 10% by the year 2025. The percentage of female managers and executives in Japanese companies is low compared to the rest of the world. Various reasons come to mind, including fewer career-oriented women in absolute numbers. But I believe another factor is that women are forced to interrupt their careers due to life stage changes. For example, raising children impedes business travel, the ability to work longer hours, or availability for transfer to a different area. As the term "corporate bondage" suggests, recent studies have shown that the retention rates of full-time female employees do not increase in companies that have restrictive time and place constraints on working. If an environment does not allow for flexibility in personal time, or if employees are ordered to relocate against their will, the hurdles to career advancement will be high and the retention of human resources will be poor. The causes of women falling into this situation can be traced to the problem of shared care responsibilities in the home and work styles among men. As a female director, I hope to propose solutions to these issues by listening to the opinions of female employees and younger workers in particular.
At the same time, I think the company is leading the way in efforts to address environmental issues such as palm oil procurement and waste treatment and reuse. I commend the NISSIN FOODS Group and its incorporation of the environmental strategy, EARTH FOOD CHALLENGE, into corporate growth strategy. This environmental strategy is reflected in numerical targets to be achieved by the year 2030. In the midst of international demands for disclosures of non-financial information and policies, I believe the group pursues cutting-edge initiatives and information disclosures worthy of a global company. For example, this VALUE REPORT 2021 integrated report leverages an integrated framework, while using the Yanagi model* to illustrate activities in clarifying the relationship between ESG (non-financial value) and corporate value. In this and other ways, the group highlights efforts in advanced methods of disclosure.
*Source:
The NISSIN FOODS Group Mid- to
Long-Term Growth Strategy
The NISSIN FOODS Group began executing the Mid- to Long-Term Growth Strategy in FY 3/2022. This strategy focuses on the high potential of complete nutrition meals to create social impact through business. Many companies engage in sustainability initiatives to reduce the negative impact of CO2 emissions in the process of manufacturing and providing goods and services. In contrast, the NISSIN FOODS Group is a company that aims to create impact not only through the value of enjoyable and delicious food, but also through the underlying sources of that value and the value creation process itself. Developing completely nutritious foods as meals not only provides enjoyment and delicious taste, but also makes people healthier. This development has a positive impact on society. I am excited by the company's approach to this concept as a new business. And I support the company's focus on sustainability from the perspective of being earth-friendly and reducing negative impact, as well as the perspective of well-being to make people happy. The NISSIN FOODS Group creates a positive impact from the goods and services it produces. I am looking forward to seeing who and how lives are transformed for good. And how will society change for the better? As someone involved in impact investing, it is a great pleasure for me to be involved in this cutting-edge initiative, which has much in common with the perspective of impact investing.
