Message From the Officer in Charge of Sustainability
Hiroshi Tsuga
The Environmental Subcommittee and two working groups under the Sustainability Committee advance our three non-financial targets—Environment, People, and Technology—outlined in our 2030 Vision. Current progress is in line with our plan. Looking ahead to the next medium-term management plan, we intend to strengthen our identification of materiality and other sustainability initiatives for sustainable growth.
Environment
The current medium-term management plan targets a 20% reduction in CO2 emissions (vs. FY3/2019) toward our goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. We already achieved a 26.5% reduction as of FY3/2024. Our efforts to switch the electricity contracts for our facilities to renewable energy sources are underway as we also pursue new initiatives, including introducing biodiesel fuel in the Food and Airport businesses. Furthermore, we launched a questionnaire survey of environmental activities among our partner companies, aiming to strengthen future environmental initiatives throughout the value chain. We also plan to collaborate with partner companies to reduce Scope 3 category CO2 emissions.
People
The KONOIKE Group set two goals in our 2030 Vision and current medium-term management plan. These goals are to pursue human resources development under management strategy and raise employee job satisfaction (engagement). Our human resource development efforts aim to allocate the right people in the right places with greater flexibility and mobility. Based on the reorganized needs of each division, we work to visualize the work experience, skills, and other human resource information of our employees. At the same time, we offer a wide range of human resource development programs to acquire skills to improve on-site capabilities, our most important priority. These programs also strive to enhance DX and IT literacy and develop global human resources with an eye to expanding overseas business.
We also conducted our second well-being survey to increase employee engagement, working to identify and improve issues based on survey results. Konoike received recognition from the 2024 Certified KENKO Investment for Health Outstanding Organizations Recognition Program in March 2024. We have since started focusing on health investments in areas where we received lower evaluations. Konoike is dedicated to improving our company to ensure employees work in good physical and mental health.
Technology
Technology, a part of the KONOIKE Group sustainability efforts, includes not only new and digital technologies, but also a combination of analog technologies (improvement activities, creating safe environments, quality, etc.) rooted in individual employees and workplaces. We established the Technical Capital Library database to facilitate broader, effective use of these diverse intangible assets, registering 582 case studies by the end of March 2024. The library contains extensive case studies, from the use of automated robots to improvement ideas generated in the field. We also included keywords and AI search functions to encourage the use of the database. We will continue strengthening our technology foundation while promoting awareness and encouraging mutual exchange through on-site observations. Through this approach, we strive to advance initiatives toward People, leveraging technology to reach for new heights as outlined in our 2030 Vision.
The environment in which we operate is evolving at a rapid pace, driving our efforts to strengthen our efforts in addressing sustainability issues, including internal controls, to advance KONOIKE Group materiality initiatives and respond effectively to potential risks. From this perspective, we plan to reorganize the Sustainability Committee into a more effective organization and structure.