Good Corporate Social Responsibility in Changing Times

In May I was appointed chairman of the Committee on Corporate Behavior. Today, the public is monitoring corporate activities with an increasingly severe eye, and businesses are called on not merely to comply with relevant laws and regulations but also to embrace strong ethical standards. A number of years ago, during my tenure as president of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries the company was subjected to significant public criticism for its violation of Japan's Antimonopoly Act, and it took us all, officers and staff, great time and effort to restore the public's trust. I hope that bitter experience will serve me well as I proceed with my duties as Committee chairman.

The corporate sector, through the performance of its business operations, generates job opportunities and income, and it is only when such business activities are buoyant that people's lives are enriched. A company's foremost responsibility to society is thus to devote its full energies to its core areas of business. However, while the corporate side may consider concentrating on its main business areas to be sufficient, this is not a way of thinking that society as a whole is willing to accept. For the public to acknowledge the value of our existence and our proposals, smooth communication between us is of increasing importance. To achieve good communication, through their business activities companies everywhere are taking steps to forge solid relationships more broadly with all their stakeholders. In this connection, at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries we are proactively taking steps to promote a closer rapport and good understanding. One way is by having our employees regularly go to elementary and middle schools near our various works and teach science classes.

Thanks in part to efforts of this kind, according to a questionnaire survey conducted periodically by the Keizai Koho Center (Japan Institute for Social and Economic Affairs) targeted at company employees, housewives, students, etc., the percentage of respondents who consider business corporations to be "trustworthy" has been rising modestly each year. Nevertheless, in light of consumer issues relating to food safety and the like, coupled with administrative responses to such issues, it would be an exaggeration to claim that the corporate sector today is close to enjoying the public's complete trust. The Japanese traditionally value the performance of virtuous deeds without fanfare; but especially insofar as CSR is concerned, the corporate sector must seek more vigorously to conduct responsible activities that are readily understandable from the public's perspective.

In view of major changes taking place in the environment surrounding the corporate sector -- exemplified by revisions to labor laws and continuing globalization of corporate activities -- Nippon Keidanren has recently revised its Charter of Corporate Behavior for the first time in six years. October is our annual "Corporate Ethics Promotion Month." On this occasion, we ask that all companies renew their commitment to pursue uncompromised corporate ethics. We also hope that in light of the latest Charter revision companies everywhere will pause and mull their responsibilities to society in this new era.