President’s Address at 2016 Company Entrance Ceremony

Congratulations to all of you on the occasion of your entrance to Mitsui Chemicals.
On behalf of the Mitsui Chemicals Group, I would like to extend to all of you a heartfelt welcome. As new members of society, I believe that you have arrived at this milestone full of expectations for the future. By now, you have heard a lot about the Corporate Mission of the MCI Group which upholds the ideal, “Contribute broadly to society by providing high-quality products and services to customers through innovations and the creation of materials, while keeping in harmony with the global environment.” Your ambitious spirit and dynamism will play a big part in helping realize our Corporate Mission. With high expectations for your growth and activities, I believe that Mitsui Chemicals itself along with your self-realization in the workplace will grow.

Current Business Environment:

As a part of the 2014 mid-term plan, Mitsui Chemicals embarked on the corporate aim of contributing to society through its business activities by “creating new customer value.” By customer value we refer to not only transactions with our current clients, but value which focuses on the needs of future customers and end-user consumers. We believe that we can create new customer value by creating the most appropriate solutions which respond to needs spanning the strata of society.

As we pursue social contributions through the creation of new customer value, the MCI Group will strengthen its corporate foundation with a corporate business portfolio which focuses on three basic business segments which include Mobility, Healthcare and Food & Packaging. By targeting these business sectors, the MCI Group will expand its business by supporting industry and society with basic materials. Moreover, to further promote this strategy, we have implemented a corporate restructuring based on a business unit structure to promote these business aims effective as of today. All of you have been selected to join the company as necessary strategic resources to promote this strategy. Regardless of your position within the company whether it be in the business units, research and development, production and technical or administration, I have high expectations for your direct contribution to achieving the company’s goals of “creating new customer values.”

Expectations for New Employees:

Next, I would like to talk on three points which I hope you will take to heart.

1. Place the highest priority on safety.
The most important responsibility for each and every employee is to promote safety. In order to uphold this aim, it is imperative that every employee recognize the importance to deeply engrain within themselves the value of “Safety for oneself, for the family, for colleagues and for society”. All behavior must be rooted in “Safety as the highest priority”. When you were students, you may not have had the opportunity to think too deeply about safety, and even if you gave it some thought, you may have merely had a vague sense of avoiding risky behavior. From this day forward, you need to completely revise your thinking on this issue. As members of Mitsui Chemicals, always be aware of acting with safety in mind irrespective of your assignment be it in production, research or at the headquarters, irrespective of whether it is during working hours or after. Also act in a way to ensure safety as a culture of safety is the aim of Mitsui Chemicals.

2. I want you to become individuals capable of effectively implementing your tasks based on “gut sense.”
The words of Masahiro Yasuoka shed some light on the meaning of “sense.” One type of sense is “knowledge”. Knowledge comes from listening to what people say and reading of written materials. From the earliest stage of our development, knowledge accumulates. But this knowledge has to be applied academically and also to practical experience. When we do this, we can “see knowledge” at work. And based upon this we finally develop “gut sense” allowing us to be able to carry out a task. Knowledge alone is worthless unless we apply it and see it at work. And then finally, we can develop a sense of how to activate our knowledge based on “gut sense.” In a world where the Mitsui Chemicals Group must respond innovatively to radically changing values, being able to implement a task is of extreme importance. For all of our new employees, aggressively accumulating experience and deepening your experience to “see knowledge” at work, I hope that you will develop your “gut sense” so you will be people capable of implementing your given tasks.

3. I would like to request that all of you polish yourselves so that in addition to respecting other people, you yourselves will be worthy of the respect of others.
During the Edo Period, there was a famous Confucian scholar by the name of Sorai Ogyuu who wrote a book entitled “Sorai-kun.” In the book there is a passage that says, “The longer you know a person, it is sufficient to know his admirable traits. Knowing his weaknesses is completely unnecessary.”

Within the Mitsui Chemicals Group, globalization is not defined merely in terms of nationality, age or gender, but also according to the abilities and values embraced within the diverse backgrounds of employees who comprise the truly Diverse organization of the MCI Group. In order to work together as truly One Team, we will achieve even greater results by accepting people from many walks of life and aggressively expediting those differences. Regardless of the type of jobs we do with the company, success depends on the links that we forge between people. In this regards, human relationships are the ultimate key to success.
Let’s do our utmost to become outstanding individuals who respect others and are respected by others as well.

Finally, as we pursue the aim of becoming a corporate entity with a truly global sense, we are currently implementing our strategy of transforming our business portfolio. In order to accelerate this change, your youthful power and mentality is an extremely valuable management resource. Let’s do everything that we can to promote the ongoing growth of Mitsui Chemicals by being mindful of the three points I have addressed here. And by being a part of Mitsui Chemical’s strategy, I hope that everyone will achieve their intentions and dreams. I am looking forward to your success.