Messages from Outside Directors

I have been a member of Unicharm’s Audit & Supervisory Committee as an outside director since fiscal 2021, and I currently serve as chairman of the Nomination Committee and the Remuneration Committee. Drawing on my experience as managing director of Boston Consulting Group’s Japan office and my background of involvement in the management of various companies as a management consultant, I will continue to proactively offer advice to enable Unicharm to seize opportunities fully by ensuring that its corporate governance functions soundly and that it identifies risks quickly to make further strides forward.

    On the management front, as the promotion of diversity and inclusion (D&I) becomes ever more critical to strengthening recruitment and enhancing employee engagement, companies are seeing increasing demands from a diverse array of stakeholders, including consumers. Given this business environment, both the nomination and the remuneration committees are focused on fulfilling their duties to accelerate the promotion of D&I and contribute to the strengthening of Unicharm’s competitiveness.

    With fiscal 2024 marking the launch of Project-L, Unicharm’s 12th Medium-Term Management Plan, I participated in meetings of the Board of Directors on nine occasions in fiscal 2023. I engaged in wide-ranging and detailed discussions based on reports from the executive officers who lead business execution. I actively offered advice during these discussions and believe that I provided essential input to Unicharm. In particular, I offered advice and suggestions on topics such as whether Unicharm is aligned with the path for achieving its long-term goals and vision, whether the medium-term management plan’s strategies are appropriate for achieving the long-term vision, whether the Company has set medium-term goals and key performance indicators to that end, whether it has adequately identified issues and challenges standing in the way of achieving these goals and considered what resources and measures it might need, and whether it can ensure that the focus of the medium-term management plan is clear, persuasive, and viable. Given that the plan has critical implications for Unicharm’s ability to achieve its long-term goals in the target year of 2030, I made a point of providing input with an emphasis on that time frame.

    Going forward, it will be vital for Unicharm to work even more proactively to address social and environmental issues through its businesses if it aims to grow further, such as boldly taking on challenges in India, Africa, and other high-risk regions, developing new categories globally that include pet care and wellness care, and promoting sustainability and the rapid advancement of women. Strengthening governance will be essential to balancing economic and social value in such highly challenging initiatives. I am committed to working diligently in my role, with the awareness that the duties of outside directors are becoming increasingly significant.

I became an outside director and Audit & Supervisory Committee member at Unicharm a year ago. In that time, I have participated in heated discussions and experienced　the enthusiasm for strategic engagement of employees and senior executives and the power of management with resonance in the earnest endeavors of employees on the front lines. In my capacity as an outside director, I have sought to comment from a stakeholder perspective, including that of consumers and shareholders, while being inspired by passionate presentations. I contribute to the management of Unicharm through proposals that capitalize on my expertise and advice that combines strategic thinking with an intuitive feel for the front lines.

    I particularly try to emphasize my perspective as the sole female outside director and the pursuit of value creation focused on women. Maximizing the lifetime value of each of Unicharm’s customers is of paramount importance to its business development. Achieving this goal requires the Company to take a variety of actions based on a diverse array of perspectives. With its emphasis on consistently creating and focusing on products and services for women, the aim of Project-L, the 12th Medium-Term Management Plan, is to make Unicharm the best company in the world by 2030. The markets where Unicharm operates, such as those in Asian countries, are diversifying rapidly. I firmly believe that the Company can make further progress by taking advantage of its capabilities in product development focused on women and in marketing, which are two of its strengths.

    Digital technology and data are essential to management that capitalizes on Unicharm’s strengths. I hope that Unicharm will make full use of the data it acquires through smartphones and apps, which have become integral to people’s lives, to efficiently leverage its accumulated knowhow as business expertise, accurately and quickly address customer needs, and offer new products and services that anticipate unmet customer needs, empathizing with customers to continuously meet their needs.

    I am committed to realizing a sustainable and more abundant future by embodying the corporate brand essence, “Love Your Possibilities” while valuing Unicharm’s stakeholders and their individuality.