Diversity and Inclusion

Initiatives to Promote Diversity and Inclusion

Sompo Holdings believes that diversity and Inclusion（D&I） is the essential management strategy, and established the Diversity Promotion Headquarters in 2013.

The Group’s slogan “Diversity for Growth” shows our commitment to translating D&I into our management strategies as a driver for group growth.

The purpose of promoting D&I is to promote the sustainable growth of the Sompo Group and increase its corporate value through (1) Creating innovation and (2) Improving employee happiness and motivation.

In order to realize “a theme park for security, health and wellbeing,” mentioned in SOMPO’s Purpose, we need to innovate by welcoming good clashes among diverse people and by discovering new value from such situations. It is important to realize true D&I and link it to major innovation based on the idea that each employee creates new value by using their talents and strengths and anticipating changes regardless of gender, ability or disability, nationality or age.

COVID-19 has provided the world with an opportunity to reaffirm the importance of a sustainable society. In this new era of multi-stakeholder governance, it is important to change our awareness by placing as much value on the happiness of employees as on the interests of companies and shareholders. We believe that employees should be true to themselves, exercise their strengths and work with a sense of contributing to the team, and that these are important factors that link to their happiness. The creation of a culture that recognizes each other’s differences is the foundation for such happiness, and the Diversity Promotion Headquarters is leading this group-wide effort.

Closing the Gender Gap

We have set a goal of achieving at least 30% female management throughout the Group by the end of fiscal year 2023. In addition to implementing Group-wide female training programs to improve the knowledge and skills of our female employees and to change their mindset and attitudes, each group company also has its own program. Through these and other programs, as of July 1, 2023, SOMPO Holdings had 5 female directors (3 outside directors, 1 executive officer, and 1 corporate officer) and Sompo Japan had 5 (1 director, 1 corporate auditor, and 3 corporate officers).

When the goal was set in July 2013, the number of women in the Group management positions was 305, representing a mere 5% of the management. As a result of the above initiatives, the figure increased to 1,991, which boosted the percentage of women in management to 28.1% as of April 1^st, 2023.

For the four consecutive year, Sompo Holdings has been selected as a NADESHIKO BRAND by the Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange. This scheme introduces listed companies that are making outstanding efforts to promote female empowerment as attractive stocks to investors who are focused on improving corporate value over the medium- to long-term.

●External Recognition

March,2014Awarded “Diversity Management Selection 100” by Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Sompo Japan)

January,2015Awarded “Corporate Activity Award” by the Tokyo Stock Exchange (Sompo Holdings)

December,2016Awarded “the Prime Minister’s Award” at Commend Leading Companies Where Empowering Women (Sompo Japan)

April,2018Awarded “the Grand Prize” at the 3rd Working Women Empowerment Award by Japan Productivity Center (Working Women’s Empowerment Forum. Sompo Japan)

November,2018Awarded Tokyo “Jisa-Biz Promotion Award (Work Style Category)” (2nd total since FY2017. Sompo Japan)

March, 2021Selected as “NADESHIKO BRAND 2021” by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and Tokyo Stock Exchange （Continuously from 2017. Sompo Japan and Sompo Holdings)

• The names of companies are listed in current company names.

Employment of People with Disabilities

The Sompo Holdings Group employs people with disabilities throughout Japan and is focusing on creating inclusive work environments to stabilize their employment. As of April 1, 2023 Our Group's employment rate for people with disabilities is 2.36%.

Sompo Japan has a support system in place to create an inclusive workplace for people with disabilities. For example, it provides a guidebook for managers and arranges disability consultants across the country who provide support to employees with disabilities.

● SOMPO Challenged Inc. to boost jobs for people with disabilities

Our Group is promoting the employment of people with disabilities aiming to provide them with stable opportunities to realize their talents and gain a sense of fulfillment through work and to harness their diversity in innovation that is essential to the growth of the Group. We established SOMPO Challenged in April 2018 as a certified special-purpose subsidiary^* to further promote the stable employment of people with disabilities throughout the Group and to create an environment in which they can work with vitality. SOMPO Challenged plays a leading role in boosting jobs for people with disabilities in our Group.

*A company approved by the Japanese Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare as satisfying certain conditions stipulated in the Act on Employment Promotion, etc. of Persons with Disabilities , that gives special consideration to the employment of people with disabilities

Sompo Holdings Joins “The Valuable 500” to Promote Disability Inclusion

The Valuable 500 was founded in January 2019 by a social entrepreneur, Caroline Casey, at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting (Davos 2019). The Valuable 500 aims to encourage business leaders to achieve innovation so that people with disabilities can demonstrate their potential to add value to businesses, society and the economy. The Valuable 500 pursues support from 500 business leaders across the globe, who already have initiated disability inclusion efforts and those about to embark on such initiatives.
We joined this initiative and made the Group’s commitment to action.

Sompo Group Commitment

(1) Basic Policies

• We will position Diversity & Inclusion as one of the essential business strategies for the growth of the Sompo Group; by adopting “Diversity for Growth” as the slogan, we will focus on establishing a system and a corporate culture toward a rewarding workplace where every employee can prove their diverse strengths to the maximum extent.
• We will offer job opportunities to people with disabilities in a stable manner so that they can fully exhibit their abilities in their professional lives; we aspire to create a new value as part of our diversity inclusion initiatives and will be further promoting employment of people with disabilities.

(2) Action and Commitment
Under the policies mentioned above, we will commit ourselves to the following actions:

1. We will ensure and improve the accessibility of people with disabilities regarding the various services provided by the Sompo Group. At the same time, we aspire to provide the highest quality services that contribute to security, health, and wellbeing.
2. Our management committees will set and promote the employment rate of people with disabilities.
3. We will focus on creating a workplace where people with disabilities can play an active role. Each of our business teams will appoint a member who will assist employees with disabilities to provide necessary support suited for the level of disability.
4. We aim at creating a workplace where employees of all fields, all levels, with various origins can work with no discrimination and maximize their abilities to the fullest extent. To this end, we will carry out D&I workshops, including understanding people with disabilities.
5. We will proactively announce that the Sompo Group is driving the job creation for people with disabilities.

Employees’ Efforts to Create an Inclusive Society

Ryu Inomata is an employee at Sompo Holdings‘s Human Resources Department, who has a congenital heart disease. In addition to his regular duties, he is involved in the promotion of Help Mark^* as a Help Mark Director, a position first established by the prefecture. Furthermore, as a human rights lecturer for the Nagano Prefectural Board of Education, he gives talks to elementary and junior high schools on the realization of a society that accepts diversity.

*Mark that lets others know that the carrier has a disability that needs to be considered.

Ryu Inomata is involved in a variety of activities.
He has been visiting elementary, junior high, and high schools in Nagano Prefecture, Japan, to talk about diversity, coexistence and cooperation as a human rights lecturer for the Nagano Prefectural Board of Education (April 2019 to March 2022). He also manages a YouTube channel, Living With Heart -- Our Way to Live, to raise awareness of congenital heart disease and provide reference materials for fellow patients. In addition, he edits training videos for the NPO for Family and Baby’s website.

• YouTube channel: Living With Heart -- Our Way to Live
• NPO for Family and Baby website (in Japanese)

Going forward, we will continue to promote D&I by accepting and utilizing diversity to enhance the happiness and satisfaction of employees, and linking D&I to the sustainable growth of the Group to enhance our corporate value.

Promoting diverse work styles that enable each and every employee to play an active role

Sompo Group has been promoting work style innovations since 2015 to create a friendly workplace where diversified people can increase productivity through effective time management.
We have also been promoting New Work Style Innovation since 2020 to realize diverse work styles for our employees.

Work-Life Balance

To improve the quality of employee output, it is essential to focus not only on skill development but also on the physical and mental health of each employee. Good physical and mental health and a fulfilling private life are the foundation of a dynamic workforce. A dynamic workforce means a vitalized company, which is why we make the flexibility to balance work and private life a high priority.

●Career Transfer Program

Sompo Japan and other group companies have a career transfer program in which an employee can change his/her work place to a difference branch when there is a compelling reasons and when certain conditions are met. This program can be used by those who are in the positions that would not require job relocations but need to relocate their residence due to unavoidable circumstances.

●System Supporting Employees during Pregnancy, Post-childbirth and Childcare

With the aim of supporting the balance between work and one's responsibilities to home and children, we have established systems related to vacations, leaves of absence, and work styles, including maternity leave, a postnatal childcare leave system (colloquially known as “paternity leave”), a childcare leave system, and reduced working hours for childcare.
The childcare leave systems at Sompo Holdings, Sompo Japan and other Group companies are available until the child reaches the age of 2 years and 1 month, and include up to a total of seven days of paid "short-term childcare leave" for both men and women.
In addition, reduced working hours for childcare are available in principle until the child reaches the end of the third year of elementary school, and several different work hour patterns are available. Furthermore, we have established a system that makes it easier for both men and women to take childcare leave and to balance work and childcare. For example, if there are unavoidable circumstances due to a child's illness or disability and the Company deems it necessary, employees may choose to work shortened hours until the end of the fiscal year in which the child reaches the age of 18.
To further promote the participation of men in childcare, including support for balancing work, parenting and childcare leave for men of which we recommend one month or more, we started from FY2023 to hold Group-wide training sessions targeted at those concerned and at the management level.

●Forums to Support Employees on Childcare Leave

We organize forums to help employees who are on childcare leave smoothly return to work in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, and Fukuoka and via a video conference. In addition to the employees who are on childcare leave, their supervisors and colleagues attend the forum. This helps relieve anxiety about returning to work by creating a more inclusive business environment. In consideration of the COVID-19 pandemic, in FY2020, the forum was held video and online.

●“Amore Support” for Employees on Childcare Leave

We have extensive support tools to create a workable environment for all employees. For example, we use “guides for pregnancy, childbirth, childcare,” “tips for one-on-one interviews with employees on childcare leave,” and the “guidance for supervisors who have a staff member on childcare leave.” We regularly provide information about the company’s important policies.

●Support for Nursing Care

Long-term nursing care has become a common issue due to the rapidly aging population in Japan. To help employees balance their work and care responsibilities, we expanded the options to offer a long-term family care leave (up to 365 days in total), nursing leave, shift work for nursing care and reduced working hours. We also held a seminar for balancing work and care responsibilities.