Human Resource Development

Ricoh is entering a period of major changes that include transitioning from a manufacturer of office automation equipment to a digital services company and introducing a business unit structure. In line with these changes, it is essential for all employees to grow into "autonomous human resources" who think for themselves and move on their own following the guidelines of the "Ricoh Way", which is the basic philosophy of the Ricoh Group. At Ricoh, we are promoting the fostering of a corporate culture that makes the most of the work and career autonomy of each employee, individual and organization in the Group—even those that are resistant to change and diversity—through diverse training, multifaceted personnel evaluation systems, and a fulfilling career support system.

The Ricoh Group has established a human resource development system based on the following two points to promote autonomous learning in the workplace and to develop human resources in line with management strategies. The system consists of "training by job title" and "training by purpose", so that employees can take the training programs necessary for their positions and job categories (Refer to the training system diagram below).
All employees, regardless of their positions or job titles, regularly attend programs designed to instill in them the values that they as Ricoh Group employees should possess. These programs cover topics such as "Ricoh Way" and "Customer Satisfaction" as well as the "digital human resources development" necessary in the process for Ricoh's transformation into a digital service company.

We have established original training programs in line with Ricoh leadership, such as manager capability improvement and global executive selection education, together with external educational institutions. In addition, we provide programs for newly appointed managers and experts to acquire basic knowledge and management skills at the same time as their arrival at their new positions in order to ensure that they improve their capability from the time they start their new positions.

We opened the Ricoh Digital Academy in 2022. We designed the curriculum to encourage all Group employees to enhance their digital proficiencies and help create and accelerate digital services. We have identified several digital professional skillsets that we particularly aim to reinforce. These are business producers and designers, cloud architects, data scientists, and information security experts. We seek to increase the number of employees with Ricoh Digital Skills Level 2 or above to 4,000 in Japan under the 21st MTS.

At the Ricoh Group, we aim to achieve both performance targets and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) targets as management indicators. These indicators are linked to the daily activities and achievements of our employees. In our performance evaluation system, the Ricoh Group has adopted a goal management-type personnel evaluation system to provide appropriate treatment and personal distribution according to the achievements and abilities of employees, and to improve the growth of individual employees and the achievements of the organization.
In the six-month evaluation cycle, all permanent employees set goals at the beginning of the term then make efforts to achieve the goals through their daily work for their professional development. Finally, they look back on their achievements at the end of the term to receive an evaluation. During this evaluation process, managers provide feedback and advice at work to their subordinates appropriately so that employees can achieve their goals and grow more accurately.
We also encourage feedback through daily flexible communication to encourage each employee to aim for further development and higher-quality performance.
The end-of-term total evaluation of all employees is determined through a relative assessment based on two axes: performance results and the expected behavioral outcomes that the company demands from employees. The evaluation results are reflected in bonuses and other compensation.
Additionally, we have implemented an initiative to conduct 360-degree feedback, targeting employees in management positions to evaluate them comprehensively from various angles.

At Ricoh, we provide the following long-term incentive systems to support the medium- to long-term development of our employees.

At Ricoh, to support a more fulfilling post-retirement life for our employees, we have established a retirement benefits system utilizing defined benefit pension plans and defined contribution pension plans. This system allocates points based on the role and achievements of employees during their tenure, adopting a merit-based approach that fairly evaluates each individual's contributions.

The Ricoh Employee Stock Ownership Plan assists employees in wealth formation by purchasing Ricoh shares with contributions deducted from their salaries and bonuses. Participation is voluntary, and an incentive of 15% of the contribution amount is provided by the company. This enables employees to aim for long-term asset formation.

The Ricoh Group is promoting employee career development support based on the idea that "employees themselves must take ownership of their careers" so that employees do not rely on the company for their own career development.
By utilizing their manager's feedback and advice during job performance evaluation and the following career support systems, employees can autonomously form their career plans. It helps them achieve further success in their current departments, improve their skills, and realize transfers to other departments that they want to go.

The Ricoh Group provides employees with career design training by their job titles and occupations, not by age group, so that they can receive programs that suit their career challenges regardless of age. We also distribute e-learning programs related to career design that all employees can use. It helps them easily experience the concept of career design.

Ricoh Co., Ltd. has introduced a system called "in-house recruitment" and "in-house side business" in order to foster a culture in which employees autonomously form their careers and strive to realize their career goals. "In-house recruitment" is a system that allows employees to apply for recruitment of departments looking for human resources on their own initiative. "In-house side business" is a system in which employees can use part of their working hours to take up the challenge of creating work, themes, activities, etc. that they want to try in the company in parallel with their main business. These systems encourage employees to take on challenges and provide opportunities for them to play an active role. They also contribute to the growth of both employees and the company because they lead to the mobilization of human resources across departments and the expansion of contribution areas of employees' talents.

The Ricoh Group in Japan provides Management Basic training program to newly appointed managers and experts to encourage them to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills within one month of assuming their new positions. To achieve ongoing organizational goals, we aim to maximize the capabilities of the organization managers are entrusted with. To improve practical skills, we provide training in accounting, appropriate disclosure of corporate information, basic business management, and fundamental CS knowledge. To create a psychologically safe work environment for their members, we provide personnel and labor management training, daily management to prevent overwork, and mental health education, offering more practical content alongside management skills training.To support members' self-motivated growth, we also provide education on people management and 1-on-1 meetings to ensure the acquisition of basic knowledge and skills as a manager.
After acquiring the basic knowledge and skills through management basics, all managers participate in the Management College program, where they learn about the roles of managers, interview skills (1-on-1), performance evaluation and feedback, and management skills that leverage psychological safety and individual strengths.
This deepens trust with subordinates, enhances their motivation, and supports their growth, aiming for management transformation and organizational strength enhancement. By learning and practicing design thinking and agile methodologies in the workplace, we aim to elevate the entire team and realize a highly productive work environment. Additionally, to connect the employee experience with the fulfillment of work, managers continuously participate in DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) training and awareness activities.

In fiscal year 2023, approximately 2,200 employees, accounting for 7 % of the workforce in group company's in Japan , participated in and completed the Management College program.
These initiatives have yielded positive results in the 2023 fiscal year's 360-degree feedback evaluations, with a 1% improvement in empowerment towards subordinates, a 1% improvement in Human Resource development skill and a 1% improvement in Basic attitude. Additionally, based on the results of the engagement survey, the percentage of respondents indicating "fully engaged" has increased by 3 points compared to the previous year. This indicates that the enhancement of managerial skills is consistently leading to improved employee satisfaction.

The Ricoh Group is collectively working on "Process DX," which involves defining a "model" that uses digital technology and data to reform business processes in a standardized and efficient manner, and implementing reforms based on this model. We have developed a Process DX human resource development program that equips employees with the skills needed to practice Process DX.
This program is designed to certify skills at four levels, with each level's certification being visualized according to skill. As of March 2024, approximately 16,500 employees in the domestic Ricoh Group have completed basic level training, and around 1,200 employees have contributed to process transformation achievements.
By autonomously utilizing this program, each employee not only improves their own work productivity but also enhances their motivation towards their tasks.
Customer value through examples of process improvements practiced within the Ricoh Group, we offer opportunities for business expansion and contribution.

As a result of implementing process DX, we have generated approximately 1,300,000 hours per year (equivalent to the annual working hours of about 720 people) and shifted resources to growth areas. Since fiscal year 2022, based on our experience and know-how in practicing process DX internally, we have been providing services to solve customers' issues together with them, and have achieved numerous results. As of March 2024, approximately 16,500 employees, 53% of employees in Japan (99% excluding sales companies), have participated in this program and completed basic level training.

To help employees grow into "autonomous human resources", the Ricoh Group has systems to support the learning of employees.
For example, we provide training throughout the year to improve employees' business skills and strengthen their global responsiveness, such as carrying out lectures to pass the PMP® exam, which is a qualification for project management.
In addition, Ricoh Co., Ltd. also operates a "skill-up support special long-term leave system" that allows all permanent employees* to take long-term leave to acquire business qualifications like degrees from graduate schools, MBAs, and MOTs in Japan and overseas.

Ricoh Co., Ltd. is promoting a system in which employees register their skills, careers, and tasks they want to challenge as well as their hobbies and interests in the human resources database. By centrally visualizing and analyzing the collected in-house human resources data, the company can grasp what kind of human resources are in the company and utilize them for personnel strategy. We also utilize collected information for in-house job offers taking skills and backgrounds of employees into account, training support to further develop individual strengths, and promotion of communication between employees based on each other's skills and backgrounds. In addition, by linking with the above-mentioned in-house recruitment and side business system, the data is also utilized for matching works that employees want to challenge with the in-house posts.

Ricoh Co., Ltd. strengthens industry-academia collaboration activities by participating in government R & D projects and concluding comprehensive collaboration with research institutes such as universities. Through these activities, we aim to return our knowledge to society, develop new technologies and provide employees with opportunities to learn.The development of joint training programs based on these partnerships deepens employee learning.
For example, Ricoh Co., Ltd. started our next-generation digital printing technology joint research course with Tokyo Institute of Technology in 2019. We carry out basic research specializing in elemental technologies that are the core of next-generation digital printing technology. We also conduct research activities focusing on inkjet technology that leads to high-speed and high-resolution image formation technology.
Ricoh Co., Ltd. is also actively engaged in public-private partnerships, and regularly seconds employees who want to ecperience working in public institutions. It is a great career advantage for an employee to experience work that is not available within our company and interacting with the people in government offices contributes to the expansion in an employee's range of knowledge and insight.