People

　The Kuraray Group operates a training scheme in accordance with the Kuraray Group Global HR Policy. The program is designed to support acquisition of the knowledge and skills required for jobs and career-building efforts by employees themselves.

　The Kuraray Group has been implementing the Global Talent Development Program since 2007 with the aim of developing talents who can play active roles worldwide, and approximately 1,200 of employees have participated until 2024. The Global Team Training (GTT), which aims to develop global leadership among section managers, has been held 22 times with approximately 430 participants to date, and the network among alumni has greatly contributed to promoting communication across borders within the Kuraray Group.
　Our trainee program is another successful example, where we send young employees between Japanese and overseas companies for a three-month period. More than 120 people have participated, and many of them have been engaging in achievements as global talent later, such as being assigned abroad.
　In recent years, we have also launched new initiatives such as the “English language skill development program.” and the “Short Term Expat Policy,” and we will continue to expand programs in the future.

　"Kuraray Leadership Program" is designed to systematically develop the executive candidates and create its talent pool, thereby contributing to medium- to long-term business operations. Participants are selected from senior managers and section managers with considering the diversity (job family, nationality, gender, etc.).
　Every year, executive members, including the president, review the development plan and status of each participant, and provide programs such as "Tough assignments to new business fields," "Dialogue sessions with internal and external executives," and "External Executive management programs" for the purpose of gaining management perspective and expanding business horizons. The number of participants in this program is used as the preparation ratio for candidates of general managers.

　The Kuraray Group has been conducting DX Talent Development Program as a global measure since FY 2023, as we believe it is vital to cultivate a culture and environment in which all employees are constantly adapting to the digital evolution.
　We have established three classes based on digital literacy—Gold, Silver, and Bronze—and developed a training curriculum corresponding to each class. Our educational framework mandates that all employees acquire at least Bronze class certification. We also train and deploy at least one person in each department to lead digital transformation and spread technological knowledge throughout the department, and eventually to all parts of the Company.

　In Japan, Kuraray Group plants and companies plan and implement their own talent development programs and provide their employees with finely tuned support for skill development and career-building. Training is open to regular as well as part-time and contract-based employees.
　We also have an incentive system under which we furnish grants for acquisition of certain public qualifications by employees for their own self-improvement.
　In 2020, we launched the talent development project Kuraray PRIDE as a mechanism to strengthen our business creation capabilities. The project includes workshops to think about new business creation, training exchanges with other companies, and classes in which employees introduce Group divisions, various lectures by outside speakers, and among other content. Some lectures are filmed and translated into English for sharing with the entire Group.

　At Kuraray, we have introduced a "Self-Directed Career Development Support System" aimed at fostering an organization where each employee actively engages in building their career and works with vitality.
　As part of this initiative, we conduct "Career Design Training" for employees in Job/Location-Specific Track, General Career Track, and managerial positions across four levels: new graduate, Early Middle, Middle, and Senior.
　From the start of the program in 2015 until 2024 (with training for Job/Location-Specific Track beginning in 2023), approximately 2,000 employees have participated in the training.
　Certified career advisors conduct interviews with participants and their supervisors (optional for Job/Location-Specific Track, mandatory for General Career Track and managerial positions) to support the promotion of self-directed career development.

　The table below shows the average time per person for the Talent Development Program that is implemented (Kuraray Co., Ltd., unconsolidated).