Sustainability Management contributes to Long-term Corporate Value Creation
Nifco positions sustainability as a key pillar of its management strategy in order to achieve sustainable growth and enhance corporate value over the medium to long term. The purpose of this message is to convey, from a management perspective, the significance and objectives of these efforts to our external stakeholders, including investors and business partners.
From the independent standpoint of an outside director, we will present our approach to viewing governance and sustainability as an integrated whole, thereby clarifying the direction of the sustainable management that our company aims to achieve.
Yoshiko Nonogaki
External director
External director, Sato Corporation
Nifco has long been engaged with sustainability issues. Bearing this in mind, Sustainability Committee, has undergone a structural revision starting from fiscal year 2025. Previously the committee was serving as an advisory body to the Board of Directors, but will now submit matters to the Board after thorough discussions within the Executive Management team at the company. This change clarifies a more practical and effective framework for promoting sustainability. The selection of materialities has also been actively discussed, and we believe that steady progress is being made in setting KPIs.
In terms of the environment, they are not only reducing CO₂ emissions and saving electricity in the production process, but are also taking advanced measures such as introducing solar power generation and achieving one of the largest self-consignment systems in western Japan. Although Nifco’s CDP rating currently stands at a “C” level, their initiatives are progressing in alignment with their business characteristics and response policies. While responding to Scope 3 is a highly difficult challenge from technical and structural standpoints, I understand that they are also proceeding with their response carefully and in a phased approach.
In recent years, Nifco has been actively committed to human capital management. Under their long-term vision of being a company that “shapes ideas into reality,” they are working to secure talent suited to a business portfolio aimed at solving social issues. To help individuals fully realize their potential, they are advancing the implementation of Nifco’s unique job-based system. By creating opportunities for dialogue—including direct communication from top management—and establishing mechanisms that visualize and provide feedback on individual productivity as contributions to the organization, they are steadily cultivating an environment that enhances employee engagement.
To ensure these initiatives take firm root, the Nomination, Compensation, and Governance Committee has been trying to incorporate the perspective of human capital into qualitative evaluations of executives. The Board intends to adequately monitor the progress of ESG initiatives, aiming to realize both corporate value improvement and the company’s contribution to a sustainable society.
Yoshio Kometani
Yoshio Kometani
Since FY2024, I have been serving as an external director and participating in the Nomination, Compensation, and Governance Committee. Sustainability management is one of Nifco’s key agenda items, and they are actively engaging in discussions with the aim of enhancing their corporate value.
Nifco serves as a key player in the supply chain of Japan’s core automobile industry and also owns the luxury bedding brand Simmons Co., Ltd. As a result, there is a strong awareness of sustainability management especially among management, and is also being gradually instilled to employees. It can be said that the necessary measures and internal systems, including the identification of materiality, are generally well established.
In terms of environmental initiatives, Nifco's efforts to reduce CO₂ emissions are already progressing beyond industry standards. Furthermore, one of their materiality themes is “promoting efforts toward zero waste (circular economy),” under which they are working to reduce waste and convert it into valuable resources through enhanced waste segregation. However, there are many challenges that the industry as a whole must address, such as establishing certification necessary for utilizing recycled materials, and I feel that Nifco’s social responsibility in this area will continue to grow in the future.
Nifco is a company driven by design-thinking that “shapes ideas into reality,” and their strength lies in their ability to respond precisely and swiftly to diverse customer needs and social issues through product development. Beyond the automotive sector, they are also pursuing interesting field-driven initiatives such as developing solutions for schools that utilize battery-free devices.
In addition, under Nifco's “Glocal Management” approach, they are beginning to yield results from the delegation of authority to overseas bases and the active appointment of international talent, improving management efficiency and accelerating decision-making, and are seeing an expansion of opportunities for diverse talent to thrive. On the other hand, the ratio of female managers in Japan remains low, and continued efforts in this area are necessary.
Going forward, the Board of Directors will continue to leverage Nifco’s unique strengths and characteristics to contribute significantly to the realization of a sustainable society as a leading company in its industry, and will provide appropriate oversight and solid support to management.