CSR

For our Group, the 2015 financial year represented the last year of our 2015 medium-term business plan, as well as a year we achieved our goals through collective efforts. As a result, consolidated sales for the term increased 2.6% from the previous term to a record high of 678.5 billion yen, while operating profit increased 30.1% to 32.6 billion yen. Additionally, our operating profit to sales ratio, which was one of our management targets, improved by 1 point from the previous term to 4.8%, achieving about 80% of the initial goal of 6.3% set out in the 2015 medium-term business plan. This is a result that can be fairly evaluated as a modicum of success.

I’d now like to announce the completed formulation of the 2020 Medium-term Business Plan, our 5-year plan starting this year. This medium-term business plan follows the fundamentals established in the 2015 Medium-term Business Plan; with it, we aim to accurately assess the values our customers demand and provide these values, transforming into a high-profit enterprise as a result. The numerical targets we’ve set for 2020 are consolidated sales of 900 billion yen, an operating profit to sales ratio of 7.0% or more, a ROE of 10% or more, and a D/E ratio of 0.66. We will not compromise in continuing to push forward with the structural and systemic reforms we worked on through the 2015 medium-term, delineating a growth strategy that closely ties to our global customers. Additionally, we will make special efforts creating new businesses to accelerate our process of renewal, executing resource shifts to establish new keystone enterprises. On a different note, there is an increasing trend for stakeholders (and investors in particular) to demand that companies fulfill social responsibilities. For us at the Fujikura Group as well, we hope to establish corporate governance and improve our valuations in both environmental and social terms, increasing corporate value and securing business continuity.

The CSR of the Fujikura Group is based on the Group's MVCV (Mission, Vision, Core Values) management philosophy, and it is our corporate social responsibility (CSR) to realize a sustainable society along with continuous development for our Group, through corporate action that respects humanity and the earth. In order to realize our CSR ideals, we’ve been proactive in our initiatives within the 25-item Fujikura Group CSR Priority Measures (Priority Issues), a component of the 2015 Medium-term Business Plan. As a result, by 2015 we were able to accomplish many of the priority measures tied to the environment, society, and governance (ESG). I’d like to introduce some of our initiatives here.

On the environmental front, we achieved zero waste emissions at Group companies domestically, and also reduced our burden on the global environment by cutting our total CO2 emissions. Socially, we’ve contributed to the resolution of social issues by continuing to provide assistance to the areas in Tohoku affected by the 2011 earthquake, and establishing a special subsidiary aiming to increase the employment of people with disabilities. In terms of governance, we were active in the United Nations Global Compact initiative, held dialogues with stakeholders, and improved reliability among our CSR activities. Furthermore, as our action target for the next five years, we’ve made our 2020 medium-term CSR goal “the realization of the Fujikura Group as a group highly acclaimed by both the international community and our investors”, formulating a new 12-item set of priority measures following consultation with experts. We will not be satisfied with the results of what we’ve done-instead, we will go forward stronger than ever in our efforts to achieve our new priority measures.

With all of our employees determined, spirited, and dedicated, here at the Fujikura Group we will strive to fulfill our social responsibilities, aim to become a corporate group both appreciated by customers and commended by society, and progress proactively in our efforts, now as always. On behalf of the Fujikura Group, I’d like to ask all of you for your continued understanding, support, and encouragement.