Rohto's Work Style Real Report 2024: Pursuing Diverse Work Styles and Aiming for Further Well-being

What kind of work style does Rohto Pharmaceutical aim for?

Based on the philosophy of supporting each employee's autonomous career to expand their own potential, our company was quick to establish a system for side jobs and concurrent positions in 2016, and in 2020 launched support for entrepreneurs within the company project "Asuniwa project" promoting diverse working styles and supporting employees to envision long-term careers regardless of age. Last year, as a fundamental work style reform aimed at further value creation, we announced our commitment to seriously working to improve employee well-being as the "New Work Style Declaration" *1. Since then, each individual has been considering what "essential work style" should be, and each department is working on business reforms.

*1: Rohto Pharmaceutical's new work style declaration: Aiming for mutual growth of individuals and the company!

We believe that by breaking away from conventional methods and ways of thinking and rethinking how we use our time, we can create time for dialogue with family and the community, as well as for personal growth, and enable each individual to connect more with and contribute to society both inside and outside the company, which will lead to improved employee well-being. We consider the improvement of employee well-being and the innovation that arises from connections inside and outside the company to be important management issues that are sources of corporate growth, and in our second year, we will continue to work on a full-scale review of our business processes and support diverse career development to enable employees to work more vibrantly.

Initiatives to support diverse work styles and career development that allow individuals to shine.

"External Challenge Work" and "Internal Double Jobs" (Starting April 2016) - Encouraging each individual to expand their own potential.

"External Challenge Work" aims to allow employees to gain experiences that are difficult to obtain within the company through working outside the company's boundaries, and to contribute their personal growth back to their main job. "Internal Double Jobs" aims to unlock new potential in each employee by allowing them to work in other departments beyond their own departmental boundaries during working hours.

"Asuniwa project" (Starting April 2020), support for entrepreneurs within the company project.

We support employees who start businesses based on their individual aspirations and ideas, addressing social issues. Employees practice multi-job management, starting businesses while performing their regular duties. Our company has partnered with internal crowdfunding projects to provide funding, resulting in the establishment of eight companies (as of May 2024). In April, one limited liability company was established by the fourth cohort of project participants, and the fifth cohort is currently working as a pre-seed group.

Age-independent Career Development: New Business Challenges in Your 50s - Voices of Practitioners

As examples of diverse career development practices, we introduce the voices of two individuals who, regardless of age, continue to take on new challenges by utilizing entrepreneur support projects and internal job postings.

Driven by a strong desire to give back to the community, I boldly started a business with my colleagues! (Kazuki Morioka / Compliance Promotion Department)

As we get older, the "confidence" and "sense of accomplishment" that we've accumulated through our past experiences can sometimes turn into a "sense of superiority." Realizing how much support we've received from others, we begin to think about "what we can do in return."
In Ishigaki, where I received so much support during the initial stages of launching my new business, I established a company that manufactures and sells soap made from the fat of cows and pigs I raised there. My dream is to connect many people and expand from the local area to all of Japan and then to the world. To realize this dream and give back to the local people and stakeholders, I decided to start my own business as a third-generation participant in the entrepreneur support project "Asuniwa project." In June 2023, I established Safun LLC, and currently, in addition to conducting tests for commercializing the soap and considering manufacturing locations, I am working hard to participate in local events and develop sales channels. I know that learning will continue throughout my life, but I want to use my ingenuity to contribute to the local community.

Having finished raising her children, she is taking on a new business venture in Ishigaki Island, dedicating the remaining years of her corporate career to this challenge (Ayako Kameda / Agri-Farm Division)

Spending time with my two energetic grandchildren made me realize that children's health is the foundation of everything, and that a rich and safe diet is its source. I wanted to be involved in the food business, which is the source of health and the blood and flesh that makes up the body, so I volunteered to take on the challenge of a new business at Yaeyama Farm Co., Ltd., a group company in Ishigaki Island.
Since taking up my position, I've had the opportunity to experience firsthand the circular economy of the sixth-sector industry, from preparing the soil in the fields, harvesting pineapples, and caring for cows and pigs, to processing, shipping, and sales. I've been inspired by the passionate feelings of my colleagues at each stage of the process towards living things, the environment, and health. Moving forward, I will be involved in product planning, and new challenges await me.

• Rohto's Real Report on Practicing Side Hustles and Part-Time Jobs 2021
• Rohto's Report on Practicing Side Hustles, Concurrent Positions, and Intra-Corporate Entrepreneurship (2022)