Promoting Diversity and Inclusion

We will:

• Respect the diversity of employees based on the belief that D&I will serve as a new source of value creation (innovation).
• Strive to create workplaces that maximize the strengths of individuals, where every individual is able to fully demonstrate his or her strengths.
• Create an ANA Group that enjoys unwavering trust and generates constant innovation by enabling everyone to work energetically and positively.

Mr. Shinobe: What must a company accomplish to survive in today's fast-changing world? Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution offers some insight into this question:“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.” This principle tells us that there are two ways to ensure a company's survival:(1) Adapt the thinking and behavior of the company's current employees in line with the environment; and/or (2) Recruit employees who are able to successfully adapt to the changing environment. In essence, a company is able to promptly adapt to its environment when it has a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects a variety of backgrounds.

Ms. Kobayashi: Looking at the ANA Group, the first major change in the environment that comes to mind is globalization. While expanding the share of its international flights, it must recruit more local personnel who are able to deal with differences not only in language but also in customs. This means that the ANA Group must step up recruitment of local personnel who are already familiar with their countries' customs and do not require any additional training in this respect.

Mr. Shinobe: It is difficult to skillfully negotiate multiple languages and cultures in situations where you only have Japanese people to do so. That is why ANA is now expanding its recruitment activities for cabin crews to Hong Kong, Shanghai, Bangkok and other locations.

— Finding a Place for Every Employee to Reach their Full Potential —

Mr. Shinobe: I believe that we must now pay closer attention to how we gauge individual talent. For example, the main thrust of personnel assignments should be to find a place for each employee to reach their full potential. We should not merely increase the number of women in a workplace because we think it has too few female employees.

Ms. Kobayashi: D&I at Japanese companies often ends up as a discussion about how many female officers should be appointed to management. However, I sense that you are looking at D&I from the deeper standpoint of ensuring corporate sustainability.

Mr. Shinobe: Ideally, D&I should be considered from the perspective of sustainability. However, the reality is that we still have a long way to go. To illustrate, there may be many employees who still believe that it is easier to get work done in an organization with a homogeneous workforce. In this day and age, however, companies that do not embrace D&I will clearly be left behind.

— Imperatives for Reshaping Employee Awareness —

Mr. Shinobe: From a very young age, we have been taught to believe that “there is only one correct answer” to test questions and other situations. I feel that this notion discourages us from thinking flexibly.

Ms. Kobayashi: In the real world, sometimes there are no correct answers at all; other times there is more than one correct answer. There are even situations where every option is correct. Because the ANA Group gives the highest priority to safety, manuals must be followed to the letter. That being said, employees should not take the approach of blindly doing only what is specified in the manual, or not doing something unless the manual says so. I believe that it is crucial for every individual to determine what he or she is able to accomplish, and act accordingly.

Mr. Shinobe: I couldn't agree more. It is imperative that we develop frameworks and programs that encourage people to give each other credit where credit is due, particularly for doing a good job. It is also vital for us to build human relationships as a foundation for all that we do. Ultimately, this will help us to jettison the notion that “there is only one correct answer.” We need to positively affirm our differences in thinking, personality, and ability, and ensure that every individual involved in the ANA Group can perform to their fullest. Provided that this principle is shared as a common goal, individuals should be free to determine how they go about getting their work done. The entire management team, including myself, is committed to executing management that embraces D&I—one that makes the most of each person's talent, character, and individuality.