Risk Management

Basic Concept

Creating a Group-wide risk management system

Along with the globalization of economies and the transformation of societies, the risks faced by companies have become more diverse. Konica Minolta has created a Group-wide risk management system in order to clarify various corporate risks and to minimize their impact on its businesses. The Group also conducts business continuity management, taking measures to ensure that businesses are able to continue uninterrupted in the case of a natural disaster or other unforeseen circumstances.

Risk Management System

Konica Minolta has established a management system in which the President and CEO is responsible for risk management and crisis management. In April 2010, the company strengthened its system for assessing a range of possible risks without serious omissions and developing full countermeasures. A system for reporting and issuing instructions during a crisis was also established and continues to operate.

Building a Risk Management System

Making executive officers and corporate vice presidents responsible for managing various risks.

The executive officers and corporate vice presidents are responsible for managing various risks including strategic and operational risks such as financial risks, risks pertinent to environmental regulations and hazard risks. They identify and evaluate risks and develop and monitor countermeasures in their respective spheres of management. In addition, the Risk Management Committee, chaired by an executive officer or a corporate vice president appointed by the Board of Directors, is convened periodically (twice a year). The Committee examines the risks identified by each executive officer, as well as the countermeasures in place, and checks to ensure that the risk management system is functioning effectively, making revisions where necessary. The Group responds as a whole to risks judged to be particularly important, led by an executive officer or corporate vice president appointed by the chairperson. The activities of the Risk Management Committee are periodically reported to the Audit Committee.

Risk Information

Matters concerning the business and financial status of the Konica Minolta Group that are likely to have a material impact on the decision of investors. Matters relating to the future referenced are Group determinations based on the current business environment.

Building a Crisis Management System

Establishing a system for minimizing the business and social impact of crises

Konica Minolta has established a system for minimizing the business and social impact of crises that may arise from a range of risks by taking prompt and appropriate action and by releasing information. The Crisis Management Committee, chaired by a director or an executive officer for crisis management appointed by the Board of Directors, discusses and formulates crisis countermeasures and procedures for action. Furthermore, the emergency contact system has been enhanced to enable the President and CEO, in addition to the director and executive officer for crisis management, to assess the situation and make decisions quickly. A system has also been established to enable the President and CEO to take leadership in critical areas in a crisis.

Factors and Examples of Crisis Risks (excerpts)
  Factors Examples
1 Defective products, recalls, product liability lawsuits Design errors (faulty products, health hazards), errors in manufacturing processes (faulty products, foreign substances contained in products), etc.
2 Defective services Inappropriate explanations, discriminatory attitudes toward customers, etc.
3 Personnel-related problems Ambiguous performance evaluation standards, unfair transfers, human rights infringements such as employment discrimination and harassment, crimes/scandals involving employees, etc.
4 Labor-related problems Labor disputes, unfair labor practices, child labor, forced labor, occupational health hazards, employee deaths or suicides caused by overwork, etc.
5 Corporate negligence Pollution (soil, wastewater, odors), industrial accidents (health and safety hazards, accidents), etc.
6 Company's unethical conduct Contacts with anti-social forces, scandals, internal disputes, insider trading, etc.
7 Inappropriate decision-making on management and marketing Risks involved in investments, loans, bonds, M&A, and transactions; excessive competition, etc.
8 Corporate crimes Illegal acts (violations of Antimonopoly Act, Premiums and Representation Act, Subcontract Act, Tax and Commercial Laws, etc.)
9 Intimidation and other crimes committed against the company Obstruction of business (inserting foreign substances in products, etc.), robbery, subversive activities, etc.
10 Economic and social disturbances Oil crises, major power failures, sharp declines in stock prices, etc.
11 International/political upheavals War, coups, trade conflicts, etc.
12 Disasters and epidemics Earthquakes, storms and floods, fires, epidemics (SARS, avian influenza, and new type of influenza, etc.)
13 Rumors concerning management instability Incorrect information in mass media, spreading rumors through various channels, including the Internet, etc.

Business Continuity Management (BCM)

Establishing measures for business continuity in the event of a major natural disaster

One of the most important responsibilities of an enterprise is to maintain or rapidly resume its essential business operations in the event of a major disaster or accident. Konica Minolta is working toward this goal at Group companies worldwide, as well as in its supply chains.*

At Konica Minolta, each business division and subsidiary, including the Business Technologies Business, which is Konica Minolta's core business, and Medical Devices, for which there is a high need during disasters, formulates a business continuity plan (BCP), laying out a specific plan of action for such an event. The Group has also established an initial response system to decide the necessity of putting the BCP into action by gathering information such as the damage situation immediately after a disaster.

Specifically, in the event of a major earthquake in Japan, the basic policy is to keep supplying consumables and products as much as possible so as to not inconvenience customers, while continuing to provide support services to existing customers. Toward that end, the Group is striving to increase the level of its business continuity system by decentralizing production sites for primary consumables, conducting risk assessments on suppliers, and securing alternatives and inventory for key parts with big risk. In addition, a backup structure has been established for call centers in Eastern and Western Japan so that they can provide backup to each other. This enables the company to continue to provide customer support even if one center were affected by a disaster. Further, various drills are conducted to increase the quality of these kinds of BCM.

*Supply chain: The series of activities involved in delivering a product or service to a customer, ranging from procurement and production to distribution and sales.

Reinforcing Crisis Response and BCM

The Group's major sites escaped severe damage in the Great East Japan Earthquake that struck on 2011, and the BCP did not have to be implemented. However, for the first month after the disaster, the president of Konica Minolta, Inc. held an Earthquake Response Meeting every morning to gather information, give appropriate instructions, and ensure consistent information disclosure. Since then, the Group has taken measures to improve its preparedness for front-line action in the event of a major disaster that occurs without warning.
Specifically, the initial response manual at all Group sites was revised so that operations would reliably continue during periods of chaos, at night and on holidays. The effectiveness of the manual was tested with actual drills, and the PDCA cycle is being used to improve it further.
In the event of a large-scale earthquake, the headquarters in the Marunouchi area of Chiyoda, Tokyo would serve as the Disaster Response Headquarters. Seven teams, headed by the President and CEO, would promptly respond. This system is reviewed in Group disaster preparedness training held once a year. In this training, the Disaster Response Headquarters, including top management, works with a site chosen as the hypothetical epicenter to quickly ascertain the extent of the damage, decide on a response and make decisions. In November 2021, training was carried out for a scenario involving the occurrence of a quake off the coast of Awaji Island, near Kobe, requiring a disaster control headquarters to be set up. Many headquarters employees participated remotely.
Konica Minolta has its own information-sharing tools for use in disasters. Its Emergency Information Data Base System is able to map the extent of damage at sites in the Konica Minolta Group in Japan, thereby providing an overall picture of the damage. The Safety Confirmation System prompts employees to report on their safety and the safety of their family members in the event of an earthquake. Konica Minolta also uses internal social media as an information-sharing tool for use in emergencies that occur at night or on holidays. Employing disaster prevention ICT, these tools support a smooth response from the initial response stage through the BCP stage. When the earthquake occurred in northern Osaka in June 2018, the Group used these ICT tools and confirmed that they were effective for information- sharing in the initial stage.
In January 2020, as the novel coronavirus began to spread, Konica Minolta established a crisis management system focused on production sites in China and initiated a group-wide response. After that, it expanded the scope of the system to European and North American sales and production companies in March, and to sites in Japan in April. Measures have been implemented to provide employee and business continuity support.
When the explosions occurred in July and August 2021 at Konica Minolta Supplies Manufacturing Tatsuno Factory, a Crisis Management Committee consisting of employees at the factory and Konica Minolta (headquarters and production departments) was formed to share information and determine countermeasures to be taken. The committee's work has initiated a neighborhood and public relations response, as well as measures to ensure safety and prevent recurrence.
With regard to the crisis in Ukraine that erupted in February 2022, a Crisis Management Committee consisting of representatives from Konica Minolta (headquarters and sales departments) and Ukraine was formed to share information and formulate a response to the crisis.

Group disaster preparedness training

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