Our history on diversity
Focusing on women, the largest minority group at many companies, we established the Female Committee in 2014 to prevent female employees who wish to develop their careers from giving it up and quitting jobs due to being unable to balance work and family.
The Female Committee, comprised of female employees who volunteered from each department and led by female employees, has discovered issues faced by female employees and their requests and conducted gender-based awareness surveys and career improvement seminars to promote the enhancement of female employees' awareness.
However, life events, including marriage and births, are not just for women, and issues such as nursing, illnesses, and injuries may fall upon anyone. In addition, various other issues that hinder balancing life with work clearly exist. We are responding to issues inside and outside the company by expanding our scope from promoting the success of female employees to promoting diversity so that each and every employee, who are becoming more diverse, can achieve their full potential.
Policies on diversity
I-NET's Corporate Charter states that "We maintain and improve our working environment, which enables respect for the diversity, personality and identity of the employees, and also enables them to exert their own abilities and vitality."
Based on this belief, I-NET aims to further expand the diverse and far-reaching businesses it has built up for over 50 years, such as its Information Processing Services, which includes the data center business, and System Development Services. We will do so by strategically utilizing the skills and individuality of our diverse employees, regardless of their gender, age, nationality, disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identification, values, work style, and whether they are married and have children.
We will continue to promote diversity and inclusion to help customers and all other people enjoy life.
Tomomichi Saeki
Representative Director, Executive President
New ideas emerge from diverse employees contributing their knowledge, experience, and sense of values in different fields, which lead to the new development of and improvements to products and services. I-NET strives to create an environment where our employees can achieve their full potential by utilizing their individuality, regardless of gender, age, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, sense of values, or work style.
I-NET will promote diversity based on the following policies.
1) Understanding and improving on requests and issues for the success of each and every employee
2) Developing culture for both management and employees to take an active part in the promotion of diversity
3) Initiatives to contribute to solve social issues by participating in activities to communicate with other companies, local communities, and governments
Diversity Promotion System
Diversity Promotion Office
In line with the diversity guidelines that we have put forward, we established a Diversity Promotion Office in October 2018 so that we can systematically and continuously address these issues, enabling a diverse body of employees to maximize their abilities. We strive to establish diversity measures, run the Diversity Committee, and meet customers’ diversifying needs.
Diversity Committee
The Diversity Promotion Office is designated as the secretariat, and a wide range of members participate, regardless of gender, age, and position, including managers and employees from all business divisions. The members discuss issues that have come up internally to promote diversity, and carry out activities that lead to solutions.
Diversity measures
i Dear Post
We have set up a suggestion box called “i Dear Post” in the employee groupware, which is directly linked to the President. It also collects employee opinions on diversity, and the Diversity Promotion Office is responsible for reception and operation, as well as liaison with individuals.
Diversity training
- Job level-specific diversity seminars
Status reports, lectures, and group work on diversity are conducted for each job level, including the Chairman and President, as well as division managers, department heads, newly appointed managers, and new hires.
- Diversity lectures for general employees
We made training videos for all employees so that they understand the basic knowledge of diversity. All employees have watched the videos.
The video is posted on Groupware and can be viewed at any time.
- Declaration on Diversity
Each business division develops a Declaration on Conduct to which it aspires, and works on diversity management.
- Education
The Diversity Newsletter is posted to the employee groupware every month, providing information on how to communicate with diversity in mind, work–life balance tips, and other topics
Office Casual
We recommend office casual to respect the diversity of employees.
This initiative is aimed at encouraging employees to wear clothes that fit their particular work situation, not clothes that fit stereotypes of "masculine" or "feminine."
Wearing comfortable clothes creates an environment that facilitates higher productivity and creative thinking, and also helps to ensure work safety, among other benefits.
Employees have said that wearing relaxed clothing creates an open atmosphere and that communication has become more invigorating.
Efforts to Develop Diverse Human Resource
Actively hiring female employees
Many new female employees join us every year. The ratio of female employees among new hires has been approximately 40% for over a decade. Our female employees feel at ease joining us because we have good systems to support the balance between work and family. Our older employees have been actively involved for a long time. We will continue actively hiring female employees in the future.
Click here for the hiring page
Active role of global human resources
We conduct a variety of activities to help our international employees feel comfortable living and working in a foreign country, e.g., regular community activities for foreign nationals, introduction of the culture of each country to the organization to which they will be assigned before joining the company, and cross-organizational exchange events.
The following explains our activities and thoughts based on interviews with foreign national employees currently working in the company.
James Fam Si Jie
Technology
Malaysia
Biography
Getting interested in the Japanese anime culture and attracted to its cleanliness and economic wealth, he decided to study abroad in Japan when he was in high school. After learning Japanese at a language school, he attended a university as an international economics major, studying how politics and economy transitioned based on the history of various countries. He joined I-NET as a new graduate in 2018, and is assigned to the development of web systems.
What made you decide to join I-NET?
I was interested in how money flows, and I wanted to join a bank at first. But I realized I should understand financial systems if I were to learn about financial mechanisms, and those systems are outsourced to system companies. So, I decided to work at an IT company to which those projects are outsourced. The reason why I wanted to work at I-NET among those IT companies is because I-NET is an independent company. I felt it compelling that I-NET works on all parts of the process from sales to system maintenance.
Could you tell us about what projects you're working on now and what's rewarding about the job?
My current project adopts the agile model (a method that does not define clear requirements and works to refine what's been made), rather than the common waterfall model. It's very difficult, but I'm putting my best effort into it because I think this experience will be useful in the future.
Although I joined this company with almost no knowledge of IT, working on web systems, which I am familiar with, allowed me to learn the knowledge while imagining how they work in operation.
When I hit a wall, I try to think on my own first, and ask an expert if I can't solve the problem myself. Whenever I hit a wall, I try to learn from it. I feel more confident now that I've overcome the struggle to solve issues.
How is your interaction with other employees?
My current team members are international, with people hailing from Malaysia, India, China, Korea, and Japan. We feel a sense of unity because we work together toward a single goal every month. Also, we have a free address workplace in which we sit together as a team, follow up on each other, and answer questions through discussions. That naturally maintains open communication.
Could you tell us about your future goals?
I want to set a deadline to pass the Project Manager Examination for IT Engineers so that I can obtain expertise to become a better project manager. As my boss has instructed me to "understand what I'm good at and what I'm not, and learn more about what I'm not good at," I want to build up my practical skills not only through studying but also through everyday work.
Active participation by seniors
I-NET engages in various efforts to promote active participation by seniors.
Extending retirement age and continued employment
Although the retirement age for permanent employees is 60 years old, we guarantee employment for all employees until 65 years old.
Establishing an environment in which seniors can work at ease
We allow flexible work styles, such as shortened working hours and four-day work week, introducing working patterns considering the characteristics of the seniors.
Initiatives to increase the motivation of seniors
We hold career design training sessions for seniors when our employees are 50 years old and 58 years old. We conduct individual career interviews with employees who are 58 years old. We have also introduced a system in which career consultants at the Personnel Division can provide consultations and support.
LGBTQ initiatives
At I-NET, we consider LGBTQ initiatives to constitute a key theme of our diversity promotion efforts, and we are working to raise awareness, improve environments, and build a stronger corporate culture.
Making systems more LGBTQ-friendly
We have introduced a partnership system in which the same-sex partner of an employee is considered a spouse for benefits and other purposes. Further, we have developed the LGBTQ Guidelines, which clearly outlines counseling services, health checks, and other support and policies.
Providing a consultation service
Our consultation service about matters pertaining to sexual orientation is available to employees, and we utilize our company intranet to ensure they are aware of this service.
Augmenting training programs
We provide employee training that covers basic LGBTQ knowledge and how to support LGBTQ employees.
In addition, a talk on sports and LGBTQ was held at an internal futsal tournament.
From left to right: Mx. Uchiyama and Mx. Shimoyamada, Rebolt Inc.
Facilitating diversity in hiring
New graduates may select “No response”“Others” in the field for gender on their application sheet.
Special training is also provided separately for hiring managers, who are the primary contact for hiring LGBTQ individuals.
Building a welcoming environment
We encourage employees to wear office casual attire, offering them the option to choose clothing that is not bound by traditional gender stereotypes (see “Office Casual” above).
Activities contributing to society
To further promote society’s understanding on LGBTQ, we regularly hold study sessions for companies belonging to the Kanagawa Information services industry Association to explain the significance of our initiatives and tips on how to approach the issue.
Activity to Promote Employment of Persons with Disables
We established I-NET DATA SERVICE CORP., a special subsidiary, on April 1, 2009, to provide support for the development of society in which people with disabilities can get jobs that fit their capabilities and aptitudes, and live autonomous lives just like people without disabilities.
The I-NET Group also periodically holds "liaison meetings" to solve issues to employ more people with disabilities and develop a comfortable environment for people with disabilities to work.
I-NET DATA SERVICE CORP. Website
Initiatives for Active Participation by Women
I-NET has positioned the promotion of active participation by women as a management strategy for sustainable growth. We hold seminars for female employees and develop an environment that is easy to work in, as initiatives to enable female employees to continue working for a long time with peace of mind.
Planned employment
Training for new female employees
We invite a lecturer from an external company to deliver a lecture on work style for women as part of training for new employees. We are also conducting training sessions in which we ask successful female employees to discuss their experience, intending to develop training programs that make our employees aware of vision to work in society for many years from early in their careers.
Training for female managers and leaders
We periodically hold training sessions on management and career development for female managers, female leaders, and female employees who want to become leaders.
Women’s wellness
To reduce barriers to women’s work and further empower them in the workplace, it is necessary to address women’s specific health issues.
Our benefit plan includes subsidies for gynecological cancer screenings, seminars on menstruation and menopause, and exercise programs.
Appointed as Kanagawa Women's Active Participation Support Team
- Internal Initiatives
(1) We will double the ratio of female managers (to 12.0%) by April 1, 2025. This is not only the pursuit of a quantitative goal, but also the provision of training and other support to raise awareness and motivate career development at each level so that each employee can fully demonstrate their abilities. Here, our goal is to practice hiring and promotion that is fair and not biased by gender.
(2) We will create an internal environment that allows a diverse workforce, including women, to choose the way of working that best suits their life stage, regardless of whether they have a partner or children, for instance.
Our aim is to have all employees take at least 10 days of paid leave per year, further increase the number of telecommuting employees, and promote the use of parental leave by male employees.
(3) We will work to obtain various certifications, including those for women’s activities, support for balancing work and childcare, and health management.
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Efforts to Grow Social Movements
We will help spur further growth of the Cheering on Working Moms childcare facility information search site, and ChatLuck SC, a chat tool connecting schools and parents, helping to provide comprehensive support for childcare in the community.
By leveraging technology from IT companies to facilitate the collection and sharing of information, we will support working parents in balancing work and childcare, and create a society in which partners can cooperate with each other to manage childcare information rather than the burden tending to be biased toward women.
I-NET Corp. Declaration of Action
Transition of Data
*1: Figures are as of April 1 of each fiscal year.
*2: For 2019～2020, figures are as of the end of March.
For 2021, figures are as of the end of June.
*3: Total for each FY.
Support for balancing work and raising children
Systems to provide support for balancing work and raising children/nursing care
I-NET encourages employees to take childcare leave regardless of gender, and the current return rate for female employees who have taken childcare leave is almost 100%.In addition, various systems have been adopted so employees can balance work and raising children.
We follow the 2022 legal revision, we will further focus on promoting the acquisition of paternal childcare leave for men.
- Hospital visits during work hours for pregnant employees
- Introduction of a communication sheet to support return to work after childcare leave
- Maternity leave
- Spousal childbirth leave
- Childcare leave
- Shortened working hours for childcare and nursing care
- Staggered working hours
- Restrictions on overtime work
- Restrictions on late-night work
- Granting of nursing care leave (up to entering elementary school)
- Days designated for leaving work on time
- Implementation of working from home/telework
- Annual paid leave by the hour
- Memorial holiday
- Re-employment (job return) system
- Subsidy for babysitter fees
Certifications and qualifications
I-NET has acquired certifications and qualifications on diversity.
Create the NEUVOLA Employee Guidebook for Balancing Work and Childcare
To further support employees in balancing work and childcare, the “Ease of Working for Women” booklet was redesigned to a new guidebook, “NEUVOLA Employee Guidebook for Balancing Work and Childcare,” which covers the mindsets of employees, their families, and supervisors, as well as I-NET support program.We aim to create an environment that encourages all employees to take childcare leave, with a 100% childcare leave take-up rate.
