I am thrilled to share that Gojo recently received the Semi-Grand Prize for diversity and inclusion in the SME Category at the D&I AWARD. The D&I AWARD is Japan's largest certification for companies working on diversity and inclusion, designed to make D&I a societal "norm." Receiving this recognition is a significant milestone for us, especially as we have grown into a diverse team with members from over ten different countries.
A few years ago, I wrote about how diversity builds better workplaces, drawing from my early career experiences navigating homogeneous local offices versus intentionally inclusive international organisations. Since stepping into the role of Chief People & Inclusion Officer at Gojo, my goal has been to build an environment where everyone can thrive without the pressure to conform to a single "majority" norm.
When the award secretariat evaluated our efforts, they highlighted our commitment to a highly transparent and flat organisational culture. At Gojo, our board and management's strong commitment shapes our culture. To promote transparency, almost all internal documents and meetings are accessible to everyone. I want to share three concrete ways we are actively building a truly diverse and inclusive organisation:
- Achieving Gender Equality through Board-Level KPIs: Gender diversity is a critical topic in Japan, and we believe it requires deliberate action and measurable goals. In March 2021, our Nomination Committee officially set a quantitative Diversity Target. Back then, the female ratio among Gojo members was only 36%, and we had just one female member on our Board of Directors. It took time, but having a concrete, board-level commitment with quantitative KPIs fundamentally drove our decisions across hiring and promotions. Today, I am proud to share that we have achieved a 50% female ratio among our members, and we now have three female board members out of nine. We have intentionally built this diverse board by welcoming international female talent to join as Outside Directors, such as Royanne Doi, Almira Zejnilagic, and Kshama Fernandes.
- Overcome Cultural Conflict with "Culture Mapping": Having a diverse team brings diverse perspectives, but it also brings different communication styles. We noticed that during management meetings, direct debate styles could feel overwhelming to members from cultures that traditionally do not debate so actively. To address this, we implemented a "Culture Mapping" workshop. By visualising how different cultures approach decision-making and feedback, we fostered mutual understanding and reduced friction.
- Fostering Empathy through the "Happiness Chart": We believe D&I is about understanding individual differences, not just gender or nationality. New members joining Gojo present a "Happiness Chart," sharing the highs and lows of their personal life journeys. Sharing vulnerability creates cross-cultural empathy; it turns out that no matter where you grew up, the struggle of a major life transition or the awkwardness of your teenage years looks surprisingly similar on a line graph. Finding these shared emotional experiences builds profound psychological safety and a comfortable workplace.
While we are honoured by the Semi-Grand Prize, we know there is still much work to do. We are actively working on long-term challenges, such as deliberately creating opportunities from the middle-management level to continually improve gender diversity in the top management team. We are also expanding our mental wellness support systems to enhance psychological safety and focusing on sharing our D&I knowledge with our group companies overseas to create a broader social impact.
Ultimately, our goal in driving these initiatives is to create a work environment where everyone feels psychological safety. As part of my ongoing dedication to our members' growth, I am currently becoming a certified coach of Co-Active coaching. I have been providing coaching to my colleagues to help them understand their core leadership qualities and truly unleash their full potential.
We can never say D&I has been achieved; it is a continuous journey to build a better organisation for everyone.
Takao Takahashi
Chief People & Inclusion Officer, Gojo & Company, Inc.
