Improving employee engagement is essential for the company's sustainable growth. We have conducted a global engagement survey of our employees worldwide, and are working to develop human resource policies that reflect the strengths and challenges of each region and organization. We will continue to monitor and analyze employee engagement and respond to ever-changing challenges to create an environment in which each and every one of our employees can work with more vitality and enthusiasm.
We are also working to provide a variety of skill development opportunities, including training for employees to become professionals in their fields and support for the acquisition of the knowledge and skills required at each level. Furthermore, to support employees' proactive challenges and autonomous career development, we will roll out the Career Development Program (CDP) from FY2023 and strengthen the connection between personnel policies and support for employees' career development.
In 2021, Komatsu initiated a global engagement survey of its domestic and overseas Group companies. Each division has formulated an action plan to address the issues raised in the survey and is steadily implementing these plans. The second survey was conducted in FY2023, followed by the third in FY2025. We will continue to carry out these surveys on a regular and ongoing basis, while also focusing on employees’ intentions and motivation, and reflecting them in initiatives that promote more voluntary and self-directed challenges.
| Number of respondent | 82% of the Employees (about 68,000 employees) of Komatsu and its Group companies in Japan and other countries responded |
|---|---|
| Objectives | To regularly identify and analyze employee engagement, clarify our strengths and challenges at that time and take them into consideration when discussing and deciding plans for the future |
| Survey overview | 60 questions related to employee engagement and its influencing factors, including vision (values, management policies), strategy and sources of competitive advantage (goal-setting, policy deployment), leadership, and well-being—including organizational culture, work environment, satisfaction, happiness, sense of purpose, and mental and physical health, including perceived stress and emotional well-being. |
| Methodology | Anonymous online survey |
| Results | Engagement Score Overseas: 80, Japan: 69 (Score is the percentage of positive responses) |
A key to creating a workplace where employees can work with peace of mind lies in how fairly they are treated and compensated. Komatsu's personnel management system reflects individual abilities and performance, and maintaining fair and appropriate evaluations for each employee is essential. To this end, we reliably implement evaluator training for all managers, as well as training for general employees who are subject to evaluation. At each business site, we also hold evaluation system management committee meetings jointly with labor unions to ensure that evaluations are properly conducted. Evaluation results are provided as feedback to both managers and general employees, and a dedicated contact point has been established to handle employee grievances and concerns.
| Overview | Interviews are conducted between supervisors and employees to establish work goals at the start of the period and conduct a retrospective review at the end of the period. Based on the primary evaluation by the direct supervisor, an Evaluation and Development Committee is convened at the departmental level. The final evaluation is determined through a multi-person, multi-faceted assessment and relative evaluation. |
|---|---|
| Frequency | General employees are evaluated twice a year, while managers are evaluated once per fiscal year. Regardless of this schedule, continuous dialogue and feedback between supervisors and subordinates is encouraged to promote talent development and to manage and improve work processes. Additionally, interviews for target management are conducted on a case-by-case basis in the event of changes in targets due to transfers or alterations in job responsibilities. |
| Target | Full-time employees (general employees and managers) |
Komatsu, a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact, regards freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining as among the fundamental human rights that must be respected. In Japan, the Komatsu Labor Union consists of approximately 11,400 members and operates through eight local branches nationwide. The union operates under a union shop system, with a unionization rate of 78.6% (calculated as the number of union members divided by the total number of employees, including management and other non-union members).
The Komatsu Labor Union is affiliated with the All Komatsu Workers Union, which in turn is a member of JAM (the Japanese Association of Metal, Machinery and Manufacturing Workers), an industrial labor federation. In Japan, 11 of our consolidated subsidiaries and affiliates have labor unions affiliated with the All Komatsu Workers Union, with a total of approximately 6,700 members. We also comply with labor rights laws in each country, and engage in sincere dialogue and consultation with individual employees and their representatives.
To achieve sustainable growth in a rapidly-changing business context and an increasingly uncertain social environment, we must acquire, develop and increase the engagement of “human resources who break conventional methods and the status quo and create new things and services” and “human resources who can take on challenges autonomously and proactively." To this end, we will promote a variety of measures to realize a positive cycle of sustainable growth for both employees and the company.
| Main System and Measures | Content | |
|---|---|---|
| Support for career development | Career Development Program（CDP） | Once a year, supervisors and subordinates engage in career discussions to align goals, promote the right person in the right position, provide suitable growth opportunities, and support employees’ proactive efforts and autonomous career development. |
| Career challenge program | A system that allows employees who wish to take on new roles to register their desired departments, job types, and past experience in a dedicated database, enabling matching with departments seeking talent. | |
| Internal job posting system | Posts of the "Challenge Support Type" for taking on challenges in new business areas and "Hometown Personnel Type" for pursuing a new career due to family circumstances. If the employee meets the application and personnel specifications set by the relevant department, they can apply to transfer to other departments. | |
| Study reserch program | A program designed to enable employees to acquire specialized skills and knowledge not typically available through standard training. Eligible employees may apply to study at universities or research institutes in Japan or abroad. | |
| Subsidizing certifications | Employees who pass technical skills tests (national certifications) receive partial or full subsidies for the examination cost. | |
| Skill Up Library | An initiative to promote self-directed learning through a wide range of online courses and video lectures across various subjects. | |
| Cross-Industry exchange training | Provides opportunities to gain insights not available within the company and to broaden perspectives through interaction with people from other industries. | |
| Career development training courses | In-house language courses and partial subsidies for correspondence courses and various certification exams designated by the company. | |
| Employee award programs for distinguished achievement | Various award programs, including performance improvement award, project award, individual merit award, health and safety award, technical merit award, and volunteer award. | |
| Sabbatical leave program | This program supports employees' "learning outside the company" at educational institutions, etc., for the purpose of acquiring new knowledge. Employees can take up to three years of leave, limited to once per person. | |
Employee training is based on the principle of training according to job function and department, and our primary aim is to develop professionals in their field.
The knowledge required at all levels (The Komatsu Way, TQM, etc.) is transmitted through compulsory training by job rank and is implemented across functions and departments.
| Items | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average hours per FTE | Non-consolidated | 54 | 54 | 54 |
| Consolidated | 46 | 49 | 56 | |
| Average spent per FTE | Non-consolidated | JPY230,000 | JPY236,000 | JPY253,000 |
| Consolidated | JPY97,000 | JPY108,000 | JPY122,000 | |
| Name of training program | Target participants | Objective | Implementation period (FY2024) |
Number of participants (FY2024) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global management seminar (GMS) | Senior executives and successors of overseas subsidiaries | To deepen the understanding of Komatsu’s strategies and leadership among senior executives of overseas subsidiaries through discussions with Komatsu executives and internal/external lecturers. | March 2025 | 12 |
| Global management development program | Junior general managers in Komatsu Group | To develop future executive candidates by dispatching them to overseas business schools (2–6 weeks) to build global leadership skills. | Year-round | 11 |
| Middle management strategy program | Junior managers in Komatsu Group | To develop future senior executives by proposing cross-functional business strategies through group research and presenting them to senior executives. | June 2024 – January 2025 | 33 |
| New executive officer's program | Newly appointed domestic executives (e.g., executive officers) | To enhance the capabilities required of management executives. | Year-round | 8 |
| Manager refreshment training | Current managers in Komatsu Group | To encourage objective and holistic self-reflection through 360-degree feedback, thereby promoting improved methods for guiding subordinates and enhancing workplace communication. | November 2024 – February 2025 | 919 |
| New manager training | Newly appointed managers in Komatsu Group | To understand and acquire four management roles (task completion, task improvement, subordinate development, organizational activation) and the four key elements of management (task management, OJT-based development, safety/health & compliance, Komatsu Way). | July 2024 – February 2025 | 244 |
| Assistant manager training | Newly promoted assistant managers in the Komatsu Group | To enhance the advanced job performance and problem-solving skills of newly promoted assistant managers and to strengthen their leadership foundation—especially in communication—in order to contribute to improving the overall organizational performance. | October 2024 – January 2025 | 365 |
| 3rd and 7th year training | 3rd and 7th year employees in Komatsu Group | To help employees in their 3rd and 7th year understand the mindset and behaviors expected of Komatsu Group employees and to acquire the knowledge, skills, and perspectives needed for future career development, while enabling them to carry out their assigned duties swiftly and accurately. | June 2024 – October 2024 | 292 |
| Experienced employee training | Experienced hires and newly appointed permanent employees (from fixed-term contracts) in the Komatsu Group | To ensure awareness of safety, health, and compliance, and to acquire basic knowledge of Komatsu's work practices. | Available anytime via e-Learning | 119 |
| New employee training | New employees in Komatsu Group | To provide new hires, including group companies, with basic duties, knowledge, mindset, and skills required as working professionals. | April – May 2024 | 351 |
| Foremen training | Newly appointed foremen in the Komatsu Group | To acquire the essential knowledge required as on-site supervisors and to develop the necessary capabilities to fulfill their roles as foremen. | July 2024 – February 2025 | 45 |
| Assistant foremen training | Newly appointed assistant foremen in the Komatsu Group | To acquire the essential knowledge and skills required as frontline supervisors managing subordinates for the first time. | July 2024 – February 2025 | 91 |
| Mid-level employee training | Field employees (7th year of regular hire, 3rd year of experienced hire) | To acquire basic knowledge of safety and health, the Komatsu Way, and quality management, aiming to further enhance on-site capabilities. | Year-round (schedule varies by business site) | 113 |
Komatsu has divided the techniques and skills that we have judged to be worth passing on into 11 fields, each comprising 24 specific competencies, and has established a Technical Skills Improvement Committee for each field. Komatsu plans and operates activities to improve the skills of employees at all levels, from new recruits to highly skilled technicians.
In FY2006, Komatsu established the Meister system to pass down technical know-how at manufacturing sites. Since then, highly skilled technicians in each field have been certified as Meisters, and are tasked with guiding and training engineers at domestic plants, overseas subsidiaries as well as business partners.
We have designated the third Saturday of every October as "Technical Day", holding technical competitions for employees from all areas of Komatsu. These include personnel from overseas subsidiaries and business associates, who come together to maintain and improve the overall technical capabilities of the Komatsu Group through mutual dedication to studying.
| Category | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | 181 | 192 | 227 |
| From overseas | 21 (7 countries) |
32 (9 countries) |
33 (9 countries) |
Our service personnel, who support the operation of our products delivered to customers, take essential responsibility for the Komatsu values of “Quality and Reliability.” Komatsu thus has established specialized department called the Promotion of Distributor HR Development, which is dedicated to developing both internal human resources and service personnel at distributors around the world.
First, as part of our internal service personnel training and development programs, we operate the “Techno Service School” to train our Japanese staff, and the “ the Komatsu Philippines Human Resources Development Center” to train our Filipino staff. We provide planned staff development through a job rotation system within the company, including overseas assignments.
We have established training centers in 22 locations in 15 countries worldwide to support the development of our distributors' sales and service personnel, not only in marketing, service, and operator skills but also in management development and training for improvement activities.
The human resource development programs conducted at each training center are planned or supported by Komatsu, depending on the content. Komatsu provides curricula and training materials for basic training courses on products and services, and the local companies (Komatsu subsidiaries or distributors) conduct actual training. We also provide advanced training courses by inviting managers and senior service personnel to Japan, as well as special technical training courses provided by the training centers (mother training centers) which have specialized skills. Having set up these training environments and assessing the quality of our distributors through small exams, we have been providing practical training opportunities that bring synergy to sales promotion activities.
In recent years, we have further advanced the hybridization of online and in-person training programs, conducting more than 400 training sessions worldwide, with over 5,000 distributor staff in attendance.
TOPICS
Development of a simulator
Ensuring safety, training operators, and maximizing productivity are top priority issues at customer worksites, which are always associated with a certain risk of accidents. Komatsu is working to help solve these issues at worksites by utilizing simulators. The Department for the Promotion of Distributor HR Development has developed a simulator that enables training in a virtual reality (VR) space using pedals and controllers installed in the same manner as in actual machines. By providing training for operators using this simulator, we are helping to develop human resources for customers and distributors, improve safety at work sites, and enhance construction efficiency.
Training Filipino engineers at KPC
Komatsu Philippines Corporation (KPC), formerly known as Komatsu Human Resources Development Center, is now in its 16th year since its establishment in the Philippines. KPC recruits Filipino students who have graduated from science and engineering universities in the Philippines and trains them over six years to become engineers who can work globally. Most recently, we established a new training facility (see photo below) in 2021 to strengthen our human resource development function. We will continue to utilize the new training facility to further enhance our training, and we are committed to expanding our business by developing our human resources.
