Leading large-scale projects that bring together specialists across organizations.
My main responsibility is IR, and I prepare various disclosure documents and work with institutional investors. At the same time, when a cross-organizational project is launched, I will be involved in project management (PMO) and other tasks as a staff member of the Corporate Planning Division. Since joining the Company, I have been involved in various projects, including three large-scale equity secondary offerings and a tender offer bid (TOB) for treasury shares. Such projects have a far reaching impact. Therefore, collaborating with other departments is necessary, not only between the corporate planning and IR departments, but also with various other departments such as finance (treasury, accounting and tax) and legal, as well as with our business units. With our influence as a public company growing, it is becoming increasingly difficult to complete most projects within a single division.
Recruit has been contributing to society by addressing social inadequacies. At the same time, we continue to strive to establish a win-win business model that can generate a sound profit as a business. There are some people who think purely in terms of social contribution while there are others who pursue economic goals by developing a successful business. We are trying to achieve a high-level balancing act between social contribution and business growth by bringing together diverse individuals. Our role is to stand by our management, and understand how our business units approach challenges or what strategic factors or personal passions are involved, and to convey them in easily understandable words to all stakeholders both inside and outside the company, including participants in the capital market. Whenever a business unit takes on a challenge, as a staff member, I want to be a driving force in the project.
Let me give you a specific example of my work. We carried out a TOB of treasury stock in the period from January 31 to March 1, 2022. Recruit has many longtime corporate shareholders, however, given the changes in the current social climate and business environment, there are cases where some of them wish to sell their shares. In general, in such cases, if a large volume of shares are sold in the stock market in a short period, it would have a significant impact not only on our company’s share price but also on our existing shareholders. Therefore we put together the requests from the shareholders in advance and start up a cross-organizational project. Then, we make sure to discuss how to respond to those requests individually with all the concerned parties within the Company including the various departments such as corporate planning, finance, and legal and the securities companies. We had made similar offerings in the past. This time, however, after discussions with the officers in charge, we looked at the market condition and other circumstances and chose to acquire the shares through a self TOB. I was involved in the project right from the start. My role as PMO was to drive a series of operations from assessment to implementation in a swift and smooth manner.
The transaction requires us to submit the necessary documents and receive approval by the Financial Services Agency (FSA) in advance. However, since we chose a different method from the past, we were asked like never before to provide detailed explanations such as the reasons for the share acquisition and why we chose a self TOB instead of an equity secondary offering. I had repeated exchanges with the FSA, shareholders, and the securities company and somehow carried out the transaction as planned. It turned out to be a tough job because consistency with the Company’s past capital policy had to be maintained while working out the details. It was a job that helped crystalize all the financial and IR knowledge I had acquired to that point.
Finance and IR Experiences have broadened my horizon.
I joined the Company in 2012 and initially worked on the PMI of acquired subsidiaries in the Treasury Management Department. After taking maternity and childcare leaves twice, I came back to the office and joined the corporate finance team in 2016. I was in charge of external relations with shareholders and financial institutions when the first equity secondary offering was finalized. I was assigned to the project. I learned the financial history of Recruit from scratch from the then head who had been in charge of the Company’s finance for a long time. Thanks to him, I was able to face my mission with the understanding of a longer timeline and was able to think about what the company should be doing now based on our past. I was also able to consider what needs to be done to create the future Recruit envisions, and the self-awareness of “we are the ones who will be building the future Recruit.” It was a turning point in my career.
Subsequently, when another equity secondary offering was carried out in 2019, I was appointed as the project leader. I was responsible for dealing with shareholders and securities companies along with the officer in charge at Recruit. I was curious how institutional investors respond to the information we provided, so I asked if I could attend an investor visit to see how our shares are sold. After all, I was now in the IR Department. It is the only department where you directly talk to investors. It is also responsible for providing feedback from the investors and their opinions and reactions internally to the company. They must also communicate the company’s strategies, ideas, information sought by the capital market, and information that need explanation, in a timely and appropriate fashion. In the IR Department, we constantly discuss new ideas such as how we can change so that next time our message resonates better. I am working on improving my communication skills by taking on new challenges every year such as improving disclosure documents and planning investor briefings.
In the 10 years from the time I joined until now, changes have been drastic and my work has constantly changed. I have always accepted those changes openly and taken the opportunities in front of me to the best of my ability. As a result, my horizons have expanded, and I have been blessed with more new opportunities. I think my experiences in both finance and IR ultimately helped me improve my communications capability because it provided a good understanding of the existing capital policy of Recruit, and taught me how to see things from management’s perspective while grasping the points that interest the capital market participants. It also gave me the skills to communicate to the stakeholders inside and outside the company in my own words.
The more you know, the more you will like the Company.
Enjoy the changes, and enjoy the challenges new opportunities presented to you.
During that 2019 project, I told the then CFO, “Because of your decision, we may lose such and such.” In normal circumstances, it is unthinkable for a non-managerial member to speak out to a Director this way, but he clearly asked me why I thought so, listened to me carefully and graciously explained the grounds for the decision and the concept behind it. It is a flat organization where the management is close to the staff. It is an environment where your perspective will be broadened in due course if you are proactive. Moreover, it is also a company that keeps offering opportunities for growth and stretch if you are prepared to take on challenges. While failure is not tolerated for most jobs as corporate staff, we are allowed to work freely up to just before the breaking point and, at the same time, we are able to consult and seek advice from supervisors and colleagues. It is an environment where we can take on challenges without any restraints while receiving adequate support. The more you learn about this company, such as how we take on a job and how we proceed with it, the more you will come to like it.
Over the past few years, experts from various fields have joined us and there also has been many transfers within the group. As a result, the members of the Company have changed significantly, but the culture of taking on challenges presented by new opportunities and enjoying the changes hasn’t changed at all since I joined. When switching jobs, people tend to take advantage of the skills they possess and their experiences. However, if you put aside your old self and take a deep plunge into a new environment, you will find unexpected discoveries that will broaden your perspective. I definitely want you all to enjoy the Recruit experience.
This article is based on information available at the time of publication.
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