In April 2021, we established the DX Promotion Department to promote Groupwide DX. To respond to swift changes in the business environment and gain competitive advantages, we must harness data and digital technology to uncover even greater value. We recognize the importance of creating a custom digital strategy, improving operational efficiency through data utilization, and overall optimization of existing businesses through PSI* as the form of supply chain management.
*PSI (Production, Sales, and Inventory) refers to a management approach that integrates production planning, sales planning, and inventory planning across departments to achieve overall optimization and reduce both excess inventory and stockouts.

The Group has defined two stages for realizing this digital strategy. In the first stage, we will promote the digitization of sales and indirect operations, development, production, production management, and quality assurance operations, and take steps to optimize existing businesses. Concurrently, we will aim to make our employees more attuned to changes wrought by advancements in digital technology, and more emotionally aware of the need for self-transformation. In the second stage, we will aim for true DX and make efforts to create new customer value by integrating our technological strengths with digital technology and reforming our business model.

Our DX Promotion Department is responsible for creating new value and promoting business reform through digital technology in these efforts, while also promoting the establishment, operation, and maintenance of the core operational systems and IT infrastructure that form the basis for these efforts, as well as information security and digital talent development and cultural transformation in an integrated manner to improve efficiency and control.

We viewed Phase 1 of SHIFT 2030, our Medium- to Long-Term Business Plan, as a period for building a platform for digital utilization, and promoted the digitization and visualization of operations to optimize our existing businesses.We have worked to enhance operational efficiency and create an environment where the benefits of digital transformation can be realized by eliminating manual data entry in production and administrative operations, promoting paperless processes, improving network infrastructure, and strengthening IT governance and security.
In Phase 2, we will advance the digitalization of operations and processes and develop a data analysis environment to achieve overall optimization.By rebuilding our core systems, we will achieve greater efficiency and cost reduction through standardization and data integration.
Furthermore, we will leverage new technologies and mobile devices, develop talent capable of independently driving digital transformation, and strengthen support structures through specialized professionals.We will also reinforce education on the appropriate use of information and strengthen our governance and security frameworks to protect information assets, with a particular focus on enhancing security at our overseas sites.

We believe that fostering a corporate culture and developing human resources capable of utilizing data is extremely important for effectively promoting DX. Along with actively recruiting digital human resources, we are also taking steps to find and develop them among our employees, and are promoting rank-specific educational programs based on the Digital Human Resource Development Tower. We also provide information security and digital literacy training for all employees, digital utilization training useful for improving operations and efficiency, and onsite personnel searches to develop key people who can promote applications and program development. As a cornerstone of future business reform, the DX Promotion Department aims to provide highly specialized training in cloud computing, security, and other areas to create a system that promotes digitization in collaboration with business departments.