Soon after joining UNIQLO I realized that what the executive team told me had substance. There are equal opportunities to achieve various high goals, and you are rewarded with a series of promotions when you produce better results. Results open many doors of greater opportunity to take on more challenging assignments. I had worked in other companies previously to advance my career, but such a positive culture at UNIQLO impressed me as the most refreshing and invigorating I had come across so far in my career.
Soon after joining the company, I was offered the big task of developing and managing human resources for India. As I was given far-reaching mandates which were much greater than those my counterparts had in other companies, I have been capable of creating and improving a leading workplace environment where there are absolutely NO ‘glass ceilings’.
There are no barriers in our company such as age, gender, race d or national origins that prevent or slow down career advancement. Just to illustrate the transparent nature of our development programs, we offer promotion opportunities to o employees in clear terms. For example, they describe potential positions in 6 months’ or 12 months’ time, in addition to new responsibilities and opportunities to strengthen their careers.
As India is one of the most promising markets in the world with fierce competition for talent, managerial candidates aspiring to become future corporate leaders are scrupulous and critical when considering options. To promote a greater understanding, we actively organize various interactive sessions, dialogues and events for graduates and manager candidates to describe our principles of equal opportunities in recruiting and career advancement. We give detailed presentations so they can familiarize themselves with the type of plans we can provide if they were to decide to join us. Their eager interest in our company is sometimes reflected in direct questions such as, ‘Will I be offered equal career opportunities like everyone else in the company even if I am locally recruited?’ Naturally, we always answer accurately and sincerely by providing useful information that includes the UNIQLO principles, values, human resource policies and examples we have so far accumulated within our 2 years in India.
Our highly transparent programs and culture of equal opportunity have become widely acknowledged by university students and aspiring candidates. The impact has been truly astounding. While UNIQLO INDIA operates 7 stores with approximately 300 employees, the numbers of fresh graduate applicants for this year alone exceeded 1,000 which is five times greater than just 2 years ago.
Most significantly, our open-minded tradition of paying the utmost respect to diversity, inclusion and equality in the workplace has been highly and widely appreciated. Such acknowledgements are reflected in remarks by manager candidates, including ‘I can believe in the value and culture of this company, and that’s why I am willing to dedicate my full attention and hope to develop together with the business,’ and ’This is the global company where I can really aim for the top and I know the sky is the limit.’ The business community also appreciates our efforts and I was chosen as one of the top ‘100 HR (Human Resources) Leaders Under 40 in India’ in 2020.
