Stepping Up Global Procurement and Reinforcing CSR in the Supply Chain
The Hitachi Group is accelerating global procurement to lock in a stable supply of materials and to boost our cost competitiveness for global business expansion. In fiscal 2011, we focused on emerging countries, increasing our number of procurement offices to 25, and we appointed regional chief procurement officers for North America, Europe, China and Asia. We also set up a China and Asia Pacific Procurement Headquarters, reinforcing our partnerships with local suppliers in key regions. We held briefings in China and Eastern Europe to explain our procurement guidelines, while cultivating new suppliers and building partnerships. As part of our training for local staff, we are improving procurement skills training and adding CSR procurement education.
In response to any potential risk, we launched the Hitachi Procurement CSR Committee as a way to share guidelines and programs Group-wide. Through this committee, around 100 suppliers outside Japan were selected for CSR monitoring. In fiscal 2012, we will perform local auditing outside Japan, based on the results of these surveys as part of our drive to reinforce CSR initiatives through supply chain management.
Shinichiro Omori
Vice President and Executive Officer, General Manager of Corporate Procurement Division, Hitachi, Ltd.
