Talent portfolio
Policy and Strategy
The Kyowa Kirin Group has established the Kyowa Kirin Group Talent Management Basic Policy to realize its Business Philosophy and Vision, and to strengthen the development of people and organizations that continuously create new value. In this policy, we position talent as the source of innovation.
Furthermore, our 2030 Vision is to “realize the successful creation and delivery of life-changing value, driven by a diverse team of experts who share a passion for innovation.” To achieve this vision, we have formulated a dedicated business strategy called Story for Vision 2030.
We also globally share the “KABEGOE Principles” as the expected behaviors of the people and organizations that drive our strategy.
We view our vision as being comprised of both Strategy (business activities and business strategies) and Team (people and organization).
Through initiatives related to people, organization, and culture—namely, strengthening a talent portfolio essential for strategy execution and sustainable growth; transforming into an organization capable of the fastest and most optimal decision-making and execution; and fostering a “KABEGOE Culture” created through the practice of the KABEGOE Principles—we are promoting the development of teams equipped with the capabilities to execute strategy powerfully.
Specifically, we have globally established five pillars: “Unlock the Potential,” “Enterprise Leader,” “Great Place to Work,” “KABEGOE Culture,” and “Digital Transformation.” By providing opportunities for diverse talent to maximize their capabilities and take on challenges, we aim to continue delivering life-changing value.
Kyowa Kirin Group Talent Management Policy
In an effort to fulfill its management philosophy, the Kyowa Kirin Group (hereinafter, “the Group”) acts in line with its Core Values and Code of Conduct and with high ethical standards toward its goal of becoming a corporate group trusted by society.
The business environment surrounding the Group is undergoing increasingly dramatic changes as health and medical care needs and technology diversify and issues of healthcare economics emerge on a global scale. In such an evolving environment, we must accelerate our own business model transformation, such as by creating new value and globalizing our businesses. To this end, it is imperative for us to retain and develop employees capable of exerting leadership and autonomously taking on the challenge of reform. We must maximize the capabilities of individuals with diverse backgrounds and offer them opportunities to co-create new value.
In light of such circumstances, we have established the following policy to clearly define the relationship between the Group’s employees and the companies they work for, delineate our uniform Group-wide approach to employees’ competence development, and strengthen the development of individuals and organizations that will tirelessly tackle reform and create new value.
- 1.Considering its employees as the source of innovation, the Group strives to unleash the full potential of each and every employee to develop individuals and organizations that will tirelessly tackle reform and create new value.
- 2.The Group harnesses the unique individuality of employees with diverse backgrounds and encourages them to co-create new value.
- The Group strives to create an open and invigorated corporate culture.
- The Group provides opportunities for challenge and growth.
- 3.The Group’s employees shall act autonomously and take on the challenge of reform that contributes to the Group’s growth.
- The Group’s employees shall think, interact and take actions with self-initiative.
- The Group’s employees shall seek to achieve self-growth and contribute to their organizations.
- 4.The Group engages in labor management in compliance with laws and regulations, guidelines and industrial rules pertaining to labor relations in the countries where it operates its business.
- 5.To achieve the above 1 through 4, the Group establishes and operates appropriate organizational schemes and operational processes at each Group company.
Governance
Development and Promotion of Global Talent Management
To sustainably develop our One Kyowa Kirin structure, we are enhancing a system to identify, develop, and promote candidates for next-generation leadership roles across Regions and Functions.
To strategically advance global talent management, we have been working to establish a unified HR foundation across our global operations. This includes identifying global key positions and their talent requirements, developing a global grading system, and formulating a global succession plan. These data are shared in real time through our global Human Resources Information System (HRIS) and are utilized for data-driven talent management. By ensuring the right people are in the right roles, we aim to continuously discover, develop, and promote global leaders.
In addition, we will unify our performance management system globally in 2025, further enhancing talent management and value creation across regions and functions. The KABEGOE Principles, which define our aspirations for people and organizations, have already been integrated into performance management and will continue to be embedded in various aspects of talent management going forward.
Indicators and Targets
Global Engagement and Motivation Survey (GEMS), Employees’ engagement survey
Kyowa Kirin Group conducts an engagement survey (Global Engagement And Motivation Survey) every year as a key indicator for maximizing the capabilities of each and every employee, and this survey is used to identify issues of organizational improvement and to consider measures to revitalize the organization. This survey focuses on two key factors for employees to maximize their abilities: "Employee Engagement" which indicates the degree of commitment to the company and the willingness to take voluntary action at work, and "Employee Enablement" which indicates achievement of the right person in the right position and work environment improvement to bring out the best in employees. Also, "Diversity and Inclusion" has been added to the indicators since 2020, so that diversity can be our strength.
According to the results of the 2025 survey, the favorable response rate for Employee Engagement was 70% (−1 point), while Employee Enablement reached 70% (+0 points), remaining at the same level as the previous year.
Top management and each organization conduct analyses and develop and implement improvement plans to address identified issues, so that every employee can work with high engagement. We will continue to steadily execute PDCA cycles to identify issues and drive improvements. In addition, to strengthen mechanisms that connect employees’ voices to concrete actions, we have started to revamp the Employee Listening Program.
- *1:Survey population and response rate
Size of survey population 5384, number of respondents 5145, response rate 96%.
- Question categories
- Employee Engagement / Clear & Promising Direction / Confidence in Leadership / Quality & Customer Focus / Respect & Recognition / Development Opportunities / Pay & Benefits / Employee Enablement / Performance Management / Authority & Empowerment / Resources / Training /Collaboration / Work, Structure & Process / Diversity & Inclusion / Management Philosophy and Core Values / Code of Conduct and Compliance / Expected Work Behaviors / Company Quality Culture / KABEGOE Culture
- Benchmark data
- Global averages, good-performing company averages, pharmaceutical averages, averages by Region, and averages by area / country
- *Ties past organizations to the latest organizational structure and recalculates past results as well.
- *Scores for the relevant fiscal year and year-on-year changes are presented after rounding the actual figures to the nearest whole number.
Specific Initiatives
Talent Development and Career Development
The Kyowa Kirin Group aims to develop talents who practice the KABEGOE Principles and lead to innovation within the One Kyowa Kirin structure. In the talent development, we not only provide growth opportunities through work but also establish programs necessary for each employee to realize their individual careers, allowing them to make the choices they need. In the Japan region, we have implemented a grade system based on the global standard of grading and a performance management system common to the global regions, creating an environment where talent management can be conducted more globally.
In the face of a challenging competitive environment and the diversification of work styles, it is essential for individuals to take ownership of their careers. Therefore, we have created job descriptions for all management positions and made them available to all employees.
Furthermore, we will increase the number of positions of internal job posting and its frequency, so that each individual will find a career they want to realize within the Kyowa Kirin Group, and the company will support their efforts to realize this. Based on such an equal relationship committed to each other’s growth, we will plan and implement various related measures.
[Various related measures]
- Career measures (My Career Series, Career design training, Career support skills improvement training, and individual career counseling)
- Support for self-development (Language Learning Support System)
- Internal job posting and internal second work
- Management enhancement training (Training for new managers and training for managers who have direct reports for the first time)
- Development of new employees (New employee training, three-year development program)
- Short-term overseas assignment program（Global Exchange Program）
- Next-generation Leadership training
- Kirin Group’s training for selected members
- Cross-cultural understanding training
- Cross-industry exchange Program
- OKK Global Leadership Program
- Global Learning Week
- Career Measures
- We believe it is important for all employees to take ownership of their careers and actively envision their careers. For this reason, we think that it is essential to have self-direction to their career and mindset of trying to innovate from the very beginning of their careers. Through the My Career Series (My Career Prologue session, Starting session, and Leaping session), we provide opportunities to think about his/her own career from the time of hiring, and continue to provide opportunities for learning and awareness after joining the company also. Additionally, we support employees in making their career plans through programs such as “Basic career training for autonomy, challenge, and transformation," as well as generation-specific career forums. For managers who have direct reports, we offer "Career support skills improvement training" to learn about supporting the autonomous career of their direct reports. Furthermore, we have established "Individual career counseling," allowing employees to consult with expert career counselors at any time. Employees can sort out their “will / can / must" through career training, career interviews with their supervisors, and individual career counseling. When they want to learn what is needed, they can utilize the "Language Learning Support System" that enhances their learning for self-development. It supports not only the learning required for their current roles, but also the challenge of learning for the future at Kyowa Kirin.
- Management Strengthening
- In addition to “training for new managers,” we offer “training for managers who have direct reports for the first time,” creating an environment where managers can acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and mindset anytime. We have also launched “management required in times of change“ as a measure to support middle management.
- New Employee Development
- To accelerate the growth of new employees, we implement “three-year training program," where supervisors, OJT instructors, and senior colleagues in the workplace work together to support the development of new employees during their first three years. The new employees and employees involved will share what they want to be three years ahead, and we also hold kick-off meetings with supervisors to share information and provide training for OJT instructors. We expect to foster a corporate-wide culture of talent development.
- Next-generation Leadership Training
- We select young leaders who will lead the future and develop them through the next-generation leadership training and long-term OJT and OFF-JT. As the OFF-JT we provide a six-month training program focused on output to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary to plan and implement business strategies globally. We consider the talents developed here to be candidates for leadership team and proactively assign them to roles after the training finishes, continuing their development through OJT to gain business experience.
- Learning Programs at Global Regions
- Additionally, we offer a variety of learning programs across our global regions to support employees in developing their skills and advancing their careers. In collaboration with the Talent Development teams in EMEA and North America, we host Global Learning Week, creating opportunities for employees to deepen their understanding of cultural differences—an essential factor in accelerating global business—in an engaging and enjoyable way. We also run programs such as the OKK Global Leadership Program for leaders who drive the company forward, as well as the Global Exchange Program, which provides opportunities to gain OJT experience across regions. Through these initiatives, we are committed to developing talent who can play an active role on the global stage.
You can see this table by scrolling horizontally.
| Category | Subcategory | Program Name | Number of Participants | Total Training Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mandatory Training | Understanding Roles | - General Staff Training | 134 | 5121 |
| - Management Training | 78 | 1521 | ||
| Evaluator and Evaluatee Training | 1344 | 1344 | ||
| Open Enrollment Training | Career Ownership | Career Fundamentals for Self-direction, Challenge, and Transformation | 3336 | 6672 |
| Career Forum | 90 | 270 | ||
| Career 1-on-1 Training to Enhance Listening Skills | 45 | 90 | ||
| Individual Career Counseling | 65 | 65 | ||
| Leadership | Inter-industry Exchange Program | 15 | 225 | |
| Proactive Leadership Training | 90 | 2025 | ||
| People Leader Training | 167 | 1002 | ||
| Global | Cross-cultural Understanding Training | 163 | 489 | |
| Global Learning Week | 2254 | - | ||
| Self-development | Challenge Support System | 1120 | - | |
| Selective Training | Leadership | OKK Global Leadership Program | 10 | 975 |
| Total | 8911 | 19799 | ||
The annual training hours per participant and per employee in FY2025 are as shown below. (Calculated based on company-wide training organized by the Human Resources and General Affairs Department. However, this excludes time spent on Global Learning Week, job-specific professional training conducted by each department, and self-directed learning, including LinkedIn Learning.)
- Annual training hours per participant: 3.6 hours
- Training hours per employee: 5.7 hours
Furthermore, we also have initiatives in place to encourage R&D personnel to participate in education and training programs at universities and other educational institutions with the aim of enhancing their scientific capability and providing them with opportunities for external engagement, etc.
Evaluation System
At Kyowa Kirin Group, we have developed a global common scheme of performance management, so that we have a foundation for talent management that promotes co-creation globally and foster the KABEGOE culture among all employees. Performance management is a continuous process that facilitates the growth of both employees and the company through employee capability development, enhancing engagement, and talent development. This process empowers us to fulfill our mission of delivering smiles to those facing diseases.
In this process, we emphasize continuous dialogue and the sharing of feedback and use them to help individuals clarify what they need to achieve in alignment with global and regional strategies. Equally important is how these goals are to be achieved. The KABEGOE Principles provide a concrete framework and guideline for the mindset and behaviors we should strive for in our daily actions and decision making to foster the KABEGOE culture and achieve our vision.
Additionally, to support mid- to long-term career and capability development, we have established a scheme for employees to discuss their career aspirations and goals with their supervisors, assisting their career formation through conversation.
Dialogue with Employees
At Kyowa Kirin Group, we promote opportunities for dialogue between management and employees both in Japan and internationally through our “Meet Up” sessions. During these sessions, management visits workplaces to hear employees’ voices firsthand and discuss the company’s direction from a leadership perspective. These interactions foster mutual understanding and facilitate open communication that transcends roles, positions, and regions.
In Japan, Kyowa Kirin has adopted a union shop system in agreement with the labor union. The company engages in constructive discussions with the union based on a spirit of partnership and mutual respect, with the aim of maintaining a positive working environment and fostering a corporate culture that supports it.
Performance-linked remuneration system
Kyowa Kirin uses a performance-linked remuneration system in which the level of bonus for the entire Company is determined based on its financial performance. In addition, the amount of bonus for each employee is decided by incorporating the degree of contribution they have made to the organization they work for. By having corporate performance and the degree of contribution reflected to some extent in each employee’s remuneration, we aim to motivate them to enhance corporate performance.
Financial grant program for degree acquisition
As an R&D-focused life science company, Kyowa Kirin helps R&D employees earn degrees that benefit their career paths by providing grants to cover part of the expenses incurred to earn such degrees.
Hybrid Working Model
Kyowa Kirin advocates a "hybrid working model" in which each employee considers the optimal work style for each function, Region, and organization on their own initiative. This model is designed to enable all employees to maximize their capabilities to create life-changing value.
[Three Key Principles of Kyowa Kirin’s Hybrid Working Model]
- Nothing that costs our well-being is worth it
- Flexibility within a framework
- Employees are the architects of the new Model
