Materiality
Compliance / Anti-corruption
- Top
- Management and Sustainability Strategy
- Materiality (priority issues)
- Materiality (priority issues)
- Materiality Identification Process
- Identified Materiality
- Contributing to the multi-dimensional values of sports
- Contributing to the resolution of social issue
- Responsible procurement with due respect for human rights
- Responsibility for global environmental issues throughout the product lifecycle
- Responsible business practices
- Responsibility for Safe and High-Quality Products
- Value Creation through Sports
- Value Creation through Sports
- Policies and Systems
- Materiality：Physical and mental health through sports
- Materiality：Developing communities based on sports
- Materiality：Equality and diversity through sports
- Materiality：Extension of healthy life expectancy through the maintenance of motor function
- Materiality：Improving physical fitness and athletic abilities of children
- Materiality：Contributing to the SDGs by applying Mizuno's technologies
- Disclosures in accordance with the TCFD recommendations
- Environment
- Social
- Social
- Respect for Human Rights (Policies and Systems)
- Materiality：Supply Chain Management
- Translations of the Mizuno Code of Conduct for Suppliers
- Product Safety and Quality (Policies and Systems)
- Materiality：Ensuring of the safety and quality of products
- Materiality：Communication related to products
- Materiality：Engagement with Customers
- Enhancement of Human Capital Value
- Work Life Management
- Occupational Safety and Health
- Health Promotion Initiatives
- Promoting and respecting diversity
- Development and Nurturing of Talent
- Governance
- ESG Data
- Regarding the report
Basic Concepts
Based on the Mizuno Corporation Ethical Standards, we make company-wide efforts to ensure thorough compliance throughout the Group. We strive to prevent compliance issues by providing education to employees to deepen their understanding of laws and regulations. We have also established the whistle-blowing system to detect and resolve issues at an early stage.
In FY 2022, there were no cases of serious compliance violations, including anti-competitive behavior, or no cases subject to legal action.
Compliance Risk Management System
We have established the Risk Management Committee, chaired by the President (CEO), to implement management through which we regularly understand risks, including compliance violations, that affect our business and take remedial measures effectively and efficiently. We also audit business operations through the Internal Audit Office, and work to detect fraud and misconduct in an early stage and resolve issues as needed through the internal reporting desks.
Management system (As of 2022)
Operation system of the whistle-blowing system
We have established the Risk Management Committee, chaired by the President (CEO), to implement management through which we regularly understand risks, including compliance violations, that affect our business and take remedial measures effectively and efficiently. We also audit business operations through the Internal Audit Office, and work to detect fraud and misconduct in an early stage and resolve issues as needed through the internal reporting desks.
We operate three internal reporting desks under the whistle-blowing system to prevent and early detect misconduct, including legal violations, unethical behavior, and dishonest behavior, to improve the company’s self-purification capability, and to ensure social trust.
1. Mizuno Fair Play Hotline
2. Compliance Hotline (Senoh Group)
3. Mizuno Global Hotline (for especially serious cases at overseas bases; The number of overseas bases covered by this system is planned to be gradually increased.)
Enhancement of employee awareness
Provision of compliance education
To ensure thorough compliance, it is essential to raise the understanding and awareness of individual employees. In FY 2022, we continued to provide compliance education [*b] as part of company-wide education to help employees acquire the basics of legal knowledge and mind related to business operations. We also provided education on legal matters to be noted by the planning and development division, the business division, and the other relevant divisions. We work to help employees acquire knowledge and awareness of compliance by providing regular compliance education.
Operation of the whistle-blowing system
We operate the whistle-blowing system (Mizuno Fair Play Hotline [*c], Compliance Hotline＊, etc.) to prevent and early detect misconduct, including legal violations, unethical behavior, and dishonest behavior, to improve the company’s self-purification capability and to ensure social trust. We also continue to conduct an awareness survey to grasp the current status and issues of compliance and work to publicize the whistle-blowing system by providing company-wide education and distributing portable cards that contain detailed information on the internal reporting desks to all employees. Thus, we strive to provide a greater understanding of the system and improve its reliability so that we can detect and appropriately respond to compliance issues at an early stage.
Aside from the internal reporting desk established at each overseas base for overseas employees, we established a system in January 2020 that allows employees at some overseas bases to report especially serious compliance violations directly to the internal reporting desk of the Head Office of Mizuno Corporation (Mizuno Global Hotline). We plan to gradually increase the number of overseas bases covered by this system in the future.
Moreover, in line with the enforcement of the Amended Whistleblower Protection Act from June 2022, we have conducted a comprehensive review of the whistle-blowing system throughout the entire Mizuno Group. As part of this effort, we have also established a new external reporting channel. Additionally, we are implementing annual awareness campaigns for employees to ensure that the whistle-blowing system (Mizuno Fair Play Hotline / Harassment Hotline) is 100% recognized and understood by all Mizuno employees."
＊ Name of the whistle-blowing system in the Senoh Group
System for the Mizuno Fair Play Hotline (As pf 2022)
Usage status of the whistle-blowing system [*b]
Our investigation in FY 2022 found no serious compliance violations.
System for ensuring fair trade
Many suppliers and business partners, including small factories, are involved in the manufacture of our products. To build good relationships with business partners and ensure fair trade, we provide education to inform the employees of the relevant divisions of the Act against Delay in Payment of Subcontract Proceeds, etc. to Subcontractors (Subcontract Act). In addition, the Internal Audit Office continues to check whether our business transactions are fair to major business partners.
We also hold a CSR procurement briefing session for all relevant suppliers of our products prior to transactions to explain our approach to fair trade so that they will comply with the Mizuno CSR Procurement Regulations, which contain anti-corruption provisions. In addition, we regularly audit our suppliers to check for corruption in transactions.
In FY 2021, to ensure fair trade with suppliers of other companies’ brand products and continue to sell high-quality and safe products to consumers, we reviewed the contracts with major suppliers (approximately 60 companies) as well as the internal operation flow at the time of purchasing new products. Through these efforts, we manage not only Mizuno products but also other brand products sold by us under better governance than before in terms of laws and regulations related to the environment and chemical substances and product quality.
Internal regulations on anti-corruption
We have recently worked to expand sales in B-to-B and global business. Meanwhile, many countries have tightened their crackdown on corruption, which may generally occur as a result of these business activities, and global companies are required to respond to such a crackdown. We therefore need to pay attention to the risk of corruption, including bribery of public officials, in our business activities.
Most recently, in January 2020, we established and put into effect the Anti-Bribery Rules for our group companies in Japan and overseas. We explained about the rules individually to the managers of overseas bases in a face-to-face manner and informed employees in Japan through an in-house training video that the rules had come into effect. In addition, we regularly provide compliance education, including anti-corruption education, to all employees in Japan once a year.
Enhancement of compliance throughout the Group on a global scale
In order for us to further grow globally, it is necessary to enhance compliance throughout the Group on a global scale. Assuming that the following risks are compliance risks that may have a significant impact on our overseas business continuity and business performance, we are taking measures against these risks. In FY 2022, there were no cases subject to legal action regarding bribery throughout the Mizuno Group.
Major potential risks in overseas business
- Risk of fraud and misconduct by employees and related persons of overseas subsidiaries and agents and overseas business travelers
- Information leakage risk due to inadequate IT management and information security at overseas subsidiaries (especially risk related to compliance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe)
- Consideration for diversity and human rights (religion, race, etc.) in global product development
Major risk countermeasures
In FY 2022, we conducted a unified and comprehensive questionnaire survey for risk inventory targeting all domestic and overseas bases as well as domestic business establishments, including our operating facilities and stores, for the purpose of risk management on a global scale, and found no significant risk. From FY 2023 onward, we plan to continue this initiative while considering refining the survey method to make it more effective as needed.
Future issues to be addressed
In response to an increase in transactions with various business partners and the growing importance of information and evidence preservation and management for unexpected legal risks and dispute resolution, we will take the following measures:
- Provision of regular education to improve the basic ability of employees to respond legally
- Provision of education on contract management and preservation of evidence and creation of an education system
- Establishment of an information system / Introduction of forensic technology
In addition, we will take the following measures based on our policy that governance should be strengthened for global efforts toward a sustainable society.
- Expansion of the application of the whistle-blowing system to overseas bases
- Review of the CSR procurement audit system
- Reevaluating the legal reporting lines and information management systems on a global scale