Empower colleagues to be ESG advocates: Ricoh Chairperson

Speaking during the November 8-9 Reuters NEXT Leadership Summit & Global Broadcast, Jake emphasized that team members across forward-thinking companies are “an untapped force that can drive the creation of a sustainable society” as well as being proponents of positive development within their own businesses.

The rewards from such transformative change for our global society and planet are potentially huge, he added, although he cautioned,

And while countless businesses around the world are embracing their own ESG journeys and contributing to change, Jake believes Ricoh’s own experiences in this area can provide helpful pointers to others.

Set up in 1936, Ricoh is a market-leading provider of digital services, information management and print and imaging solutions that today employs more than 80,000 staff across 200 countries and regions. And although ESG is a far more modern term, putting people at the heart of his business was a concept that was close to founder Kiyoshi Ichimura’s heart when he created the company.

Ichimura insisted on treating his staff with “respect and equity,” Jake said, reflected in founding principles that are as relevant today as they were 87 years ago: “Love your neighbor, Love your country, Love your work.”

For many years, Ricoh has interpreted the second of those principles – “Love your country” – to be “Love your planet,” with sustainability a core element of the company’s philosophy and operations.

Back in 1994, before sustainability had become a watchword in business, Ricoh introduced the “Comet Circle,” a model circular economy that scrutinized every aspect of a product’s life cycle to reduce its environmental impact. In 2020, the company implemented measures to surpass environmental targets that were already ambitious, revising Scope 1 and 2 targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from a cut of 30% across the firm in 2015 to a 63% reduction by 2030 because earlier efforts had been so effective.

Ricoh has similarly reduced power consumption in a manufacturing plant in China by an impressive 70%, is drawing closer to its target of zero waste going to landfills – and is calling on the Japanese government to do more to maximize the use of renewable energies across the national economy.

It is more important than ever that companies make these sorts of commitments, Jake said, as these are the principles that a new generation of workers also hold dear.

By 2025, the millennial generation will make up 75% of the global workforce and data shows that an organization’s ESG track record strongly influences their career choices. The bottom line from the 2023 Deloitte “Gen Z and Millennial Survey” is that the majority of this sector of the workforce analyzes a company’s environmental policies before they take a job. And fully 40% have left a company or are willing to do so if it does not live up to their expectations on climate change.

Ricoh has seen similar attitudes reflected in its business partners, with nearly 60% of its clients in the North American market taking ESG factors into consideration when they are looking at potential business alliances. Similarly, in the space of a year the company has seen a 200% surge in queries about its ESG performance in requests for proposals.

And that meshes neatly with the other elements of Ricoh’s philosophy – “Love your neighbor” and “Love your work.”

While plenty of firms recognize the value of happy colleagues leading to content customers and a strong business, Jake says he wants to move that idea forward.

“For Ricoh, this is not just an idea. This concept, which we call ‘Fulfillment through work,’ drives everything we do,” he said.

“At the simplest level, I am convinced that when people are motivated and inspired by their work, they will pursue excellence,” he added. “Creating that motivation requires a sustained effort and the ESG agenda is a fundamental element of this.”

At Ricoh, this effort starts from the top, he said, and is sustained by a workforce that “brings these priorities to life within the communities in which we live and serve globally.”

A number of initiatives put this concept into practice, including a North American Culture of Excellence program centered on the belief that innovation comes from inspiring diversity in all its dimensions, and the SCALA Program to help reskill - and thereby retain - more than 4,000 Ricoh field engineers in Europe.

These actions have, in turn, driven innovation across all parts of Ricoh.

Around 15 years ago, the company began replacing virgin plastics with components made from polylactic acid (PLA), a more sustainable, plant-based alternative. As the team using the PLA became more adept at using it, they saw the potential for broader eco-friendly applications. Working with colleagues, they created foamed PLA sheets that are heat-resistant, 99% bio-based and compostable. With a pilot project for a food container business under way, the concept has the potential to become a full-fledged circular economy business.

Elsewhere, Ricoh is deploying its Managed Services infrastructure in the healthcare sector in the US, using a patient’s image data to print precise, three-dimensional replicas of their internal anatomy. Currently in the testing phase at a number of medical centers, the 3D models can help with diagnoses, preparation for surgery and educating patients and medical students.

As a result of these and other initiatives, 92% of Ricoh staff replied to an internal study that they believed their work was contributing to helping to solve social issues. And virtually the same number said it gave them job satisfaction.

Closing his address, Jake called on other business leaders to make the very most of their primary assets: Their people.

“As leaders within your organization, you can inspire and mobilize every team member to be passionate ESG advocates,” he said. “Together we can drive the transformative change we urgently require, moving beyond mere ‘business actions.’

“Empowering your colleagues unlocks the potential for a collective and sustained impact.”

Learn more about how Ricoh emphasizes both ESG and business growth