Message from Outside Directors

In recent years, I have heard various views about the positioning of the Board of Directors and the role of outside directors during discussions about corporate governance. I believe that the mission of an outside director is to supervise the execution of operations and support the proposal and implementation of management strategies.

Observance of laws and regulations, the establishment of internal control systems, and the achievement of consistent compliance are all fundamental requirements for the survival of a company. That is why it is so important to ensure comprehensive supervision. We also need to be aware that the level of compliance required will change in step with social change in Japan and overseas.

Over the past few years, there have been significant changes in the markets resulting from social change and the evolution of a cashless society due to the use of the IoT. The Glory Group needs to modify its business operations flexibly in line with these changes. The formulation and implementation of management strategies are extremely important from this perspective, because Glory has shifted from an environment in which it could look forward to a certain level of organic growth, to one in which it needs to pioneer products and markets through its own efforts and start up new businesses and new markets.

I believe that outside directors have a responsibility to provide robust advice and support to the executive organization as they work to formulate and implement new group management strategies, including product development for new businesses and markets, market development, and M&A. Participants in the Glory Group’s Management Conference and Board of Directors engage in lively discussions, sometimes using IT tools. I look forward to continuing to play the role expected of me in the efforts to speed up management decision-making and ensure that everyone can express their views freely and frankly.

The COVID-19 pandemic that emerged in the early months of 2020 is having an enormous impact on the world, including Japan. Despite this, I am determined to work even harder to ensure the sustainable growth of the Glory Group and the achievement of further improvement in its medium- to long-term corporate value.

As someone with a background in the steel industry, I have built up wide-ranging experience in business and management in a field that is different from Glory’s business domain. My career has given me a real understanding of the importance of continuous efforts to enhance corporate value through structural reforms designed to improve competitiveness, as well as through global initiatives, such as overseas expansion. I have learned through my day-to-day work that people and frontline operations are the lifeblood of any company, and that the trust of customers is an asset.

In addition to the powerful product range that it has built up over the years, Glory’s emergence as a leading company in its industry also reflects its dynamic expansion into overseas markets. However, Glory cannot adapt to the large and rapid market changes that are now occurring simply by continuing with its existing business activities. Instead it will need to take up the challenge of innovation in all areas of its business.

As an outside director, my task in this context is to work on behalf of stakeholders, including shareholders, to further energize management, and to provide an outside perspective that contributes to the fair and appropriate implementation of business operations.

In this fiscal year, Glory made the transition to a new structure as a Company with an Audit & Supervisory Committee. As a listed company, Glory is constantly working to strengthen and enhance its governance through progressive initiatives, and this latest change will significantly improve the transparency of its management structure. As the Company’s supreme decisionmaking body, the Board of Directors can be expected to discuss a variety of themes that will have important implications for Glory’s future growth, including innovation in existing business areas, expansion of overseas operations, and expansion into new business areas. Glory’s value as a company will also depend on its response to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

I have the greatest respect for the corporate culture developed by Glory, and a sense of anticipation about the role that I can play in contributing to its next growth phase.

I believe that the role of an outside director is to identify deviations from the Company’s basic policies or management strategies and to ascertain whether business risks are being kept within reasonable limits by monitoring the performance of day-to-day business operations by executive directors. I aim to use my past experience as an accounting auditor in an audit corporation and as an outside director in other listed companies to provide appropriate input concerning matters that cannot be assessed or decided solely through internal processes.

Glory’s business environment is being transformed by the diversification of payment methods due to the emergence of the cashless society and advances in AI, the IoT, and other technologies. The fundamental management challenge for Glory is to ensure sustainable growth and improvement in its corporate value over the medium- to long-term future, by further evolving its existing business in its core area of cash handling, and to develop new business domains. One way to achieve these goals might be business restructuring through M&A in Japan and overseas. I believe that when M&A or other projects are proposed in Board of Directors meetings, there is a need for oversight from the perspectives of corporate profitability and capital efficiency to ensure that there will be no adverse impact on the interests of stakeholders, including shareholders, or corporate value. During my five years as an outside Audit & Supervisory Board member for Glory, I have deepened my understanding of the Glory Group’s business activities and management. I will work to ensure that the expectations of shareholders and investors are fulfilled by further integrating and enhancing the knowledge that I have gained in the past.

Glory has restructured itself as a Company with an Audit & Supervisory Committee. This change is expected to strengthen the supervisory functions of the Board of Directors, while also enhancing the speed and efficiency of management decision-making. It will further reinforce our corporate governance systems.

Under this new structure, I will combine my position as an outside director with my new role as a member of the Audit & Supervisory Committee. I will also audit and supervise the performance of duties by directors from my independent perspective as someone outside of the Company.

The knowledge and experience gained through my many years of work as an attorney, the intuition I developed for management through my experience as an outside corporate auditor for other companies, and my position as an outside Audit & Supervisory Board member for the Glory Group have all helped me to form a deeper understanding of the Glory Group’s business and management.

As an outside director, I will work with increased determination to meet the expectations of shareholders and investors by participating in the decision-making processes of the Board of Directors, and by further deepening my knowledge so that I can help Glory to achieve sustainable growth and improvement in its medium- to long-term corporate value by providing effective advice about management policies and improvements to management systems.

Many factors are driving far-reaching changes in the Glory Group’s business environment, including the emergence of the cashless society and the diversification of payment methods, as well as country-specific risks overseas where the Company has established operations. However, Glory’s management creed includes the following statement: "Through a spirit of continuous development, we will provide products and services our customers can rely on." I believe that by working under this philosophy Glory can adapt to these changes and achieve continuing growth and success by creating products that society needs and taking up the challenge of technological innovation.