Managerial Dialogue: Walking with Oka Foods Vol. 01

The three people in the discussion were Representative Director and CHO Oka (center), Managing Director Hamada (left), and Director Eda (right).

Our response to the COVID-19 pandemic / Time and health / Changes in internal branding and digital transformation

- Measures against coronavirus infection

Managing Director Hamada (hereinafter referred to as Hamada) : With most employees working remotely, the three of us - President Oka, Mr. Eda, myself, and I - mainly discussed three things: "How to provide masks to customers," "Daily procedures," and "The outlook after the COVID-19 pandemic." The management team made daily decisions about what "we can do" and "what we can't do yet."

Director Eda (hereinafter referred to as Eda) : President Oka's instructions were clear, so I focused on "ensuring that they are properly implemented on-site," "following up on-site," and "implementing the president's instructions." We had one employee in each of the customer assistance department and purchasing department who handled internal matters, so I also prepared lunch boxes for them every day.

Representative Director Oka (hereinafter referred to as Oka) : Around March, when there was a shortage of masks in Japan, a series of miracles allowed us to obtain masks with guaranteed quality. We learned a lot about masks so that we could deliver masks that our stakeholders could feel safe using.

-About "Time and Health"

Hamada : It's related to the coronavirus, but I feel that it's important to "strengthen your immune system." I've been reading books about it, but the most important thing is to eat a balanced diet.

Eda : I go to bed early and get up early. I try not to lose my rhythm. Even on my days off, I wake up before 7am and watch "Gachi-ri Monday"! The coronavirus situation has not yet settled down, so I'm always on edge and consciously thinking about my health.

Oka : Regarding my physical health, I haven't been doing very well with exercise or diet, but I'm trying not to worry about it too much now. Physical ailments often come from within, so I'm trying to be mindful and calm both at work and at home.

^{Managing Director Hamada (left), Representative Director and CHO Oka (center), Director Eda (right)}

-About the two changes: internal branding and digital transformation

Oka : I think it brings us one step closer to our ideal company. It's one of the means to achieve our never-ending goal of "creating a good company (a company I want to work for, a company that employees want their children to work for)," but I chose it as a suitable keyword for the 46th term so that we wouldn't just be pretending by starting it all at once. I think that when there is physical separation, it's important for employees to cooperate with each other even when they're far apart, and for there to be a relationship of trust between employees and the company.

Eda : As a company that wants families to join, we would like families to see SHINKA News. We want them to get a feel for how we work and feel at ease. Also, in order to differentiate our DX from other companies, we need internal branding to help each employee grow mentally and develop their values, and if everyone is facing in the same direction, we will increase our "driving force" and "explosive power."

Hamada : I don't think the new world will be a return to the way things were before. DX in the world is often a tool or method, and if you take the lead with this, there's a high chance that your organization will not function properly and will fall apart. To prevent this from happening, I think that by engaging in internal branding activities with analog elements, you can share ways of thinking, as well as principles and policies. I imagine that by integrating digital and analog, people will feel even stronger pride in their company and a stronger sense of solidarity.