METI Compiled a Collection of Best Practices under the Diversity Management Selection 100 Project- Introducing Efforts of 43 Enterprises Selected for their Utilization of Various Human Resources for Creating New Value -

Diversity management is a strategy under which enterprises conduct management so as to create innovation and generate value, ^{Note 1} by utilizing various human resources ^{Note 2} and providing them with opportunities where they are able to exercise their potential as much as possible. In Diversity Management Selection 100, enterprises of various sizes and in various industries that proactively make efforts to carry out diversity management are recognized as having management capability that contributes to Japan's economic growth. The project also aims to expand the base on which enterprises will promote diversity management by conveying such enterprises' efforts widely to the public as best practices.

In FY2012, the initial year of the project, METI selected 43 enterprises out of 160 or more applicants that utilize various human resources to carry out diversity management. At the same time, METI has also selected six enterprises for their projects and programs contributing to awareness-raising or other activities to expand the base on which enterprises will promote diversity management, and recognized them for Diversity Promotion Project Commendation.

Note 1: Management whereby enterprises endeavor to create innovation that encourages the creation of value
This management approach encourages free thinking and the creation of new products and services by developing environments in which people are able to enjoy their jobs.

Note 2: Various human resources
Various human resources include variety in terms of gender, age, nationality, the presence or absence of disabilities, as well as careers and lifestyles.

METI has created a collection of best practices in which the efforts of the 43 winners of the FY 2012 Diversity Management Selection 100 project are compiled as successful examples.

At the same time, METI has also extracted some common elements discovered in the winners' efforts and assembled the elements into a booklet titled "Toward Value-creative Diversity Management" in which fundamental ideas of and approaches to diversity management as a strategy for utilizing human resources to establish a competitive advantage are collected.

METI expects that this collection will encourage Japanese enterprises to create an ideal approach to establishing diversity management in an effective fashion for them according to their respective business purposes and market scales, leading to enhancement of their competitiveness.

• Diversity Management Selection 100 URL (in Japanese)
  *METI will soon make an announcement on the documents distributed at the commendation ceremony held on March 22, 2013, as well as the sights of the ceremony.
• Promoting diversity: Human resource strategy in the era of globalization (in Japanese)
  ** METI also introduces METI's daily efforts to promote diversity management on the following Facebook page account, including businesses selected in the Diversity Management Selection 100 project.

May 16, 2013

Economic and Social Policy Office, Economic and Industrial Policy Bureau