Sustainability Philosophy
We contribute to bringing about a sustainable and prosperous societySustainability Philosophy
●Basic philosophy
“Together with our global partners, we bring innovation to everyone everywhere.” Based on this mission, Socionext recognizes sustainability as a serious management challenge and we want to contribute to bringing about a sustainable and prosperous society. Our goal is to expand the possibilities of society by delivering new value to our customers and, through them, to people everywhere, working with customers seeking to differentiate new services and products by developing their own leading-edge SoCs, and partnering with suppliers able to provide the latest technologies in an increasingly sophisticated semiconductor ecosystem, extending from foundry and OSAT*1 services through to IP*2, EDA tools*3, and software.
The environment in which companies operate is undergoing major change amid rising global concern about social problems, such as diversity and respect for human rights, as well as attention to environmental problems that include global warming and climate change. At Socionext, we are working to fully understand the risks posed by the diverse issues facing the world and intend to pursue initiatives that will lead to their resolution.
In pursuing these activities, we are striving to understand the issues involved while also building relationships of trust, engaging in dialogue and collaborative activity with our many stakeholders, who include customers, suppliers, employees, local communities, and shareholders, with our goal being to create a sustainable society.
*2: IP is an abbreviation of “intellectual property” and in the context of semiconductors refers to modular circuit designs that perform specific functions in an integrated circuit. IP can be divided into outsourced IP that is licensed from another vendor and in-house IP developed internally.
*3: EDA is an abbreviation of “electronic design automation” and refers to software tools for automating semiconductor design work.
●Core Philosophy on Sustainability Information Disclosure
Our disclosure of sustainability information is done in accordance with the TCFD*1 declaration and the ISSB*2 sustainability disclosure standards (IFRS*3 S1/S2) and will address the four topics of governance, strategy, risk management, and indicators and targets.
*2:ISSB is an abbreviation for International Sustainability Standards Board.
*3:IFRS is an abbreviation for International Financial Reporting Standards.
●Action on sustainability
Socionext is taking action on sustainability in ways that are integrated with its business. In terms of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues, this has included the establishment in April 2022 of an ESG office to facilitate ongoing management-level discussion of medium-to-long-term challenges. This ESG office serves as a hub for establishing systems and practices that bring the relevant internal departments together to work on these challenges, formulating policies and action plans for addressing key sustainability issues and monitoring their progress based around a management structure in which the Board of Directors plays a central role in underpinning this work.
In addressing global societal challenges, we are working through our business activities to create a sustainable society based on our recognition that, as a global corporation, fulfilling our social responsibilities requires that we address these issues diligently. This includes taking action on human rights and environmental problems, especially climate change, at all steps along our supply chain as well as work on promoting professional development and diversity and on improving quality and service.
●Governance
Socionext Group is putting measures in place for acting on sustainability in ways that are coordinated across relevant internal divisions, including the establishment of an ESG Office to facilitate ongoing management-level discussion of medium- to long-term challenges. This organizational structure provides a framework for action under the direction of the Management Committee. The Board of Directors debates and approves policies and action plans for important sustainability challenges while also acting in a supervisory role, including by monitoring progress.
Board of Directors
The board has responsibility for making decisions on sustainability activities. It debates and approves the associated policies, strategies and actions. It also supervises the progress of these actions semi-annually and issues instructions etc. as necessary.
Management Committee
The committee drafts sustainability policies, strategies, actions, and other plans for subsequent consideration by the board. It is also responsible for ensuring that actions are carried out, issues instructions for doing so to the operational divisions with the board's approval and promotes initiatives. To implement these actions, the ESG Office, under the direction of the Management Committee, provides support for drafting policies, strategies, actions, and other plans and for putting these into practice. It also tracks the progress of this work and reports back to the Management Committee.
●Risk Management
To mitigate and reduce management and business risks, the Group conducts a bi-annual, company-wide risk management review. Sustainability risks such as climate change, human resources, and diversity are treated as important elements in this framework, which involves assessing risk, formulating and implementing actions, and assessing outcomes on a regular basis.
ISO and External Evaluation
●ISO Certification
Socionext is certified under the following ISO standards
ISO9001 Quality management system
ISO9001 is an international standard for quality management systems.
We build quality products that meet the varying quality, cost, and delivery (QCD) needs of our customers. As a fabless company, we also have comprehensive management systems for our own planning and design work and we select partners from Japan and overseas that best suit the characteristics, functionality, and quality of products to be manufactured. We are also able to deliver optimal quality to our customers in a timely manner by leveraging the high-quality and reliable technologies that we have developed in the global market and through close collaboration with our partners.
ISO14001 Environmental management system
ISO14001 is an international standard for environmental management systems that was developed to help companies progressively reduce their impact on the environment.
Socionext has ISO14001 certification and we are engaged in ongoing efforts to reduce our impact on the environment.
ISO/IEC27001 Information security (certification acquired for some business units)
ISO/IEC 27001 is an international standard for information security management systems (ISMSs).
Socionext has organizational structures in place to enable the effective use of information while also maintaining a careful balance between the requirements of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. In addition to acquiring ISO/IEC 27001 certification and working to maintain and improve security, we have also adopted realistic remedial measures for dealing with these risks.
ISO26262 Functional Safety (certification acquired for some business units)
ISO26262 is an international standard for functional safety of electric and electronic devices that are becoming increasingly sophisticated in the automotive industry.
With the acquisition of certification, our automotive SoC development process can meet the highest safety standards in ISO26262,
ASIL-D, and allow us to deal with the high safety requirements of autonomous driving and other technologies from device level.
●External Evaluation
The Group is actively evaluated by external organizations such as EcoVadis, CDP, RBA-Online and SAQ 5.0. We also respond to requests from rating agencies such as S&P. The external assessments are reviewed by a scientific community of sustainability and supply chain experts based on international sustainability standards. We aim to enhance the relationship of trust with shareholders and other stakeholders, and to increase corporate value and achieve sustainable growth by leveraging the feedback from external organizations that conduct rigorous evaluations.
[Main Evaluation Results]
Rated 3 stars in the 6th Nikkei SDGs Management Survey
We were rated three stars in the overall ranking of the 6th Nikkei SDGs Management Survey sponsored by Nikkei,Inc. The Nikkei Business Survey on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) assesses companies' efforts toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by rating their overall scores in four areas: Strategic and Economic value, Social value, Environmental value, and Governance.
Among the evaluation areas, our group was highly evaluated for its "Governance Policy and Effectiveness" and "Shareholder Relations and Shareholding."
Rated 3 stars in the 8th Nikkei Smart Work Management Survey
We were rated three stars in the overall ranking of the 8th Nikkei Smart Work Management Survey sponsored by Nikkei,Inc. This survey selects advanced companies that aim to maximize their corporate value by maximizing the use of human resources and accelerating investment in human resources to generate new innovation, improve productivity, and maximize corporate value. Listed companies and leading unlisted companies nationwide are evaluated based on three elements:
Human resource utilization, Human resource investment, and Technology utilization.
Among the evaluation areas, our group was highly evaluated for its response to "Human Resource Strategy and KPI" and "Diverse and Flexible Working Style."
Selected for Nikkei's GX500 Decarbonized Management Ranking
We were selected as one of the top 500 companies in the GX500 Decarbonization Management Ranking sponsored by Nikkei Inc. The GX500 Decarbonization Management Ranking is a comprehensive evaluation of companies’ efforts toward decarbonization. It selects and ranks 500 leading companies in the era of green transformation (GX). In this survey, 887 companies, including listed companies in Japan, that responded to the questionnaire were ranked and rated based on their overall scores in 5 areas: Information disclosure, Emissions management and reduction results, Energy conservation and use of renewable energy, Concrete measures to reduce greenhouse gases, and Reduction target setting.
Our group received particular praise for its response to "Information Disclosure".