Message from the CEO

Communication with Stakeholders:
Conducting Business with a New Sense of Values

The global business environment slowed in fiscal 2008, making it an extremely difficult year for us. This situation, combined with such factors as global warming and wildly fluctuating resource prices, has shaken people' s belief in the supremacy of science and technology, and the pursuit of economic gain. I believe that future economic activity must be conducted under the constraints imposed by the fact that the earth' s environment has limits. I also believe that, if society as a whole adopts a new sense of values that recognize these additional constraints, we can look forward to a prosperous future. It will take more than the commitment of national governments, however, to nurture this sense of values. It is essential for us to reach a "grass roots" consensus-through communication-that also includes private corporations, NPOs, NGOs, educational and research institutions, and other stakeholders, who have a range of perspectives. At Hitachi, we are committed to integrating into our business decisions full communication with stakeholders.

Using Hitachi' s Strengths to Pursue Social Innovation Businesses

To overcome the current economic crisis, we are reforming the business structure of the Hitachi Group as a whole. Our strengths lie in two broad fields: social infrastructure such as power and industrial systems, and information and telecommunications systems, including financial systems and communications networks. By combining these two fields, we will dedicate the majority of our operating resources to "social innovation businesses."
Three areas in particular are important for improving our profit structure. The first is the fusion of our information and telecommunications systems with our power and electrical systems. We are working on several projects that combine the very latest technologies in information and telecommunications systems with the social infrastructure, including smart grids, smart transportation, smart logistics, and cloud computing for business applications.
The second area involves our transformation into a truly global corporation. This means connecting with local partners throughout the world and localizing our operations by employing people who are intimately familiar with local conditions. In February of this year, we became a participant in the UN Global Compact, whose Ten Principles (including respect for human rights) we view as highly significant for globalizing our operations.
The third area involves expanding our environmental business activities. We are accelerating research and development programs centered on nuclear power generation, high-efficiency coal-fired power generation, environmentally friendly data centers, and lithium-ion batteries, among other programs.
Working under the constraint of a limited global environment, and setting our sights on the sustainable development of society, we can create new value that has not existed before. Through our social innovation businesses, we are committed to contributing to happiness tomorrow. I believe this is our mission, and that an approach such as this will satisfy the demands of all stakeholders.

July 2009

Takashi Kawamura
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Hitachi, Ltd.

• page top