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What kind of job do you have?

I work for the department that handles hygiene products used for diapers and sanitary goods. The department sells materials for hygiene products, such as raw cotton, and nonwoven fabrics to corporations. The department is called Global Fiber Sales Department because it is expanding its trade business with foreign countries. So working for this department is challenging and rewarding because I can take full advantage of my English skills. Since joining the company, I have traveled to more than 10 countries on business. I think Zenno is the best company for people who want to work overseas.

What do you think about your transfer between departments?

I used to worked for the department that is now called the Machinery Products Department. After working for that department for a year and a half, I was told to transfer to another department as part of employee training that aimed to develop all-around employees by transferring employees between departments on a rotating basis. That's how I was transferred to my current department. The job I do in my current department is completely different from the one I did in the previous one. So it was hard for me to adapt. However, it helped me gain experience and improve my skills. I think transferring between departments where you have to do completely different jobs helps you develop your skills.

What is your future goal?

Some new hires have joined since I started working for the company. When I was a new employee, there were many senior colleagues around me to whom I could turn. So, I'd like to try my best to be like them. As for overseas operations, I can go and work in the countries into which the company has already expanded. However, in order to find new foreign customers, we must study their markets intensively. To this end, I regularly collect market information. I'd like to keep working with a view toward working overseas.

Weekly work schedule

What kind of job do you have?

My main job is to import and sell slippers as room amenities to hotels and disposable gloves to nursing homes. I'm involved in all import operations. We import slippers from China and gloves from Vietnam. I communicate directly with the local people in charge in each country in English and arrange for the importation. I joined Zenno because I wanted to use my English skills. I visit hotels around Japan carrying the imported goods to sell them, so I have to travel for work frequently. I travel not only around Japan but also overseas once every month or two to make arrangements to import goods.

What are your thoughts as a female sales representative?

A senior colleague on the same team has returned from her maternity leave and childcare leave, which was the first time in Zenno, and is now actively engaged in work. I hope I can be like her in the future. I don't really care about being a female sales representative in the company. I just work on the same level as male employees. I don't have unnecessary stress because male employees don't give me any preferential or discriminatory treatment and I can just focus on my job. I'd like to keep working hard and producing great results.

What is your future goal?

As Zenno does business not only in Japan but also in a variety of other countries, my goal is to be able to work actively anywhere in the world. Though we mainly import goods from overseas now, I'd like to expand our export operations. We mainly select and import goods produced in Asian countries, but I'd like to import more goods from countries other than those in Asia. Though I work hard to achieve those goals, I'd also like to work overseas in the future if there is an opportunity.

Weekly work schedule

What kind of job do you have?

I sell transportation line pallets (Uni Line Pallets) for light electrical appliance manufacturers and processed metal/resin products in Japan and overseas. When manufacturing refrigerators and consumer electronics (such as TVs and air conditioners), there are production lines used to make unfinished products into finished products. Special wooden jig pallets used on those lines are called Uni Line Pallets. Other than pallets, I also handle a variety of products used in plants, such as metal and resin components and racks and the iron poles used in warehouses. Because these products are manufactured on a made-to-order basis in Japan and the foreign countries of China, Thailand, and Korea, I need to make proposals based on customer needs, such as their budget and specifications.

What are your thoughts as a senior colleague?

Though it's only been four years since I joined Zenno, my job here has been challenging and rewarding because I have been to China and gained a lot of experience. I always try not only to follow the instructions of my superiors but also to give them my opinions so that I can set a good example for my junior colleagues. Though Zenno has an open corporate culture, I'd like to create an environment where junior colleagues feel free to consult senior colleagues about their problems.

What is your future goal?

I'd like to establish a business that will become a pillar of the company in addition to the ones Zenno has established. I have a dream that one day people will say, "The company has become bigger thanks to the new business Morita established." Needless to say, I'd like to establish a global business. I believe that I can make my dream come true because Zenno has a corporate culture where every opinion is welcomed. To make my dream come true, I'd like to focus not only on myself but also on the teamwork in the department and work hard together with the department members to achieve the same goals.

Weekly work schedule

What kind of job do you have?

My main job is merchandising, personnel and business base management, and marketing. Actually I work like a player-manager (half sales, half administration). Because the company is still small and doesn't have many employees, the employees sometimes can't handle all the work. So I do the work that they can't handle. I'm also in charge of starting new businesses. Though I'd heard that the most important part of working overseas was the ability to communicate with local staff, I realized that was true after I actually started working overseas.

What are your thoughts about overseas assignments?

To figure out how to communicate with the local people, I considered how to adapt to the culture of the country. The most difficult part was to accept the culture. I've learned that we cannot understand each other's feelings and perspectives until we understand and accept each other's culture. I was stressed from a variety of conditions right after I started working here. However, I haven't really felt stressed after I acquired the language skills to communicate with the local staff. Not only I but also local staff members think about how to communicate better.

What is your future goal?

My immediate goal is to establish a business that can serve as the new foundation of the Thai subsidiary. I'd like to expand the company with that business and increase the number of employees. I believe my mission is to expand the company so that we can increase the number of expatriates and stabilize its management. My goal to achieve for Zenno is to give back to the headquarters by sharing my valuable experience because the company gave me an opportunity to work in Thailand and have a variety of experiences. As there are more opportunities for me to talk to outstanding employees working at other group business bases than before, I'd like to improve the capabilities of the entire group by actively strengthening cooperation with those people and the headquarters.

Weekly work schedule

What kind of job do you have?

I manage the inventories of the products for which I am responsible (slippers and raw cotton), as well as general clerical duties of placing orders and issuing invoices. I arrange the delivery of the products purchased from the manufacturers to our warehouse and the shipment of those products if our clients order them. I need to always be aware of the status of the products in the warehouse and be careful not to allow excess inventories and cause stockouts when managing inventories. To this end, it is absolutely necessary to work in close contact with the sales representatives responsible for each product. I think that I play an important role and so I do my best.

What are your thoughts after taking childcare leave?

I took my second childcare leave after giving birth to my second child. I was able to apply for my first childcare leave because a colleague who had taken childcare leave before taught me everything. Childcare leave lasts for a year from the date of birth. When I told the company that I wanted to return to my job after giving birth, the company accepted it and told me it was okay for me to return whenever I wanted. I felt very grateful. I didn't feel disconnected from the company at all while on childcare leave because the manager of the Administration Department shared what was going on in the company with me. So, I'm sure the return to work will be smooth.

What is your future goal?

Though I was very nervous when I returned to work from my first childcare leave, I received a warm welcome and was able to focus on my job right away. So I'm not worried about returning to work this time. However, because I took two long leaves of absence, I think I have to work hard to contribute to the company. The manager told me to become a good role model for other employees as an employee who had taken childcare leave. I hope my experience of returning to work without problem after taking childcare leave will help those who consider taking childcare leave feel comfortable doing so.

Weekly work schedule