Promotion of Women's Activities

TDC SOFT Group is committed to creating a workplace where employees with diverse experiences, skills, and values can maximize their abilities based on the philosophy of “making the world a smarter place” through the power of technology and challenge, and by sincerely dealing with all kinds of change. In terms of diversity, our theme is “all-employee success,” and we aim to create an organization where each and every employee can respect each other and create added value by creating an environment where they are properly evaluated regardless of their gender, age, nationality, or disability. As part of these efforts, we will promote the advancement of women by hiring female employees and providing consideration and support for issues unique to women.

Overall picture and progress of the Women's Activity Promotion Plan

We have been promoting the advancement of women since 2015, and are proceeding in stages based on three goals established in five-year increments.

Step 1 Raise the number of female employees

As an initial step in our plan, we have been working to raise the number of female employees and have set a goal to “increase the number of female employees to 1.5 times that of five years ago” by 2020. By increasing the ratio of female hires and holding career vision seminars, we have succeeded in increasing the number of female employees from 166 in 2015 to 267 by 2020. We have continued to work on this theme since then, and the total number of female employees in the group as of the beginning of the fiscal year 2024 has risen to 496.

Step 2 Increase the number and ratio of management and above

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Step 3 Increase the number of managers (management level) and above

In the next phase, we are studying the possibility of increasing the number of managers (management level) and above by 2030. In order to achieve this goal, it will be necessary to form a population of women who aspire to management-level positions and provide support for them, so we will focus on training female employees to become executive candidates and promote these activities both internally and externally.

Women's Activities by the Numbers (as of April 2024)

Our Working Women

What is the work environment like?

The way of working differs depending on the department, but in the Credit Division, there are many large-scale projects involving more than 100 members or long-term projects lasting more than 10 years, and we work in a group and in an organized manner. I think this style suits me well.

What part of your job do you like best?

I have always enjoyed thinking about development, design, etc., so this is directly related to my work. Now that I am in a management position, I have fewer opportunities to be directly involved in the work, but I have to review what the members have created, so daily updates on business knowledge, etc. are essential. When something comes up that I don’t know about, I have to read materials and review design documents, but I enjoy learning new things every day, and I never get tired of it.

How is the workplace atmosphere?

I believe that relationships are hot in the workplace as well as in the division as a whole. In this day and age, there may be some workplace relationships that are cut off quickly and coldly, but that is definitely not the case. It may be more like a peer or family-like rather than a superior-subordinate relationship. I think this is a team that really values human relationships.

Please tell us about your "work and childcare. Did you make use of the company's systems for childbirth or child rearing?

I took maternity and childcare leave, and also took advantage of shorter working hours.
I am good at making creative arrangements and making arrangements to complete my work within a set time frame, so I have never found it difficult to work. Now, I can work from home, and my work schedule is more adjustable, so for example, I can work in the mornings when I cannot work at night. I think it has become easier to work.

How do you feel about your work after returning to work?

I was assigned to the same job grade as before my maternity leave, so there was no particular change in that respect before and after my return to work. I think I was able to return to work smoothly because the department’s policy is that regardless of the type of work, as long as your team is running properly, you should be fine, and I had established good relationships with the other members. I was also grateful, reassured, and happy that the client said, “When you return to work, be sure to come back to work with us again.

Do you have a role model?

Not at all. I am my own role model. Of course, I will refer to the opinions of those around me, but ultimately I try to make decisions based on my own responsibility and according to my own beliefs.

You are a role model yourself. Can you tell us what you value most about yourself?

When it comes to relationships in the workplace, I do not accept anything that comes my way. When someone comes to me for advice or questions, I will tell them whatever they want to know, regardless of how deep or shallow our relationship has been.
When it comes to work, I always complete my assigned tasks to the end by any means necessary. I will push forward with the task that is now in front of me, throwing all my energy into solving it. I believe that the goal lies beyond that.

How does your job help you raise your children?

I work with a mindset of how to work efficiently within the limited time I have each day. Therefore, I think I am able to be rather efficient in raising my children (including housework). However, because my mother is so efficient in everything, my children seem to think that my mother will do everything for them even if they don’t do it themselves, which has been troubling me lately (laugh).

What are the difficulties of career development while raising children and how do you cope with them?

When the child is young, I can cover my time to some extent by taking care of him or her through various company systems, and even if I have to come to work or work overtime, the child does not notice this until he or she is not self-aware. However, once the child’s ego begins to grow, the difficulty of child-rearing changes from a quantitative one to a qualitative one. “What time are you coming home?” “When are you coming home? while my children ask me every day, “What time are you coming home?” If the company says to me, “Your children are grown, so you can work overtime now,” I sometimes wonder what I should do about my future career development.
This is not a system, but rather, I think the parties involved would be relieved if all people in the world would recognize that “child-rearing is not something that ends suddenly but continues on and on,” and if those around them would just take the stance that “it’s totally fine as long as you do it the same way you are doing it now.
I think there are many people, especially in the younger generation, who are thinking, “What if I get married and have a baby? What should I do if someone says something to me when I report that I am pregnant? It would be nice if we could cover these issues not only through the system but also through mutual care. I think that only when there is such an environment, can we think about continuous career development.

You joined us as a career recruiter, why did you choose our company?

I had worked for a relatively small company before, but after gaining a full range of experience and a career change, I decided to apply for a job because I wanted to try my hand at working on larger projects. During the interview, I was impressed by the open and cheerful atmosphere of the workplace, and I chose the company because I also like cheerful workplaces.

How do you feel after actually joining the company?

While my previous small workplace offered advantages such as mobility, it was sometimes difficult to find opportunities to work on a larger scale due to limited resources and other factors. In addition, the work was mainly based on the skills of people who had been tapped, rather than based on data. Now, I feel that the foundation of thinking, such as theory and knowledge, is firmly in place, and work policies are determined based on that foundation, so I find that point easy to understand.

What is your favorite part of your current job?

The project team has a bright and positive atmosphere with good human relations even in the midst of a busy day-to-day schedule. The project team is very open and maintains a good hierarchical and side-by-side relationship.

What kind of management do you usually do?

The final policy is decided after listening to the opinions of the members. Rather than asking everyone else’s opinion without having our own, we listen to our members’ opinions, saying, “I think this is the way I think, but if there is a way to make it easier for everyone,” and if that is better, we would like to make that way the way it should be. Ideally, I would like to provide a direction, and then allow each member the freedom to decide how to do things in a style that he or she feels will allow him or her to maximize his or her own abilities.

Was that your style from the beginning?

Until my previous job, I was the type of person who pulled others along, saying “follow me,” but there was a time when I felt that in that case, the more the number of people increased, the less successful that would be in some cases. Of course leading members is an important part of being a leader, but I began to think that my role as a leader would be more successful if I put more emphasis on gathering opinions within the team, scrutinizing them, and taking responsibility for making decisions.

Do you have any tips for organizing members' opinions?

I try to make them feel as much affirmation as possible. I try to communicate with them in such a way that the content is brushed up: “That’s a great idea, but there might be a problem with it at this point. We communicate with them in such a way that the content can be brushed up.

Please tell us about your future goals.

I believe it is important for everyone to work together in a cheerful and enjoyable manner. Not only fun things but also hard things happen in the course of work. I would like to build relationships among the members so that we can support each other during such times. I would also like to help female employees in any way I can.

Do you have a role model?

On the personal side, she is my mother. She raised me while working, and she was the first person who made me long for a “working woman.
In terms of work, it is a female senior colleague I met at my previous workplace. She was a senior who had faith and was dependable, and I often asked her for advice when I was having difficulties at work.
Even though I was busy with work, I was able to have emotional support and dreams that” if I work hard, I might be able to be like her someday.

How do you feel about balancing work and private life and refreshing yourself?

Until my previous job, I did not inform anyone in the company about my holiday plans. However, since joining the company, people around me have been telling me what they do on their days off, and I have been able to tell them. I recently started playing golf, and that was also triggered by an invitation from someone at the company. Even when I spend time with people from the company on my days off, I have a strong sense that we are “a group of volunteers who get together and have fun,” so I find it very enjoyable and refreshing.

What do you value in your work?

It is the relationship with the customer. I consider my role and mission to be how much I can get into the customer’s pocket. I consider it a success if they consider me an “ally,” so I am happy when they say, “Let’s work together as one!” I am happy when they say, “Let’s work together as one! What I try to do is to be conscious of looking for benefits from the other person’s point of view. I believe that communication is important because it is through small talk that I get to know the deeper aspects of the other person and myself, which can lead to the main thrust of my work.