All Murata products are essential parts of products we use in daily life, such as automobiles, audio-visual equipment, communication equipment and home appliances. Therefore the responsibility for supplying products is one of the key challenges in the CSR activities of Murata. Three of the plants belonging to the Murata Manufacturing Group, one in Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture, one in Sendai City, Miyagi prefecture and one in Oyama City Tochigi Prefecture, were struck by the Eastern Japan earthquake. Operations at the plant in Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture had to be halted following the quake, which registered a magnitude of 6 or more on the Japanese scale. However, Murata managed to minimize loss of employee lives thanks to earthquake measures they adopted after the Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and Noto Peninsula Earthquake, such as the earthquake-proofing of all buildings and facilities in Japan, the creation and maintenance of a BCP （Business Continuation Plan） and the introduction of an Earthquake Early Warning System. This can be considered significant performance in the area of corporate social responsibility.

Murata has been issuing the “Murata Report,” a combined report including information from the company brochure, the CSR report and the company’s annual report. As a general trend for CSR around the world, KPI （Key Performance Indicators） pertaining to the environment and society are being disclosed more and more in annual report. Murata should also take the opportunity to disclose KPI pertaining to CSR in their annual report. In terms of international trends, ISO26000 compliance is becoming increasingly important. Reevaluating in-house activities based on ISO26000 as a guidance policy is a key factor in improving Murata’s international reputation and benefiting Murata business, whose overseas net sales is approximately 85% of the whole.

Although Murata discloses detailed information on their website, and reports are edited with employees’ opinions, I recommend well-balanced disclosure of employee’s opinions and company-wide activities. This way, information on how each employee is participating in which company-wide activities can be more clearly illustrated.