Support for Work Styles and Career Development after Abolition of the Mandatory Retirement Age System, Opening Up the Future for Employees and the Company

For about six years after joining the company in 1982, I was in charge of commercial building products in the Product Development Department located on the site of the Kurobe Plant, developing curtain walls (*1), which were then called "YCL" and "YCB," among other products. Within a couple of years, I was in charge of major curtain wall projects, and I felt that this was a company that allowed young people like myself to work to the best of their ability. Later, I was tasked with designing a custom-made curtain wall for the exterior of a commercial building. I remember that when I went to Tokyo and Osaka at that time, I used to be constantly looking up at the skyscrapers, making driving quite a challenge. At this time, I began to find a sense of satisfaction in knowing that the curtain walls I designed, especially those that were custom-made, would remain on the building as works of art.

A major turning point came in 1988 when I was transferred to the Architectural Products Department of YKK HONG KONG LIMITED (now YKK AP HONG KONG LIMITED). Although I was assigned to the Design Division to strengthen the company’s sales of curtain walls in addition to its mainstay of windows, I had all sorts of jobs on my plate, including sales, estimates, procurement, factory duties, and on-site support. Because of the close proximity to customers, I was able to negotiate more with outside parties, learn about the overall management of properties, and experience a broadening of the business.

I later returned to Japan and worked in a division that managed commercial buildings on a project-by-project basis, but in 2006 I ended up working overseas again. It was a bolt out of the blue when I was assigned to YKK AP HONG KONG as President. Immediately after my appointment, all sorts of problems began to mount, such as product defects and the collection of unpaid accounts. In the meantime, the unitized curtain walls used in Europe and the U.S. were beginning to be installed locally, and YKK AP HONG KONG shifted the focus of its operations to becoming an engineering company with curtain walls as its core product.

While the curtain wall business was gradually getting off the ground at YKK AP HONG KONG, we received important news from YKK AP TAIWAN around the end of 2014. That news was the company winning the order, worth more than 7 billion yen, for the Taipei Nanshan Plaza, a new skyscraper standing next to the Taipei’s landmark Taipei 101 tower. A few days later, I was transferred to YKK AP TAIWAN as the project manager for this building. Another six months later, I was appointed President of the company. Although the pressure was considerable due to the scale of the project, we managed to successfully deliver the product through comprehensive efforts in terms of safety, quality, schedule, and cost under a project structure with employees from many different backgrounds, including sales, procurement, design, manufacturing, and site management. Although I have since left Taiwan and now work in Japan, YKK AP TAIWAN received orders for two new Nanshan buildings in the vicinity of the first in 2023 and 2024, and in my view, these were won by gaining the trust of our customers based on our track record with Taipei Nanshan Plaza.

I was scheduled to reach mandatory retirement in November 2021, at 63 years old. As 2021 arrived, and I was thinking that I had less than a year left until retirement, I heard the company’s announcement that it would abolish the mandatory retirement age system in April. Given that I had only about six months until retirement, this surprised me a great deal. Of course, with the end of the mandatory retirement age system, I had to decide on the timing of my retirement myself. I was not sure what to do, and after thinking about it for about a year following the announcement, I made the decision to retire, believing that I had reached the end of my current duties. However, when I told Kazuhiro Kitano, then head of the High Rise Building Division, that I wanted to leave, he said that he wanted me to help him set up a new organization for the curtain wall business, the Global Curtain Wall Business Division (*2), and this made me change my mind. I wanted to continue working as long as I was still needed, and when I told my family, they said that I was lucky to still be able to work, and suggested that I carry on as long as I was physically able to. In addition, Takahito Nakanishi, who is in charge of managing the two new buildings in Taiwan I mentioned earlier, also told me, "Don’t quit until I say it’s okay. This will be my first time as a project manager, so please consider me your last apprentice and teach me what you know."  I wasn’t sure what to make of it (laughs).

I now work mainly from home and come to the YKK 60 Building in Sumida-ku, Tokyo, about once a week, providing support regarding properties that overseas companies have received orders for, and to conduct human resource development. Contracted projects such as high-rise commercial buildings are difficult to manage stably because of the volatile construction schedule, which results in sharp peaks and troughs in sales. The role of the Global Curtain Wall Business Division is to deploy YKK AP’s key strength, a business model that integrates manufacturing, sales, and technology to produce profits, to its overseas companies, enabling management of businesses. Now, I get a sense of joy and accomplishment from supporting overseas companies to plan and devise ways to improve the profitability of their projects.

Laws and customs vary between different countries and regions, and understanding the details of the contract in light of these differences can help ensure smooth project management. Another important point is how to approach requests for changes to the contract. When you accept, you have to say clearly, "Okay. But it’s going to take this long and cost this much." I have been teaching them to keep records after an agreement is reached, and to be as careful as they possibly can. If you keep proper data and deliver a product in accordance with the contract, you can deal with any project in confidence.

Nagomi Okuda of the Human Resources Development Department, who plans and operates these career training programs, says, "With the abolition of the mandatory retirement age, it will bring about a situation where employees are able to make career decisions for themselves. It is important to think about how long you will work and how you will contribute to the company or team, and to have the mindset of continuing to learn and take action, even in the midst of a busy schedule. In this rapidly changing world, YKK AP will continue to provide a variety of new systems and opportunities to support each individual so that they can keep growing and developing in their own way." This illustrates her enthusiasm for running this system and its active utilization by employees.