Feature | Annual Report 2014 | Investor Relations

Greater Availability, Enjoyment, and Convenience for Customers Eyes firmly fixed on the changing roles of cars in society,and working to firmly root ourselves in local communities

As the roles cars play in society change, AUTOBACS continues to create stores that are always close at hand, and offer one-stop solutions to all car-related needs — stores that provide customers with convenience, reliability, and enjoyment.

In addition, as an employer in local communities, we devote significant resources to personnel development and, through environmental consciousness and activities that contribute to local communities, strive to be a company that is supported and trusted as infrastructure for a society in which cars play important roles.

The AUTOBACS Group, in order to provide customers with the best advice to help them get greater enjoyment and convenience from their cars, devotes a great deal of effort to developing personnel with expert knowledge and skills. By providing a friendly working environment and developing the potential of individual employees, we are honoring our responsibilities as an employer in local communities.

Education and Training for a More Capable Workforce

AUTOBACS employs an education and training system that is organized by job-level and focuses mainly on store staff. In group training covering over 30 topics (conducted 678 times in fiscal 2014), e-learning, and on-the-job training, we set high expectations for employees. By translating learning achievements into internal qualifications based on test results and reflecting them in performance evaluations, we encourage employees to enhance their knowledge and skills, and ultimately improve the quality of service in our stores. We also devote significant effort to instruction-based and practical training to help mechanics and inspectors gain national qualifications, and are seeing a steady rise in employees who have.

Employees in a training session

Status regarding Acquisition of Primary Professional Qualifications

Qualification	Description	Certified Employees*	Vs. Previous Fiscal Year
Internal
Car Life Advisor	Employees studying for this qualification gain knowledge of key items and services and how to interact with customers. Study is via e-learning. (10 Level-2 courses, 5 Level-1 courses, and final examination)	18,269	＋64
Merchandise Specialist	Employees studying for this qualification gain expert knowledge for recommending optimal merchandise, and acquire customer interaction skills. Enhanced training and a certification examination are conducted for those with Car Life Advisor qualifications. Seven courses of study are available, depending on merchandise group.	5,257	＋1,084
Mechanic	Employees studying for this qualification gain knowledge and skills necessary for working in a service bay. Training is performed via e-learning, video instruction, practical instruction, and group training, with a final examination. Four classes are available depending on career path.	13,641	＋118
National
Automobile Mechanic	A national qualification gained based on practical experience and the passing of academic and practical skill examinations.	3,653	＋259
Automobile Inspector	Qualification earned by fulfilling requirements such as attending classes overseen by the Director of the District Transport Bureau and passing a final examination.	1,265	＋56

*Numbers of employees with qualifications are for the entire AUTOBACS chain, as of March 31, 2014.

Career Development System

Based on the belief that having all employees accumulate knowledge and experience, develop an understanding of various work settings, and deepen their knowledge of the company is vital for maximizing organizational capabilities, the AUTOBACS Group implements job rotations every few years. In a job rotation, superiors, acting as advisors, help individual employees identify their preferences and aptitudes, and take the lead in broadening and deepening their careers. Job rotations connect employee growth to invigoration of the organization as a whole.

Cafeteria Plan

In addition to training that targets specific career levels, we have created a “Cafeteria Plan” under which employees can participate in correspondence courses or public seminars offered by outside education organizations, and receive support for obtaining national qualifications. The Cafeteria Plan helps employees take the lead in developing their own careers. Employees can receive up to ¥100,000 of financial support per year to take any of around 160 courses, and roughly 350 use this system in a typical year. Employees who pass a national qualification examination designated by the Company are paid incentive bonuses of up to ¥500,000.

Mid-Level Employee

Naoto Chigira Human Resources Department

Beginning with my assignment to a store when I joined the company, job rotation has allowed me to experience three types of positions, including ones in sales and personnel, over seven years. Along the way, I have broadened and deepened my career by discovering aptitudes I did not know I had and by coming to understand perspectives other than my own.

In addition, by taking professional qualification training and seminars recommended by the Company, and correspondence courses and other education programs of my own choosing, I have been able to guide my own professional development. Looking to the future with a clear picture of what I should strive for personally, I aim to accomplish each day’s tasks on the way to my next step.

Worker Safety and Health

The AUTOBACS Group believes the health of employees is critical for its own continuous growth and works to promote good health for employees. We have, for example, established the AUTOBACS Osaka Health Center, where we hold health management training. This training is mandatory for employees who have received a diagnosis of a lifestyle-related or other disease in a regular physical examination and been instructed to participate by a physician. In addition, in store manager training, we stress the importance of maintaining safety in stores and preventing employees from working an excess number of hours, in an effort to maintain and improve working environments.

AUTOBACS Osaka Health Center

Child-Care Support for Employees

To help employees meet child-care responsibilities, we are enhancing support systems. As one example, we have extended the periods during which child-care leave can be taken and working hours can be reduced. As of March 31, 2014, 13 employees were making use of child-care-related support systems.

Employing Older Adults

To transfer to younger employees the skills and experience of people near the end of long careers, the AUTOBACS Group actively hires older adults, including our own employees who have retired at the mandatory retirement age. During the fiscal year just ended, we hired six people (including our own rehires) over age 60, bringing the total number of such older employees to 42.

Mental Health Care

Mental health checks are conducted by outside specialists for all employees, and there is a system employees can use to consult with outside cooperating institutions if they feel the need to.

Internal Reporting System

The AUTOBACS Group has implemented the “Orange Hotline,” a group-wide internal reporting system to prevent and swiftly address misconduct or unethical actions by executives or employees. Internal and external contact points are available for people wanting to use the system.

Support for Store Management

To make stores more attractive to customers, AUTOBACS is moving forward with sales space renovations for the entire chain, and pursuing improvements to accurately respond to customer needs, which differ by geographic area. Working with our partner franchisees, we identify examples of success at individual stores, and turn these into best practices. Our supervisors, whom we call “store counselors,” then promote these best practices to individual stores, monitor implementation, and provide guidance for improvement. These efforts have paid off by making individual stores more attractive, and producing ongoing improvements in market share and profitability at the individual store level.

Training to Enhance the Strategic Capabilities of Store Managers

Through its Chain Education Department, AUTOBACS helps franchisees improve their management. Strategy workshops, conducted for all store managers and assistant store managers, support strategy development at the individual store level, help to improve execution capabilities through the building of plan-do-check-act (PDCA) cycles and enhance organizational skills to boost results. We will continue to conduct these workshops to enhance the management capabilities of store executives going forward.

Strategy workshop for store managers

Store Counselor

Shunya Isomura Northern Kanto Area Operation Department,
Kanto Region Headquarters

To maintain and enhance the AUTOBACS brand at the store level and help franchisees improve their performance, I work on a daily basis to ensure the overall direction of the chain is reflected in key concerns for individual stores, and provide store management with advice for improving performance. Gathering information on problems and successes at the retail level and sharing this with relevant departments is another important role I play.

It is important that I become a trusted advisor for store staff. I, of course, have to provide support that results in stores that customers are pleased with and are thankful to have, but I also want to be someone franchisees are pleased with and are thankful to have.