Our new graduate recruiters answer 10 frequently asked questions (Part 1)

Saito (Rei) I thought it would be a prestigious job, and when I was a student, charismatic senior students around me were going into general trading companies. I initially had an image of them as being cool places to work. I went to hear a company information session and was attracted by the environment that allowed young people to take on challenges and the way that people with high aspirations were coming together.

Michimata I did not start out thinking that an integrated trading and business investment company was a good fit for me. As I attended information sessions for a variety of industries, including manufacturing companies, consulting firms, and finance-related companies, the term “integrated trading and business investment company” came up in most industries. So, I asked myself, “What exactly is an integrated trading and business investment company?” I was curious. After doing a lot of research and attending information sessions, I liked how there were fields in which I could work across a wide range of industries. I had experience studying abroad, so the chance to work onsite overseas was one of the main reasons I decided to work at an integrated trading and business investment company.

Nakano During my job search, I asked people in various industries—not just general integrated trading and business investment companies —what they found rewarding in their jobs. What impressed me in the answers I heard from Sumitomo Corporation employees was not that they were proud of the scale of their work itself, but that it made them happy to make someone’s life a little better through their work. This sincerity was the reason why I decided to work at Sumitomo Corporation.

Shimizu I applied to many companies, but it seemed that the employees at Sumitomo Corporation were able to see things from the point of view of people looking for a job. I truly felt that they were the kind of people I wanted to work with. I thought that here I could take a positive step forward as a fully involved member of society.

Saito (Satoshi) I think what general trading companies do is essentially similar everywhere. This means that one’s focus naturally turns to the “soft” aspects of the company, such as its values, organizational culture and workers. I think it is important to be able to empathize with those aspects as well. I think Sumitomo Corporation is a company that attracts lots of people due to the employees that work there.

Shimizu If I had to describe it in one word, it would be “teamwork.” I feel that many people at Sumitomo Corporation are very empathic towards others. It’s particularly for this reason that I’m able to incorporate the opinions of my team members into my work and express my own opinions without thinking twice about it. I believe this results in high-quality work that could not be produced by one person alone.

Saito (Rei) I feel the same. It is an environment where everyone can use their strengths and make up for each other's weaknesses. Young people's opinions are also taken into consideration, so even in your first year at the company, you can take on substantial challenges. I originally had an image of trading companies as organizations that appeal to people from an athletic background, but I now feel that it is a flat organization without any strict hierarchical relationships, where it is also easy to work with everyone else.

Saito (Satoshi) As far as systems go, one is the Super Flextime. For example, a senior employee with a small child may leave work in the evening, pick up the child, and then work a little more in the evening, which means that the working system is more suitable for more people. You can work from home, or if you come to the office, you can work in an open space while conversing with your team members, or you can sit in silence and focus on your work.

Michimata The image of a trading company with many athletic types is well established, but I would say that just 30% or so of all the employees at Sumitomo Corporation come from athletic backgrounds. In fact, I am not an athlete either.

Saito (Satoshi) Many people seem to have an image of Sumitomo Corporation as being one of the safer options among trading companies. Perhaps because of this image, people are sometimes concerned that Sumitomo Corporation may not offer enough for those who want to be active from a young age. But after joining the company I found that this was far from the case. They give young people important jobs and opportunities to grow and tell them to just give it a go.

Saito (Rei) I agree. Every day I feel that the supervisors are covering for younger workers behind the scenes, while allowing them to grow while doing their work.

Nakano As for people who’ve returned to Japan from overseas, I feel that many people are attracted to Sumitomo Corporation due to the global field in which they can work. However, we do not hire people just because they’ve lived overseas. I believe that overseas experience is just one of the elements that can make someone a good employee.

Nakano I think that a few decades ago if you were in an integrated trading and business investment company and, for example, you were initially put in charge of bananas, you would have remained in the foodstuff trade and related business investment for a long time. Of course, you can still have a career like that if you wish, but nowadays it’s increasingly possible to take on the challenge of a completely different field, such as digital transformation (DX).

Saito (Rei) I was particularly struck by what I heard in the training after I joined the company: “Become a person with multiple specialties!” When we think about career development, we could become a specialist with expertise or a generalist with multifaceted knowledge. But to survive in the increasingly complex society of the future, it will be challenging to survive without more than one specialty. I think that in order to achieve this, people will be transferred between Dept.s, and the expertise honed in each Dept. will help build the individual concerned.