1. DENSO (China) Investment Co., Ltd. established
1. DENSO (China) Investment Co., Ltd. established
At the beginning of the 21st century, China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the investment environment improved day by day, triggering a Chinese investment boom within the Japanese automotive industry. To keep up with this trend, DENSO first mentioned "regional axis" management in its 2002 Global Group Policy, and positioned China for the first time as a priority region to be strengthened. This marked the official launch of the DENSO Group's resolution to strengthen its China operations, and to promote that project, as part of its global strategy for the 21st century.
The Chinese market was developing rapidly at the time, and occupied an important position in DENSO's overseas operations. DENSO made a concerted effort to promote its China business project, which the company's vice president at the time, Takuo Inukai, personally took control of and led forward. DENSO utilized its investment experience in factory construction in Europe and the U.S. to develop an effective investment plan. In February 2003, it established a company to oversee China's overall business, DENSO (China) Investment Co., Ltd. (DICH), and appointed Noboru Yamada as its president.
Prior to this, in the first phase of operations, DENSO established a network of regional businesses in China primarily in the form of joint ventures. In the second phase from 2003, however, further business was developed amid the trend of significant change in the Chinese economy as it opened up further.
The company's rapid progress at this time, both in speed and scale, greatly exceeded that of the first phase.
DICH's mission was to unify the sales departments of production companies and integrate human resources, management, and other departments, that is, to diversify and concentrate functions in order to improve operational efficiency.
At the time, the usual method for controlling companies in China was the "umbrella structure," but DENSO confidently chose this method and, when establishing DICH, invested US $30 million in capital from its Japanese headquarters, in anticipation of future growth in China. The establishment of DICH gave DENSO confidence in the development of its China region business, and was also a sign of its headquarters' focus on China as a new growth market.
2. 10th anniversary of DENSO (China) Investment Co., Ltd.
2013 marked the 10th anniversary of the establishment of DICH. In just 10 years, China's economy has experienced astonishing growth, car ownership has risen to hundreds of millions, and the auto industry has undergone a qualitative change. The industry has changed from "big" to "strong," and a series of policies have been launched to foster independent brands and develop new energy industries. Over the decade, DICH has experienced a series of crises, including the 2008 Sichuan-Wenchuan earthquake, the 2009 financial crisis, Toyota Motor Corporation's massive recall in 2010, the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, and the 2012 Japan-China island dispute.
However, DICH has overcome a lots of hardship following a spirit of collaboration. DENSO has shown its long-standing monozukuri (manufacturing) strengths and retained its customers on a long-term and stable basis, while actively cultivating regional contacts to expand sales to local customers. This has enabled the company to grow through scale, efficiency, and profit even in the face of stiff market competition, with sales increasing more than ten-fold over the decade. DENSO Group (China) is now a large company with more than 800 employees, 20 billion yuan in sales, 27 affiliated companies, and more than 12,000 affiliated company employees.
On November 27, 2013, a media appreciation party was held in Beijing for the 10th anniversary of DICH. President Yamada, Executive Vice President Satsunai, Vice President Yoshida, Vice President Mukai, and Vice President Inukai attended the ceremony where they met with representatives of about 40 media companies from all over Japan. Yamada reflected on DENSO's progress since expanding into China, and introduced to the media the long-term 2020 policy jointly promoted by the Global Group, "Protecting lives, preserving the planet, and preparing a bright future for generations to come," and our vision for the future society for the China region in 2025, "A stable society without disparity, transforming to a better quality of life and consumption." He stated that under the long-term policy of the DENSO Group, DICH will serve as a regional role model and continue to promote business throughout the China region. It will keep working tirelessly in order to make China the "leading region for Global DENSO's business" and realize the goal of becoming a "DENSO loved and needed by the region."
3. 20th anniversary of DENSO (China) Investment Co., Ltd.
DENSO (China) Investment celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2023 by holding a series of commemorative events under the theme "On DICH’s 20th Anniversary, Thanks for All Our Progress Together." Through these events, we at DICH reflected on developments and inspirational moments from our 20-year history, and the company expressed its gratitude to employees and their families for their unity and for the work they have done together. With an eye on the future, and amid an uncertain business environment, the company returned to its roots from 2023 in its second founding phase and re-instilled its management policy toward 2035, increasing employees’ empathy for DICH’s vision and inspiring a spirit of challenge among employees.
Since DICH sales divisions are scattered across different cities, two types of commemorative events were planned, in online and offline formats. The first was the "I Want to Ask the President: Special 20th Anniversary Edition" to which management and employee representatives were invited to reflect on the background of DICH’s establishment and the changes in China’s automotive market over the past two decades, and to discuss issues such as the expansion of sales in China, which was of most concern to the employees. This helped in understanding the company's current business situation and issues, and fostered a culture within the company of taking on challenges. Using DICH’s existing online learning platform, Ungakuen, a challenge contest was conducted to learn more about DENSO, leading employees to reflect on their valuable experience acquired over the years, including DENSO’s spirit, strengths, and sustainable management, to set a new direction for development, and to launch new challenges.
Toward the end of the events, on October 20, 2023, a grand celebration of DICH 20th anniversary was held in the form of offline sales division meetings plus an online cloud meeting on Teams. CEO Inoue, vice presidents Chen, Ikedo, Ishiyama, and Hatani, and employees of DICH sales divisions participated in this commemorative event. Inoue gave a keynote speech on behalf of the company about the 20th anniversary, thanking employees and their families and encouraging them to fearlessly take on challenges and embrace the future, even in this fiercely competitive environment. On the occasion of this 20th anniversary, an award ceremony was also held for employees who have been with the company for 5, 10, and 15 years, and those who have been with the company for 20 years were presented with a special nightlight commemorative gift.
Finally, each sales division held its own 20th anniversary family day in an offline format. Employees and their families were invited to the workplace to experience the company’s culture. The company also prepared some thoughtful gifts for the employees and their families as a token of its appreciation for their service.
On DICH’s 20th anniversary, go together to the future!