Response to the Global COVID-19 PandemicYone As COVID-19 evolved into a serious worldwide socio-economic issue, Yamaha Motor’s executives took quick and decisive action in enacting its business continuity plan in response to the pandemic, and the results of this decisiveness showed in the Company’s fiscal 2020 performance figures. The worst-case scenario we anticipated threatened the very existence of the Company, so I applaud Yamaha Motor for its success in maintaining this level of business performance.Ohashi I had only just become an outside director when the pandemic struck, and I remember listening to reports on Yamaha Motor’s March performance and its May forecast at the Yone I serve as an outside director at other companies, but at Yamaha Motor, my position is that of an outside Audit & Supervisory Board member. For this reason, I focus on offering advice and pointing out issues pertaining to compliance and other aspects of internal control.However, Yamaha Motor is engaged in a wide range of businesses on a global scale, so with compliance, for example, the relevant issues that must be considered will vary by country, region, or business. In that sense, the scope of issues that fall under the domain of internal control is incredibly broad, a fact that makes my job as an outside Audit & Supervisory Board member all the more difficult. Fortunately, the staff at the Audit & Supervisory Board Members’ Office aids me by sharing a wide range of information in a timely manner, and I coordinate well with the two standing Audit & Supervisory Board members, who are well versed in Yamaha Motor’s business. This support has proved invaluable.Ohashi Listening to the input of auditors at Board meetings, it is clear that in-depth discussions are held on a regular basis and that makes me confident that Yamaha Motor’s Audit & Supervisory Board is functioning effectively. However, that alone is not sufficient for preventing compliance issues or corporate scandals. It is vital that there be a corporate culture in which compliance is deeply rooted, with every employee highly aware of its importance. The types of statements made by President Hidaka and other internal officers exude such a culture of compliance. When outside officers like ourselves pose compliance-related questions at Board meetings, internal officers reply with confidence while providing evidence. I have high praise for Yamaha Motor’s work to thoroughly instill this type of culture.Yone President Hidaka is a very candid individual and I am sure that some of the points raised by us outside officers are not easy to hear, but he is still earnest and open in how he receives and discusses such input. Fiscal 2020 is when we began our CEO roundtable conferences with the Board’s outside directors and President Hidaka to decide whether or not the CEO will be reappointed based on performance reviews and evaluations. This earnest side of President Hidaka was often clear to see even in these roundtable conferences as well.Ohashi At a standard Board of Directors meeting, there are not a lot of opportunities to ask questions unrelated to agenda items, so I found the CEO roundtable conferences to be an intriguing undertaking. Yamaha Motor’s outside officers come from diverse business backgrounds, so the conferences saw questions and input from various angles. I suspect that, for President Hidaka, it felt much like talking directly to shareholders.Yone The roundtable conferences with the CEO also revealed points to improve with how we run Board meetings. From mid-2020, a 10-minute slot was allotted to the start of Board of Directors meetings for President Hidaka to talk about man-agement subjects to which he is paying particular attention, changes that have occurred since the previous Board meeting, and recent topics of interest. I think this new addition has made it even easier to voice opinions at meetings. President Hidaka does not limit himself to good news; he sometimes puts the bad news first, reporting on unfavorable develop-ments without trying to hide anything. This has made for even greater transparency. As I recall, these 10-minute talks were started based on your input, Ohashi-san.Ohashi I arranged for such talks at board meetings when I was the president and representative director and CEO of Komatsu Ltd., and outside officers told me that it made it easier for them to speak openly. There are a lot of internal circumstances and other matters that are not readily apparent to outside officers. For this reason, it is incredibly beneficial to have President Hidaka speak a little about how he views the operat-ing environment at the moment, what changes he is currently mindful of, and things of that nature. I am very appreciative that the Company was so quick to incorporate a suggestion I made at a roundtable conference with the CEO.55Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. Integrated Report 2021
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