The Kao Corporation has been named one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies by The Ethisphere Institute, a leading US think-tank, becoming the only Asian company to have made the list every year since Ethisphere began its ranking in 2007.
The Ethisphere Institute develops and shares best practices in business ethics and corporate social responsibility. Their World’s Most Ethical Companies list acknowledges companies that lead the way in transparency, integrity, ethics, and compliance. They assess global companies across five categories of ethics and compliance programs, corporate citizenship and responsibility, culture of ethics, governance, and leadership and reputation.
“We are honoured to have been selected as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies for 17 consecutive years,” shared Yoshihiro Hasebe, Kao’s Representative Director, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Our business has always been based on walking the right path, so external evaluations such as this are very important to us. In 2021, we renewed our corporate philosophy—The Kao Way—which includes principles such as ‘We act with courage’. In order to become a company that leads the industry in a society that will continue to evolve, we have reaffirmed our determination to continue to take on challenges toward high goals.”
“We are, once again, delighted to honour Kao as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies. Kao is one of only six companies to have received this recognition from its inception – 17 times. This achievement is a testament to Kao’s dedication to continually advancing best practices for ethics, compliance, and governance. We look forward to seeing Kao’s continued leadership in furthering business integrity across the industry and globally,” added Ethisphere’s Chief Executive Officer, Erica Salmon Byrne.
Kao continues its ethical approach with the Kirei Lifestyle Plan, an ESG strategy that the company established in 2019. The practice is derived from the Japanese ‘kirei’ concept of cleanliness and beauty, which guides the brand’s appearance and approach to self, community and the world. By 2030, Kao aims to empower at least 1 billion people to enjoy more beautiful lives and have 100 per cent of its products leave a full lifecycle environmental footprint that betters the world.
The company also introduced the Kao Group Mid-term Plan 2025 (K25) in 2021 to prioritise sustainability and the future. These strategies continue to pioneer the company in its business approach, which is also driven by its corporate philosophy, “The Kao Way”, which signifies acting in accordance with the law and ethics and conducting honest and sound business activities, which is implemented from the leadership team and embodied by all employees.
Kao leads with these principles through its portfolio of 20 brands. The company employs about 35,400 people worldwide and has 135 years of history in innovation.
For more information visit www.kao.com
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