Message from MD Sasaki

Dear Colleagues,

At the time of writing this message to you, I have finally reunited with my family after six long months. When I first arrived in Singapore in April 2020, the country was in the peak of its COVID-19 infections and the Circuit Breaker* had just began. Global travel came to a standstill, especially all non-essential travel. Although those two months were difficult, we walked through it and overcame the darkest times.

Despite the ongoing volatility in the economy and the crippling effects caused by COVID-19, Hitachi is constantly changing and innovating. Our recent acquisition of ABB Powers Grids is a fine example of our tenacity and how we strive to power good through a pandemic and still stay true to our mission of realizing a better society.

Recently, our efforts have been focused on three main business areas specifically Smart City, Smart Factory and Smart Government. And we have been working on a few symbolic projects that may help the society to recover from this pandemic. Taking this chance, I wish to express my utmost appreciation to all Hitachi staff who have been working relentlessly, inspiring the world with what you do and moving closer to our vision.

While this may be my third message to you, I have not met everyone personally yet. However, I am grateful to have met some staff through three virtual lunches that I have hosted thus far. I was glad to see them adapting well in the new norm and staying safe.

Many have blamed COVID-19 for disrupting their normal lives. But on a positive note, COVID-19 has also given us the opportunity to relook at our sales approach and explore new ways of holding business meetings.

For instance, it will be our first time hosting the upcoming HAS Bi-annual Gathering on 9th October virtually. I am looking forward to meeting more of you then to share our achievements in Kami, and the plans we have for Shimo. I will also provide a quick update on our progress in the second year of our 2021 Mid-term Management Plan as the entire Hitachi Group works toward the same goal.

Moving out of the norm may seem scary at first, but I encourage you to embrace our Pioneering Spirit to try out new things and never be afraid of failure. As the famous quote by John Barrow reads, “If you never try, you’ll never know.” So, try out new things, make mistakes, learn from those mistakes, and try again. That is how we should live out the values of Harmony, Sincerity and Pioneering Spirit which were formed by our founder, Namihei Odaira, 110 years ago. Let us face the new future and new normal together as One Hitachi.

Takatoshi Sasaki
Managing Director
Hitachi Asia Ltd.