- Why is CSR procurement important?
- Nintendo has adopted the fabless production model, a system in which we outsource the supply of materials and manufacture of products to our production partners. A key aspect of this model is that our production partners share our CSR procurement concept.
- To promote awareness of this concept, we inform them about the Nintendo CSR Procurement Guidelines and carry out on-site inspections. This includes ongoing talks with production partners on important issues such as respecting the human rights of employees and compliance with occupational health and safety laws. We believe that increasing CSR awareness through all tiers of our procurement is essential to put smiles on the faces of everyone we touch.
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Corporate Information : CSR Report 2009
Working with our Business Partners
We place great importance on building strong relationships with all of our business partners so that we can work together to offer the best products to our consumers.
With our Production Partners
Nintendo employs the fabless production model, meaning that we do not own the facilities that manufacture our products. We work with many production partners* around the world to improve the quality, safety, and efficiency of the production process.
By sharing our ideas and best practices with our production partners, we are able to strengthen our working relationships, and aim to assist them to improve their technical strengths and business capabilities, and maintain a sound corporate culture throughout their organizations, thereby helping us to achieve our business and CSR goals.
| * | Material suppliers, and factories to which Nintendo outsources assembly. |
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CSR Procurement Guidelines
With a focus on relationship-building, achieving mutual understanding, and building a trusting relationship, Nintendo works closely with its production partners to implement and where necessary improve on good business practices in their procurement processes. We regard this as an essential precondition to earning and maintaining the public's trust in the safety and security of our products. To inform our production partners of our expectation that they also adopt socially responsible procurement practices, we have provided the Nintendo CSR Procurement Guidelines from July 2008, to all of our nearly three hundred production partners, with whom we work closely to facilitate and encourage compliance in every phase of production.
Production Partner Inspections
One of the important ways in which Nintendo works with production partners to ensure CSR compliance is to provide instructions and a detailed Nintendo CSR Procurement Check Sheet that enables our main production partners to self-inspect their production sites. Based on the results of these self-inspections, Nintendo conducts on-site inspections to help our partners reach and maintain our high standards. Between March 2008 and April 2009, we carried out on-site inspections at fifteen major production partners and worked with them to initiate improvements where necessary.
While the main purpose of these inspections is to communicate the Nintendo CSR procurement concept to our production partners, they also give us the opportunity to get a first-hand look at on-site conditions. Nintendo will continue to carry out such inspections and follow-up while promoting the fulfillment of our initiatives.
Overview of our CSR Procurement
CSR procurement activities implemented in 2008 broadened opportunities for us to communicate closely with our production partners, which in turn, enabled us to gain a clearer understanding of their individual situations, such as the specific problems they encountered and the challenges involved in finding effective solutions. In addition, where we saw room for improvement in CSR procurement practices was in trying to change each individual production partner's perception, awareness, and knowledge of CSR.
Plans for Improvement and Future Expansion
Nintendo provides post-inspection feedback to each production partner to encourage improvement. There are some issues that present significant challenges; however, Nintendo is meeting its responsibility to work with its production partners through the use of on-site inspections to facilitate continuing efforts to improve on their current practices.
We realize the importance of sharing information with our production partners about responsible procurement practices, and are committed to taking further steps to improve efforts in this regard.
With our Development Partners
Nintendo develops game devices and software both on its own and in cooperation with a wide range of development partners. Key to developing attractive products together with our development partners are shared values about cooperative product development, mutual respect for the roles and abilities of those involved, and a strong sense of appreciation for the contribution of each and every individual in the process.
- Partners in software development for over a quarter of a century
- S.R.D Co., Ltd. has been engaged in the development of such popular products as the Mario series for over a quarter of a century, since the introduction of the first home-use video games. We are grateful to Nintendo for giving us the chance to work with such talented and committed people who share a sense of value and a palpable joy in creating attractive products. We are proud of our contributions to game software development over the past 25 years and we are committed to moving forward as the future introduces exciting new possibilities through innovative technologies that will lead to the development of even more wonderful products that everyone can enjoy.
With our Sales Partners
In order for as many consumers to enjoy our products as possible, the cooperation of our sales partners is essential to effectively convey the appeal of our products to consumers around the world. Nintendo believes in building relationships based on trust and encourages open communication with our sales partners.
Cooperation with On-site Sales Promotion
Nintendo Co., Ltd.'s sales staff offers support to individual retailers by providing appropriate sales promotion tools and product display proposals, and actively communicates product information at the appropriate time. We set up interactive demo units at retailers in order to give consumers an opportunity to experience Nintendo products and play the games first-hand. Our sales staff closely cooperates with sales partners to create and launch their promotional activities. In addition to the demo units for Nintendo DS which have already been installed at 1,070 retailers, we set up Wii demo units at 100 retailers during fiscal year 2008. These demo units were designed and developed with consumer safety in mind, and meticulous care is taken in the selection of appropriate software content.
Our overseas sales staff also work in cooperation with their sales partners to promote marketing activities at retailers so that they are tailored to the characteristics of their particular region.
Product Information Sessions
Entertainment plays an essential role in the strength of Nintendo products. For our sales partners, clear presentation of the special features and appeal of our products is critical for the development of effective sales promotion activities. For newly released products,
Nintendo Co., Ltd. holds Product Information Sessions in which our sales staff directly explains the special features to all sales partners. At such sessions, Nintendo's partners gain experience and play with the product in order to understand its appeal, and gain confidence when supporting the product at the retail level. These information sessions have become a valuable way for us to gather consumer reactions and feedback from store staff. If time permits, we take these comments into consideration, especially for product titles and packaging design. Tight release schedules sometimes make doing this difficult, but we always strive to utilize this feedback when marketing our own products.
- Are there opportunities for overseas sales partners to learn about the appeal of Nintendo products?
- Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is a key event for the video game industry, with more than 41,000 people from 78 countries in attendance this past year. At Nintendo, we use E3 for product unveilings, partner announcements and, most importantly, to provide attendees with opportunities to experience our games first-hand. Our mission for E3 is to put smiles on the faces of all attendees, as well as the thousands more around the world who watch the conference via webcasts.
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