Kōji Higashinaka Appointed To New Position Of Chief Human Resource Officer Of SATO Holdings Corporation

SATO, a leader in barcode printing, labeling, and EPC/RFID solutions, recently announced the appointment of Mr. Kōji Higashinaka to the position of Chief Human Resource Officer (CHO).

In this new role, Mr. Higashinaka will be responsible for the Group’s overall HR strategy worldwide, including recruitment, training, organizational development and talent management. One of his primary aims will be to nurture and groom globally-minded employees into next-generation leaders so as to better meet the needs of SATO’s customers worldwide.

“At SATO, our long-term strategy is to pursue the globalization of our business and the maximization of customer value, and so cultivating highly-skilled, internationally-oriented leaders is essential for us,”said Kaz Matsuyama, President & CEO of SATO Holdings Corporation. “I look forward to Mr. Higashinaka taking the lead in helping us achieve these goals with his expertise and track record of success.”

Mr. Higashinaka brings a wealth of experience to this role, having worked in a variety of high-level HR and labor management positions at multinational organizations including Kureha Corporation and Johnson & Johnson. Prior to joining SATO, Mr. Higashinaka was head of HR and an executive officer at AIU Insurance Company Ltd.

Commenting on his new role, Mr. Higashinaka said, “I am very excited to be joining SATO Group as Chief Human Resource Officer. I will endeavor to do my utmost in contributing towards the building of a corporate culture and organization dedicated to pursuing Ceaseless Creativity to establish a strong foundation for sustainable company growth and development.”

About SATO
SATO is a pioneer and leading global provider of integrated Automatic Identification and Data Collection solutions that leverage barcode and RFID technologies. SATO manufactures innovative, reliable auto-identification systems and offers complete solutions to businesses by integrating hardware, software, consumables and maintenance services.  SATO’s solutions enable businesses to realize precision, labor and resource savings that help preserve the environment and deliver peace of mind to consumers. All of which contribute to the development of a sustainable world.

Founded in 1940, SATO is publicly listed on the first section of Tokyo Stock Exchange in Japan. It has sales and support offices in over 20 countries and is represented globally through a world-class network of partners. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013, it reported revenues of JPY 87,256 million (US$ 1.0524B). For more information, visit  www.satoworldwide.com

^*Conversion is based on an average exchange rate of 1 US Dollar = 82.91 Japanese Yen