SUN Co., Ltd

Company overview

SUN Co., Ltd is engaged in system development. In addition to Tokyo, the company has offices throughout Japan and operates nationwide, along with having an offshore development center in Bangladesh. The company ensures Japanese quality while minimizing the impact of language and development method differences.
In addition, the company has developed an in-house product, "Kurashi Study," which is an app that enables foreign nationals to learn the Japanese necessary for daily life. On this, Shumpei Nakasone, president and representative director of the company, comments: "I felt that despite the increase in the number of foreign nationals living in Japan, there has been little or no progress in improving the environment for Japanese language education. As our company's corporate philosophy is to become a globally renowned company based on our mission to 'connect people with people,' we thought it was time to take action." Currently, the company also provides "Hanasu Plus," which is a Japanese language learning service specializing in communication and which is being introduced at an increasing number of schools and organizations.
The company, which has been working to connect Japanese and non-Japanese, has been actively recruiting non-Japanese engineers since its establishment. Rafi, a native of Bangladesh, is one such person. He comments: "The products in my life, such as cars and home appliances, were made in Japan, and so I became interested in Japan." So, Rafi joined SUN because he felt he could make use of his skills in web development. "At first, I could not speak Japanese at all and had a hard time reading and understanding design documents, but as I repeatedly asked my senior colleagues questions about things that I did not understand in my work, my Japanese language skills and work efficiency improved," says Rafi.

Work-life balance initiatives

The company places importance on "providing a comfortable working environment for everyone" and provides a variety of forms of support related to living and working before and after employment.
One of the unique pre-hire initiatives is to meet with the candidate’s family. "I want them to feel comfortable about working with Japanese people, so I, as president, have opportunities to communicate directly with the families," says Nakasone. "After arriving in Japan, company housing will be provided, and a Japanese employee will accompany new hires to open a bank account, sign a cell phone contract, and so on." Rafi says happily: "Even though I couldn't speak Japanese, I was able to start my daily life right away."
After joining the company, employees can choose a flexible work schedule and shorter hours, and a "Sick Leave Self Care System" has been introduced, allowing employees to take special leave for health care at their own initiative, enabling a flexible work style. Although many employees usually work remotely, they can interact with each other and build stronger relationships through online and in-person events. Rafi also takes advantage of the flextime system to enjoy his hobbies, such as watching TV dramas and soccer, along with hanging out with friends. He was also able to talk casually with other employees about his daily life during online drinking sessions, and he beamed, saying that he "had a great time."
In addition, foreign employees together with Japanese employees are participating in the "SUN Children's Cafeteria," a company initiative. It is a valuable opportunity to build connections not only within the company but also with the local community.

Human resource development initiatives

A key feature of SUN is not only how we work but also that we can achieve our own career development.
A prime example of this is the system of choice for evaluation methods. Engineer employees can choose between a process type, in which their salary reflects an evaluation based on their age, skills, and the percentage of goals achieved, and a commission type, in which their salary is calculated based on the value of contracts with the clients. Rafi, who chose the process type, says: "It's helpful to get focused feedback on the quality of work and how to proceed. In the beginning, I was making a lot of careless mistakes, but after my supervisor gave me specific measures to deal with them, the number of mistakes visibly decreased, and I am feeling a positive response."
In addition, the company offers a full range of skill development support programs. Nakasone comments: "Our program provides allowances for over 80 qualifications, including languages, and qualifications are updated annually in response to changes in the times and employee requests, allowing employees to develop skills in areas of their own interest. We also invite outside lecturers for training in the latest technologies, creating an environment that allows us to catch up with rapid changes in the IT industry."
Furthermore, by utilizing idea contests, it is possible to productize and commercialize the knowledge learned and skills acquired. In fact, "SUNPO," which is an in-house community bulletin board created using the no-code technology learned in external training, won the grand prize in the first Idea Contest and is now an indispensable tool for interaction among employees.

Message from our top executive

President and CEO Shumpei Nakasone

"Although we are headquartered in Tokyo, we also have a number of regional offices, giving us opportunities to be involved in work all across Japan. Furthermore, we plan to expand our overseas business more than ever before, leveraging the high level of quality that is unique to Japan. If you have an interest in and passion for Japan but want to go beyond Japan and take on the challenge of global work, we would love to work with you!"

Message from foreign talent

Systems Division Engineering profession/Rubayet Rafi(Bangladesh)

"I had the image that Japanese people are kind, but once I actually started living in Japan, I found such kindness to be even greater than I had imagined. At work, you can ask questions without hesitation and tackle your tasks with confidence. My immediate goal is to be involved in the upstream process of system development. Eventually, I would like to become an engineer who can solve customer issues in a holistic manner while keeping up with changes in the IT industry. If you, like me, want to focus on your dreams, please come to Japan!"