Introduction
Our cloud-based software, SmartHR, was created with an “employee-first” vision. By empowering employees through our services, we’re paving the way for everyone to reach their full potential, helping to create an environment that cultivates mutual trust and a comfortable working atmosphere.
We believe that the rapid growth of AI in recent years promises many benefits for human resources and labor management, particularly in generating optimal HR strategies from extensive employee data. At the same time, the technology is still in its early stages of development. Without a proper understanding of the ethical considerations, privacy concerns, and potential biases associated with AI, there is a risk of generating unreliable results.
Guided by the principles below, we are committed to responsibly managing AI-related risks while planning, developing, and providing AI-based services in a flexible manner. We aim to make working in Japan better for everyone through the use of technology.
Principle of Human-Centered AI
AI implemented in SmartHR is designed to support decision-making in the area of human resources and labor affairs. Drawing on a wide range of data, including employee skills, characteristics, performance, and work histories, this AI technology is meant to suggest the most optimal choice from a multitude of potential combinations—far beyond what a human could process—and to inform HR strategies with actionable policies.By leveraging the power of AI to process the vast amount of information necessary for decision-making, we aim to provide services that streamline operations and encourage businesses to execute essential policies, while also providing employees with attentive care. However, we also believe that the final decision-making process should always rest with humans. This approach ensures not only compliance with labor laws and other regulations, but also considers the working environment, as well as the mental health and safety of individual employees.
Principles of AI Education and Literacy
We will strive to develop appropriate services by staying informed of the latest technological advances, issues associated with the use of AI, and their impact on society. We will also provide ongoing education and training for employees involved in planning, developing, and providing AI-based services to ensure they understand the ethical considerations, privacy concerns, and potential biases associated with AI, and how to use these technologies responsibly.
Principle of Privacy Protection
In planning, developing, and providing AI-based services, we will not only comply with Japan’s Act on the Protection of Personal Information and other applicable laws and regulations, but also ensure that any quantitative and qualitative data collected from our customers is handled responsibly to safeguard personal freedoms, dignity, equality, rights, and interests. We will also provide clear explanations in advance to managers and administrators, allowing them to decide whether to enable AI features using employee information stored in SmartHR. To ensure the transparency of information management, managers and administrators will have the option to toggle the use of AI features from administrator-only settings. We also aim to design our systems in such a way that, if a customer wishes to discontinue the use of AI features, those features can be disabled immediately.
Principle of Ensuring Security
In order to reduce security risks, including those associated with the handling of personal information, we will implement appropriate security controls and strive to achieve secure and reliable information management. We will also conduct regular risk assessments related to the implementation of AI in SmartHR, with the goal of reducing cybersecurity threats.
Principles of Respect for Fairness, Transparency, and Accountability
When making decisions based on AI-generated suggestions, care must be taken to ensure that all individuals are treated fairly. For example, using an AI-powered feature to recommend employee assignments or placements based on historical data, any bias in that data may inadvertently produce unfair results. Therefore, it is important to regularly review and correct any biases in the underlying data. Generally, the fairness and impartiality of AI-generated outcomes depend on the quality of its design and its access to sufficient, unbiased data. Human oversight is thus necessary to make impartial judgments and ensure that AI is used appropriately. Through this, AI can ultimately help mitigate biases inherent in human decision-making and lead to the data-driven generation of fair and equal opportunities. We will work with our customers to foster a culture of fairness through ethical data collection practices and awareness initiatives.
Furthermore, we believe that the basis for any decisions made by AI should be transparent. As such, we will strive to clearly explain the reasoning behind any HR strategies proposed or recommended by AI.
Based on these principles, we will leverage AI to help create an environment where everyone can focus on meaningful work, fostering mutual trust between employers and employees and a positive working atmosphere. These principles reflect our commitment to responsible AI use, and we pledge to adhere to them while actively sharing the outcomes of our AI initiatives publicly.