Ph. Dialogue「博士人材セミナー」は、Ph. Discover連携企業からゲストを迎え「博士課程修了者が企業でどのように活躍しているのか」「企業は博士人材に何を求めているのか」についてお話ししてもらい、後半はゲストと学生が対話を通して交流する企画です。第10回目は小川泰史さん、竹ノ内雄太さん、望月周さん（日東電工株式会社）をお迎えしました。
※事業内容・所属部署などの記載は2022年2月取材時点の内容です。

High-performance materials manufacturer that challenges innovation

I'm Ogawa from the Recruiting Group of the Area Human Resources Management Department at Nitto Denko Corporation (Nitto). Yuta Takenouchi, who is a senior to all of you and graduated from the Department of Organic Element Chemistry, Graduate School of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, Hokkaido University University, is also present today. I want you to show up later.

創立は1918年。化学系の材料メーカーです。スローガンは「Innovation for Customers」。「あらゆるところで生活を支える存在」を目指して事業活動をしています。B to Bのメーカーですので皆さんが当社の名前を聞く機会はあまりないかと思いますが、当社の代表的なB to C商品、粘着式クリーナー「コロコロ」はご存知でしょうか。「コロコロ」は弊グループ企業の商標登録になっています。主な事業は下記の5つ。高分子化学をコアに多岐に渡って展開しています。

“Nitto Innovation Challenge” open to all employees

Our R&D is divided into company-wide technology department and business department development. The former is a division that researches and nurtures the seeds of product development over the medium- to long-term timeframe of three to five years, while the latter is closer to the factory and promotes speedy research and development in cooperation with customers.

事業化の流れは下記の通りです。0から１を生み出す「技術くるま座」とは各部門の幹部たちが文字通り、畳が敷いてある部屋で「くるま座」になってアイディアを出し合う空間です。一方、「Nitto Innovation Challenge」は、全社員公募型の研究テーマ創出の場です。新入社員でも「こんなことをやりたい！」というアイディアを出すことができ、選出されると最後は社長を含めた役員の前でプレゼンします。年間1000件近くの応募があります。

このような流れで、「粘着技術」「塗工技術」「高分子機能制御技術」「高分子分析・評価技術」といったコアテクノロジーをベースに展開してきましたが、今後は「次世代モビリティ」「情報インターフェース」「ヒューマンライフ」という3つの重点領域を強化し、新たな事業の創出に取り組んでいこうとしています。

One of the characteristics of our company is that we have not only overseas sales bases but also research and development bases. Opportunities for overseas assignments are expanding for applicants.

「緑帽システム」「さん付け文化」で風通し良く

As the Nitto Innovation Challenge mentioned earlier shows, our company is an open workplace where even young people can take on challenges. The "Green Cap System" worn by new employees is like the so-called "Wakaba Mark". We provide an environment where everyone, regardless of department, supports the growth of newcomers.

「さん」付け文化は、私も気に入っている文化の一つで、新人も社長も皆、役職ではなく「〜さん」と呼び合っています。ちなみに私が入社したとき、食堂で当社社長の髙﨑さんがトレイを持って並んでいるのを見て衝撃を受けました（笑）。社長も社員と一緒に並ぶ。この会社をよく表している光景だと思います。

From here on out, I'd like Mr. Takenouchi, who is your senior, to appear.

Realize the breadth of "Kawanaka"

博士課程の研究は「有機ホウ素化合物の触媒的不斉合成」でした。高分子化学を核とする当社ではマイノリティーですが、新しいことをやりたいと思い入社しました。自分の就活時は、正直なところ、企業ごとの違いもわからず、仕事のイメージも、どんな人と働くことになるかもわからない状態でした。2017年に入社し、社歴5年目の今言えることは、企業の特色は「川上」「川中」「川下」で異なるのではないかということです。当社の場合は「川中」だからこそ事業領域が広く、「川上」と「川下」の変化に柔軟に対応して現在の立ち位置を作ってきたメーカーならではの“Nittoらしさ”があるように感じます。

入社の希望条件はシンプルに「研究をしたい」「有機合成以外もやりたい」「風通しのいい環境で働きたい」の3つに絞り込みました。実を言うとNittoの社名も「コロコロ」のことも知りませんでしたが、希望条件の3つを満たしていたのが当社でした。

Currently, I belong to the Sustainable Technology Research Center of the Research and Development Division, commonly known as "Susken". Being involved in technological development that contributes to the environment is a great motivation.

When I was a student, I was immersed in research with a core time of 12 hours. This is the foundation of my current research life, and I would like all of you to acquire the perspective of being interested in things other than your own specialty through training from your student days. Once you enter a company, you will have more opportunities to do so, and it will become very important to think about themes of different fields as your own and apply them to your own field. Also, when I was a student, my research style was “frontal breakthrough”, but after becoming a member of society, I was able to acquire various approaches. I feel that it is important to “not be obsessive” in terms of research fields and methods.

コミュニケーションタイム

Emphasis on problem-solving attitude over experience

Q: I'm not sure which way to go in a company or academia. Is there any difference in research life?
Takenouchi: In the case of a company, I think there is an aspect of making use of their own strengths in the face of various rules, with a commercial purpose in mind. is the same. It's still about thinking about how you can achieve your goals.

Q: It's hard to get the image of doing something outside of your specialty...
Takenouchi: I think the learning process is the same in any field. The process you follow when you do something that you don't know from scratch will stay with you even if your field changes.

Ogawa: I would also like to add that if I were to spend 30 years working in the research field I worked on during my doctoral course for 5 years, or a new field I learned after joining a company, which would I call my field of specialization? Depending on how you think about it, the way you think about “specialty” may change. When I was engaged in research and development, I was also involved in optics, a different field from my original research field.
Rather than the experience value in the field, how to tackle the task setting. Companies place importance on that.

What do you want rather than advantages and disadvantages?

Q: Master's degree or doctoral degree, which one is better for employment? Are there any differences in the content of your work?
Ogawa: At our company, there is absolutely no difference in how we treat master's and doctoral personnel. I understand very well what you are worried about, what is advantageous and what is disadvantageous, but the important thing is what you want to do. I think that's all there is to it. However, when dealing with overseas companies, a doctoral degree is a universal license, and it leads to a great deal of credibility.

竹ノ内：私も「どちらかが不利、または有利」と感じたことはありません。博士人材はちょっと個性的な人が多いかなと思うくらいでしょうか（笑）。
ただ、研究に対する自主性や課題解決力の身に付き方は、修士課程と博士課程で差があるように感じます。自分の場合、博士課程で過ごした濃密な3年間は何ものにも代えがたいものでした。それを選ぶかどうかは自分次第だと思います。

Q: Will recruitment be done for each business, or will assignments be decided after recruitment?
Ogawa: At the time of the offer, the assignment has not been decided. Around the time of the informal ceremony in October, individual interviews will be held with all employees, and assignments will be determined based on a comprehensive assessment of the individual's wishes and the needs of the department. If you are joining the company in April, we will notify you about one month in advance, in early March.

Involving interesting seniors

Q.: of open recruitment eventCan I apply for the "Nitto Innovation Challenge" by myself?
stream: You can apply as an individual or as a team. Due to the large number of applications, after several screenings and narrowing down, we proceed to the process of brushing up the project with mentors and supporters. In some cases, excellent themes are handed over to appropriate business departments for realization, and in some cases the applicants themselves work on them. It is a very large-scale event that will be held over the course of a year, but it only started recently. Until then, there was a department dedicated to new businesses, but it was newly established to reflect the voices of the company.

Q:It seems difficult to think of research and development that will lead to sales and the perspective of “winning over other companies and the world”. How can we train such thinking?
Ogawa: We don't have a special training program, but we have a lot of interesting seniors who are good at that sort of thing. It is very effective to get such seniors involved and think together. It will be my own growth, and I will be in a position to nurture my juniors using that experience as food. In this way, the flow of progressing as a researcher naturally develops.

もう一つ大切なことは、常に社会のニーズにアンテナを張ることです。お客様との信頼関係を通して新鮮な情報を先取りして業界を牽引していく。そうしたニッチトップ戦略も当社が得意とするところです。
今、皆さんは一日一日ご自分の将来を作っている段階だと思います。「社会に出たら新しいことを生み出す仕事に就きたい」という方は、ぜひ選択肢の一つにNittoを加えていただきたいと思います。皆さんの活躍に期待しています。

Switch your feelings with tennis 4 times a week!

Q: I would like to ask Mr. Takenouchi about work-life balance. How much time do you devote to your hobby now?
Takenouchi: In my case, as I explained earlier, I was immersed in research when I was a student, so my work-life balance has improved dramatically since joining Nitto. There are days when I work overtime, but now I play tennis about four times a week after work and on my days off. When I'm playing tennis, I forget about work and concentrate on it, so I can turn it on and off. At university, I was immersed in research only, but now I can devote my time to my hobbies, and every day is very fulfilling.

Launch: February 10, 2022
Organizer: Ph. Discover
Co-organizer: Hokkaido UniversityFaculty of Science/Hokkaido University Center for Mathematics and Data Science (Data-related Human Resource Development Program) / Hokkaido University Doctoral Program for Materials Science Leading Program