Monday, May 24, 2021 | The Japan Times | 7

sustainable japan

ESG promotional content
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Patient and persistent, Laurence Bates navigates complex laws and policies

Photos, old ceramics
and travel

Building a global Panasoniccompliance network

Name: Laurence Bates

Title: Managing Executive Officer,
Panasonic
URL: www.panasonic.com/global
Hometown: Mystic, Connecticut
Years in Japan: 30Leaders & Readers
JOE MUNTALCONTRIBUTING WRITER

For nearly three decades, Laurence Bates
has provided legal counsel to some of thelargest business entities in Japan. Following positions at General Electric and LixilGroup Corp., he now serves as managing
executive officer, general counsel, chiefrisk management officer and chief compliance officer for Panasonic Corp., where
he is drawing from his vast experience tobuild a globally interconnected compliance framework.

Laurence Bates joined Panasonic in 2018 but has
provided legal counsel to major firms for nearly
three decades. HIROMICHI MATONO

Bates is fluent in Mandarin Chinese andJapanese, and his specialized skill set hasenabled him to become a leading expert
in compliance in Asia. As an undergraduate at Yale University, he majored in both
Chinese studies and economics, and later
received his JD from Harvard Law School.
By the time he entered Harvard, he had set
himself on a career path toward the legal
profession, but it was his fascination with
China that initially propelled him.
Bates first became interested in China
in junior high school, when he witnessed
President Richard Nixon visit the People’s
Republic of China in 1972. It was the first
visit by a U.S. president to the PRC, andthe historic moment left an indelible markon Bates. “It was just so incredibly eyeopening for me to watch at that age,” Bates
told The Japan Times from Panasonic’s
offices in Tokyo Midtown Hibiya. “I somehow determined that I was going to go to auniversity where I could major in Chinesestudies and which would enable me tosee the world. In those days, it was a little
unusual to pursue that kind of a major, so I
balanced it with a more traditional degreein economics.”
Bates was also exposed to Japan froman early age through his father, a career
Coast Guard officer who spent time inHokkaido around the time when Bates
was born. Bates grew up hearing stories
about Japan from his father, and his family invited Japanese exchange students
to stay with them when he was in highschool. Bates formally started studying
Japanese during his first year in law schoolbut, knowing how difficult it is to achieve
language proficiency, based on his experi-ences studying Chinese, decided to take ayear off to come to Japan and study at theInter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies in Kanagawa Prefecture.
After finishing law school and being
admitted to the New York Bar in 1987,
Bates worked at law firms in the U.S.,
China and Japan over the course ofaround five years. At the time, he had notconsidered career alternatives to beinga lawyer at a law firm, but that changed
when a highly publicized scandal involving a GE subsidiary in Japan found its
way to Bates through a phone call from arecruiter.
The GE subsidiary in question was Yokogawa Medical, employees of which had
been accused of bribing university professors to win orders of medical testing
equipment. The scandal had prompted
GE to search for someone who would
look after the medical systems businessthroughout Asia, and this search led themto Bates. “I had no idea that this would
somehow be connected to me,” Bates said,“but the opportunity brought together
my Chinese and Japanese experience forthe first time in my career. It just sounded
incredibly exciting to be close to businessand able to actually build a legal and compliance culture.”
Bates explained that a major difference
between an in-house lawyer and a lawyer
at a law firm is their proximity to business decisions. Whereas lawyers at lawfirms are generally remote from actual
decision-making and are subject to limitations related to costs and scope, in-houselawyers are part of a business organization, which enables them to build “fromLaurence Bates is managing executive
officer, general counsel and memberof the Board of Directors for Panasonic Corp., positions he assumed in2018 when he joined the multinational
electronics company. Having formerly
worked at General Electric Japan and LixilGroup Corp., Bates has provided legal
counsel to major business entities inJapan for nearly three decades.
In 2013 he served as president of
the American Chamber of Commercein Japan. He has also engaged with theJapan-based Lawyers for LGBT & Allies
Network to promote marriage equality in Japan, the only country in the G7
that does not fully recognize same-sex
partnerships.
In his free time, Bates enjoys photography and perusing antique markets
for Japanese ceramics. An avid traveler,
he has used the COVID-19 international
travel bans as an opportunity to explore
new areas of Japan, including Shiretoko
Peninsula in the easternmost portionof Hokkaido, with his husband and twochildren.

HIROMICHI MATONO

the inside out.”
This notion of “building” is something
Bates has focused on throughout hiscareer. For example, while working for
GE’s medical systems business, he assembled a team of around 20 lawyers basedin several countries throughout Asia.
“To build that kind of team with a global
mindset that can create the type of culture that’s necessary to achieve compliance goals is my objective,” he said, “andthat is what I’m fundamentally working

Symposium explores ESG’s role
toward a zero-emissions 2050
ESG/SDGs
JOE MUNTALCONTRIBUTING WRITEROn May 13, The Japan Times hosted a symposium focused on environmental, socialand governance criteria for business operations. Collectively referred to as ESG, thesecriteria serve as standards for investors
when evaluating investment opportunities.
Comprising three panel sessions featuringprominent executives, investors and educators, this year’s symposium — based on thetheme of “reaching zero emissions by 2050”— explored the role of ESG in transforming
the business environment and pushing society toward a sustainable future.
The first panel session focused on how toenhance communication about ESG withstakeholders. The session was moderatedby Ken Shibusawa, chairman of Commons
Asset Management, and featured panelists
Jin Montesano, chief people officer at LixilCorp.; Mariko Kawaguchi, CEO support atFuji Oil Holdings; and Jerome Bruhat, president and representative director of L’Oreal
Japan.
At the start of the session, Shibusawa
recalled when panelist Kawaguchi had presciently told him about the rise of ESG 15
years ago. “The time has come for ESG. CSR
is over,” he recalled her saying during theirconversation, using the acronym for corporate social responsibility. At that time, ESG
was still relatively unknown in mainstream
business circles, but that has completelychanged, according to Shibusawa: “ESG isright down the middle now. It’s on the mainstage, in the minds of corporate executives
and in the capital markets.”
The session addressed the notion ofchanging the mindsets of consumers, businesses and investors with regard to environmental and social considerations. Products
produced in socially and environmentallyconscious ways tend to be more expensive
because they are generally more costly toproduce. Therefore, businesses need to communicate the value of such considerations tostakeholders.
“If the consumers won’t buy (it) because
it’s 10% more expensive, then the company
won’t provide it anymore because it’s not
making any money, and the investors will
no longer focus on that issue,” observed

Kawaguchi. She
explained that
this is why communication withstakeholders iskey. “If the consumers change
their attitude and(positively) evaluate the level of theenvironmentallyfriendly products orproducts concerned
about human rights,
the companies will
Speakers and panelists of the ESG Symposium THE JAPAN TIMES
be happy to prosociety.
duce those products, and the investors will
The last session explored the ESG initiafollow.”
tives of Japanese industry leaders. ModerThe second session focused on ESG fromated by Naonori Kimura, managing director
the perspective of investors. Moderated byof Industrial Growth Platform, the session
Michiyo Morisawa, head of Japan at Prinfeatured representatives from some ofciples for Responsible Investment (PRI) andJapan’s most prominent companies, includdirector of CDP (Carbon Disclosure Proding Tomomi Fukumoto, executive officeruct), the session featured panelists Hiroshi
and division COO of corporate sustainability
Ozeki, president and chief executive officer
at Suntory Holdings; Fumiaki Koizumi, presof Nissay Asset Management; Emi Onoident of Mercari and CEO of the Kashimazuka, vice president COO of Japan Catalyst;
Antlers; and Yumi Otsuka, deputy chief susand Masafumi Hikima, specially appointed
tainability officer at Toyota.
professor at Sophia University.
Fukumoto explained that, as a producer
The panel discussed developments inof beverages, Suntory is aware of the imporinvestment practices following the declaratance of cultivating water resources. As parttion by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to cutof its sustainability initiatives, the company
greenhouse gas emissions in Japan to net
has developed 21 natural water sanctuarzero by 2050 and U.S. President Joe Biden’s
ies with forests capable of cultivating waterpledge to cut U.S. emissions in half by 2030.
resources.
While attending conferences and meetings
Toyota’s sustainability initiatives arewith investors overseas, Ozeki observed
focused on reducing carbon emissions fromthat European investors consistently connew vehicles and eliminating emissions
sidered climate change during investment
from production plants. Otsuka introduced
screenings, but this was not necessarily true
Toyota’s Environmental Challenge 2050,
for U.S. and Japanese investors.
which aims to achieve zero emissions at all
Hikima emphasized the importanceplants by 2050 by simplifying and streamlinof teaching students about sustainableing production processes and implementing
investment. He noted that, in comparison
energy-saving measures, in addition to proto the U.S., where some universities havemoting the wider use of recycled materials.
been pressured by students to divest from
As a company whose flagship product is a
projects that do not align with sustainabilmarketplace for secondhand items, Mercari
ity goals, students in Japan are relatively
is contributing to the creation of a sustainunaware of the relationship between susable society where items are consistently
tainability and investment. On the otherreused, said Koizumi.
hand, Onozuka, whose Japan Catalyst
Whether it be from the perspective ofinvestment firm encourages corporate
business owners or investors, the panel sesgovernance reform through shareholder
sion revealed the importance of formulating
activism, noted an increasing interest in ESG
ESG initiatives that are aligned with clearly
investment and a desire among investors
defined organizational purposes.
to participate in projects that contribute to

PAGE: 7

on at Panasonic.”
Compliance encompasses a wide spectrum of risk areas, such as competition
law, trade controls, data privacy regimes
and environmental regulation. Panasonichas a dedicated group for environmental
affairs, and as general counsel, Bates maintains visibility with his team to all potential legal and compliance risks. “It’s neverperfect; it’s an ongoing, evolving aspiration,” he said, “and environmental regulation is an example of one regulation areathat needs to be complied with.”
Bates pointed to two concepts that havebeen significant throughout his career:patience and persistence. He noted thatthey are especially important in Japan.
“‘Patience’ and ‘persistence’ are twowords I’ve had to keep in mind when
conducting business in Japan,” he said. “Ittakes more time than first meets the eyeto build consensus, especially on the complex issues I engage in all the time. You
have to recognize that it takes a visionthat needs to be persistently pursued, anda certain amount of patience and time
horizon to achieve that vision. Sometimes, although we want to move a lot
faster — and everybody agrees with that
— we need to make sure we move fast in
an intelligent way.”