Tokyo, Japan, December 10, 2013 – SATO, a leader in barcode printing, labeling, and EPC/RFID solutions, announced today the appointment of Mr. Yōichi Abe as Head of the President’s Office at SATO Holdings Corporation.

In this role, Mr. Abe will be heading the newly established President’s Office with the following missions:

• Group-wide strategy formation and deployment - To conduct and share financial and strategic analysis and initiate coordinated actions at all levels to ensure that corporate strategies (the medium to long-term plan) are being implemented effectively and efficiently across the company
• M&A management - To identify, propose and manage M&A opportunities, and oversee all pre- and post-M&A activities to maximize the company’s financial value
• Knowledge management - To leverage our unique in-house OIP system* to generate customer-centric innovations and changes to create new customer value
• Risk management - To anticipate and react proactively to risks to ensure that the company is resilient to changes in the global business environment

"As SATO strives to accelerate its global expansion, there is an increasing need to unify all group member companies around a common goal to develop team synergies in driving results," said Kaz Matsuyama, President & CEO of SATO Holdings Corporation. "I have no doubt that Mr. Abe’s experience and global perspective will be instrumental in ensuring that we bring together the various management resources of the company to optimize group-wide performance and advancement.”

Mr. Abe brings extensive experience to SATO accumulated over a successful 30+ year career at Mitsubishi Corporation and its subsidiaries in various positions of responsibility. Mr. Abe also brings a global perspective to the role, having spent a significant part of his career overseas, in the US, Australia and South Korea.

Mr. Abe commented: “I’m delighted to be joining SATO, a vibrant organization that values its past, sees present possibilities, and embraces a vision of the future with a clear commitment to its customers. I look forward to the new challenges and opportunities for growth that this position will afford me.”

*About the OIP Report System
OIPs (Original ideas, Inventions, and Proposals) are daily one-paragraph reports submitted by all employees directly to the top management to share information and ideas for the improvement of the group. The system enables top management to keep on top of what is happening and quickly take measures to address any issues, and allows employees to take an active role in the day-to-day running of the business.