WORKPLACE CHANGE ACCELERATES CORPORATE TRANSFORMATION
Corporate culture transformation starts with change in the way of thinking. ABW (activity based workplace) is an effective method to achieve agility needed in 21st century Three years have passed since the
Japanese government-led“ Work Style
Reform (Hatarakikata-kaikaku)” started,
but it seems that the road to achieving
results that actually benefit businesses is still long. What struggles are companies facing and where are the causes of the struggles? Now that the world is changing dramatically, what is the best way to work and the working environment for workers and businesses? And how will the workplace evolve in the future? We spoke to Chinatsu Kaneko, CBRE's head of Workplace Strategy North Asia, about her points of view and recommendations.
Traditional corporate structure hinders work style reform ―As a workplace expert, how do you see the
current state of work style reform?
As a senior director of WPS at CBRE Asia, I have been pursuing high-per formance workplace creation. The �workplace� includes not only physical place, but also work styles. Since� Work Style Reform� started in 2017 by the Abe Cabinet, there have been many opportunities to talk with clients about this topic, and many companies are struggling to change. ― Reform is a big change, so it's not that easy.
Yes, a recent newspaper article stated that about 80% of companies is failing at true transformation. The most common case is when initiatives are focused only on results that are relatively easy to quantify, as exemplified in reduction of overtime work. In such cases, focus is on achieving the goal of reducing overtime records, and there is no discussion about improving operational efficiency to increase productivity. Without a clear strategy, employees become confused because they are suddenly told to �reduce overtime� and �work on holidays is prohibited � . Not surprisingly, the pressure on business performance remains the same as before, so negative impact of work-
WORKPLACE STRATEGY (WPS) PROVIDED BY CBRE We believe that a high-performance workplace is an environment in which employees are engaged, is operated with cost effectiveness, and embodies the corporate culture. We specialize in the creation of a workplace that promotes corporate revitalization comprehensively, and aligning business strategy, HR, IT, branding, etc. to bring corporate culture to life.
CHINATSU KANEKO Senior Director Workplace Strategy
style reforms is gradually building up. For example, management may say, "Let's spend 15% of our work time on innovation," but too often there is no discussion on where to reduce work and create this new 15%. So the 15% innovation time gets added on top, causing to increase overtime. I am deeply concerned that working style reforms will quickly fail if we keep doing this type of ill-considered initiatives. ―Clearly, there are some difficulties in the field
of business because the goals are far-reaching, but where do you think there is a counter measure?
My understanding of "work style reform" goals that benefit businesses are "a system that supports diverse work styles", "increase in productivity" and "innovation", and the hurdles to realize these goals are cer tainly high. To get closer to these goals I think it is necessary to change our minds first, specifically to "break away from 20th century values.� A characteristic of the 20th-centur y work style is the loyalty spirit by lifetime employment, where similar types of people who thought that working at a large company would provide them a sense of stability congregated. In such situations, long working hours were evidence that people worked hard, and people were motivated by honor and status gained
through work. Workplaces where people spend more time than with their families have also played a role in fostering people to grow as mature adults and find social life. With these values, Japan have grown into a worldclass economy. H o w e v e r, i n r e c e n t y e a r s , l o n g i n g f o r l i f e t i m e employment is decreasing, the number of people (especially competent people) who are changing jobs seeking fulfilment and/or opportunities are increasing. Just recently, Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) also announced that Japan's employment system, such as lifetime employment, is outdated and needs to be reviewed. In addition, work-life balance is increasingly valued, where work is part of a richer life, rather than the main purpose. More and more people have the idea of earning money from work in order to continue doing
"We are trying to advance the 21st century work styles in the values and environment of the 20th century” something that fulfills them outside of work, and such a way of living has become possible. In other words, as Japan has grown into a prosperous country, personal values have changed significantly. In particular, the Millennials, who will increasingly occupy the working