As a construction company, we represent a new style office. Free address system and IT utilization improve productivity.

The type of new office will be "an office that makes our employees want to come to work"

Congratulations on completing your new office. Could you tell us why your company built the new office?

The main reason is that the COVID-19 has triggered a societal debate that says it is unnecessary. Since our company is also involved in office-related business, we understand the necessity for the offices and have a strong feeling for them. We intended to use our company as an example to demonstrate the importance of offices. We wanted to create "an office that makes people want to come to offices for work" because the COVID-19 is changing perception of offices.

New company building that completed in September 2022

Office floor with a sense of openness

Rest area with a beautiful view of Yaizu

Implementing a free address system in order to revitalize communication

Why did you implement a free address system at the same time as the office relocation?

The purpose of implementing a free address system is to revitalize internal communication within the company. The new building structure was also designed with communication revitalization in mind. For example, the atrium stairwell in the center of the building was designed to provide a flow line that leads to any floor as a centor, so that people from different departments can pass by and greet each other by chance. We have also made numerous efforts to promote communication by providing many spaces where desks and seats can be customized to allow for immediate meetings.

Customizable communication spaces

Stairwell in the center of the building with a flow line designed to generate communication by chance

Spaces for events that are open not only internally but also for the local community

What is your feeling now that you have a free address system?

Since the implementation of the free address system, employees from various departments sit next to each other every day, so we have more opportunities to talk with our employees that we have never talked with before. In the old building, we had fixed seats and floors were divided by each department, so there were few opportunities to talk with employees from other departments. Now that we have more opportunities to communicate about work, we also talk about other things. We can work closely regardless of department, which has facilitated smooth communication on our work, especially when we spend a lot of time on projects across departments.

We have also established operational rules to revitalize communication. Employees are not permitted to work in the same seat for more than two days in a row, and those with department heads position and higher change floors every day. It is a good change of pace for them since they work in a different location every day,

Employees (from photo on left: Yuto Amano, Sales Department; Ayumu Fukazawa, Sales Department; Odoko Kawai, Senior Engineer, Design Department)

Even in a a free address office, you can tell who is working where

Please tell us about the background of the implementation of Acall.

We implemented Acall at the same time when the new company building was completed. Since the new building has a free address system in the 2nd to 5th floors, we thought it would be a problem if we did not know who was where, so we started looking for a hoteling (seat reservation) and meeting room reservation system. We were considering systems including other companies' services, but there were many restrictions, and we were having a hard time finding a suitable system. We were introduced to Acall by a business partner we were visiting who had already installed Acall.

No burden on our employees and low hurdles to adopt were deciding factors

What were the deciding factors for the implementation of Acall?

There are two major deciding factors. The first one was the low adoption hurdle. As mentioned already, we considered several services, but there were many constraints. For example, a GPS-based system requires detailed location information inside a building, unlike GPS used outside, so hardware had to be installed for each location, requiring a large initial investment. Acall uses QR codes, so the initial investment was minimal which led to ease of implementation. This made it simple to implement for us.

Second, Acall can be used without putting any additional burden on our employees. Acall only requires the scanning of a QR code, so we thought, "We can introduce this system without any burden on our employees.” We had fixed seating before and never been accustomed to a free address system, so we thought it would be difficult to add more work to an unfamiliar environment, and I wondered if people would be willing to try it. It's been a month since we implemented it, and I'm glad we chose Acall because they have made it one of their jobs to check-in as soon as they arrive at work in the morning.

Acall Meeting set up in the conference room.

Setting up a photo of our face is attractive. It was also easy to use.

What is your thoughts on using Acall?

It didn't take me long to get used to it because it was easy to check in. It is also convenient to be able to set up a photo of our face. Recently, the number of people in my group has been growing rapidly, and I frequently find myself wondering "Who is that person?" So, it is very helpful to be able to remember each other's faces by looking at the photos displayed in Acall.

Kazumi Tsushima-san, Senior Staff, IT Support Office

While business efficiency is increasing, communication opportunities are decreasing
Utilizing internal SNS to reduce alienation and trigger dialogue

Could you tell us why you started focusing on communication revitalization?

The main reason for this is that as business has become more efficient, opportunities for communication have decreased. Our efforts to revitalize communication are divided into two main areas.

The first one is to revitalize online communication. We have had an internal SNS for about 10 years now, and each of our employees have their own page. We have a policy that requires employees to write a daily report for the internal SNS. The report is not that overly formal. Some people just post pictures. Some people write long sentences, others take a lot of pictures, and everyone has their own personality. "Mt.Fuji today" and "Lunch for today" are very common phrases (laugh). I would like to keep doing it because I feel a sense of connection with people who post something related to their daily lives.

I doubt it would be possible in a typical workspace, but some people write complaints or grumble in their daily reports (laugh). That is not necessarily always a bad thing, but since it is posted in a place where everyone can see it, we can ask, "something wrong for you?" It's hard to pick up everyone's voice in person, so it's highly useful.

It's great to know that someone is looking for you, and it makes you feel less alienated and alone. Every employee in Tohoku and Kyushu were also able to participate online, which was so great.I feel that top-down approaches have limitations, so I value a casual atmosphere in which it is easy to raise one's voice, especially on internal SNS.

The second area is to revitalize real-time (offline) communication. We have established a system to subsidize employee gatherings and circle activities. In the past, we used to think that we could make up for the lack of communication through our internal SNS, but we now believe that real conversations are also necessary. However, even if I told employees that "please communicate more internally", they would not know what to do. To that end, I decided to have the company cover a portion of the cost of monthly lunches, drinks, and other gatherings.

Masanori Hashimoto, President

"14-Month Training Program," which rotates through all departments and eliminates conflicts across departments.

 Please tell us about any other initiatives that your company is working on.

"14-month training program for new employees" is one of our company's symbolic systems. It is a rotation system in which new employees rotate through all departments over a 14-month period with the goal of eliminating some barriers between departments.

I think this is a common practice in any industry, but there was an unpleasant atmosphere with conflict between the sales and engineering departments, and we wanted to eliminate it. They each have their own perspectives, and both are correct. We assumed this was due to a lack of opportunities to understand one another’s work.

We started rotating personnel between engineering and sales staff, even outside of new hires, and now the conflict has mostly been eliminated. Assignments and departmental transfers are made after cross-checking employee and departmental preferences. Once a new employee is assigned to a department, they are not permanently in that department. Sometimes the request is made for the company's needs, and sometimes it is changed for the employee's needs.

New hires who have experienced this system have commented that "we can have connections with people in various departments" and "it is easy for us to consult with them if any problems arise." We started rotating departments about 20 years ago, and we began to see results about five years later.

When you understand both technology and sales, there is knowledge synergy in the business as well, and I would like to develop many people who understand both technology and sales, not only to eliminate barriers between departments, but also for the growth of our employees. "2:6:2 principle" states that in a group, 20% of all people work willingly, 60% work normally, and the remaining 20% are lazy, but I believe this is something that can be changed.

Employees having a meeting in the communication space

There is no goal-tape for improving productivity. IT tools free up time to grow businesses

In addition to the system implementation, we have heard that your company is actively implementing IT tools

Basically, I am lazy and do not want to do anything troublesome (laugh). We used to provide everyone an iMac, which was very expensive at the time, but it has made a huge difference in productivity. We began lending smartphones to all employees about 10 years ago, right after the iPhone went on sale in Japan, and this operation has not changed until today.

In the new building, we are planning to install double monitors as the standard for each seat. Installing external monitors for the number of employees costs, but it pays for itself within a week, and the labor productivity is totally different. In terms of actual work hours, the implementation of such devices and tools would be obviously beneficial to the company.

We have been improving the company through various initiatives, such as streamlining operations and revitalizing communication, but I believe that we could have changed things more quickly if we had the devices and tools we have now. DX is the current trend, but the essence is using digital technology to create time. I believe that it is important to create time by proactively introducing good devices and tools. Then, we will make revenue with the generated time. We believe that this is the most important aspect of the business.

We will continue to increase labor productivity to generate time and make money. By making profit, we can give back to our employees and contribute to society. There is no goal-tape there.

Double monitors installed in various locations

We are impressed by the way you face productivity itself, and we believe that your approach to utilizing IT tools and your unique approach could be beneficial to companies in different industries. Thank you for your valuable talk today!