The era of work style transformation. 3 new norms for work styles!

The nature of work is changing in the blink of an eye. Remote work, diversity. Diversity in working styles. Currently, with various work styles being proposed, it has reached a point where the factors for organizational and business success are hidden precisely within the transformation of work styles.

The life of routinely going to the office at 9 AM and working late into the night. In that fixed routine, organizational convenience might be good, but human convenience is not that comfortable. In other words, with the current work style, human capabilities cannot be fully demonstrated.

Naturally. Humans like being given some guarantees, but they hate having their freedom taken away. If the daily routine continues for decades, unnecessary endurance will arise somewhere. You cannot fully exert your strength while enduring.

Do your job properly because you're being paid. People in modern society are not so easily swayed by such words that they can move with all their might. Even if they are putting on a good front.

Technology is currently developing. The internet has also spread, and we are moving towards a state where we have an office at hand. If VR and AR become more widespread and evolve, humans will no longer need the work style of deliberately moving to a location to work.

In an evolving society, how will future work styles transform? And how will work change? Let's consider future developments based on five predictions.

Most jobs don't require a specific location. Adopt a remote work style early.

In today's society, there are almost no jobs that must be done in the same place. Of course, not all of them; for example, there are jobs that absolutely require going to the site. However, most jobs can be made remote.

First, why must we bring about the transformation of a remote work style? There are several reasons.

One is the resolution of social problems. By bringing about the transformation of remote work, most problems caused by jobs being location-dependent, such as depopulation, an increase in vacant homes, and children on waiting lists for childcare, which are current social problems in Japan, can be solved. Childcare while working from home. Creating an office in a vacant house in a rural area. Such a work style becomes possible.

The second is human resources. If you make jobs remote, you can gather excellent talent not just from all over Japan, but from all over the world. It doesn't matter if they are across the ocean, next door, or in a rural area. A housewife who was originally talented but had to return to the countryside for childcare. Talent working overseas and achieving tremendous results. As long as you can provide a remote work location, you can bring them into your team.

In addition, by bringing about the transformation of a remote work style, you can gain enormous benefits such as saving on location costs, reducing wasted time, and working during disasters. Please review all the work you currently have. Can it be done remotely? Can it be done the same way even if you take it home or go abroad? If so, let's change our work style early, bring about transformation, and put it into practice.

Mix work and private life. Transform into a work style where you do what you like when you like.

In today's world, new concepts are created from "play." There's no need to create boundaries between work and private life, mixing the two. In an extreme case, it's even acceptable to work while drinking. Well, working while drinking might be an exaggeration, but the point is to do what you like when you like to that extent.

However, in return, it should be results-oriented. Instead of clumsily tying people down and wasting time, an evaluation system should be created that allows freedom and judges by results. It's not a work style that simply restricts people and expects results, which is why it's not good.

In reality, there's no boundary between play and work. In fact, while I certainly take the businesses I initiate seriously, there's no difference in motivation between starting a business myself and other activities that could be called 'play.' More importantly, when I'm sleepy, I simply sleep; when I lack motivation, I go on a trip somewhere; and when it's time to perform, I focus intensely. This kind of work style yields overwhelmingly better results. It's unproductive to just linger when you're unmotivated and sleepy.

Companies indifferent to this kind of work style will perish in the future. Or rather, they will lose in the competition. This is because they have no intention of maximizing human potential and merely try to bind people with rules. The traditional pyramid structure is no longer effective. They simply cannot keep up with the speed of companies that don't adopt a pyramid structure and will only lose.

Be particular about the word 'play.' Play thoroughly in business.

Even the word 'play' contains the secret to succeeding in business in modern society.

There's a term 'playfulness,' but nowadays, companies without playfulness are outside the spotlight. This is because people seek playfulness from companies, and having that much leeway is evaluated as 'cutting-edge' and 'doing interesting things.' That's why a work style incorporating play is necessary.

This trend is even more pronounced in the internet and IT industries. Beyond the enjoyment and novelty of what they are challenging and trying to initiate, attention is drawn to a corporate culture brimming with playfulness that draws out ideas and creativity. As a result, people, companies, and money gather because they want to work together!

Overseas companies like Google are excited about what interesting things they can do in business and how they can surprise the world. Trying to come up with interesting, exciting ideas in a serious, rigid atmosphere won't work. If there's no play in your daily work, you won't be able to generate ideas when it matters. It's a culture.

Nowadays, companies that require people to work silently just to earn money are ridiculous. A generation ago, companies with unstylish, unkempt, and utterly uninteresting offices tended to be seen as 'superior' and 'proper.' But now, it's different.

Being ordinary isn't interesting. It doesn't feel like they'll do anything special. This is the aura a company projects; if it's similar to others and not 'interesting,' even if it's solid, people won't want to work with it. There are countless people who diligently and earnestly perform their duties. Especially in Japan, there will be people who can work silently just because they are paid or because it's their job.

However, what is now required for a company's growth is surprise and unexpectedness. It's a company with a culture that makes users and other businesses find it interesting and want to do something together. That's why by engaging in various forms of play, enjoying work, experimenting, and publicly releasing content, they can attract expectations.

Working while playing, not just silently doing tasks, but creating exciting experiences, opportunities, and time between projects will be a crucial step to energize companies now.

Summary

All of these are work styles that would have been met with 'Don't be ridiculous!' a generation ago. However, past common sense is present and future uncommon sense. Common sense and uncommon sense can easily change with the times. It's the same with work styles. Work styles also transform with the times.

People and organizations that fail to notice such shifts in values and continue to behave 'sensibly' as before will ultimately be eliminated. Remote work, play, and mixing personal and professional life are all rationally important for achieving better results and adopting bold, unexpected strategies.

Organizational structures are also changing. Individual ways of life are also changing. To survive in such a rapidly changing era, please be mindful of this work style. This is especially true for those who build organizations and create companies, team leaders, managers, and those who manage others and create rules.

Let's thoroughly read and understand the times, analyze the trends, and reflect them in our work style. If changes occur in the era, naturally, changes will also occur in work styles. This is common sense that everyone feels firsthand when generations differ. Therefore, let's reconsider work styles to avoid a disconnect with current society.