S4.E16. 百靈佳殷格翰獲得東京都廳「彈性通勤促進獎」、日本總務省「前百遠距工作先鋒獎」

在新冠肺炎疫情發生之前，遠距辦公在日本境內並不常見。百靈佳殷格翰協助日本同仁們優化工作環境，使之更為現代化，同時為公司也為同仁們帶來益處。

身為經濟大國，日本常被評為全球最具創新力的國家之一。先進的技術基礎結構以及強盛的電子產業，加速了生活各領域的數位化轉型歷程，如：流動性（mobility）、學校和工作。但生活中依然有些領域的技術性收益尚未發揮真正的潛力，收益因此無法達到原本的預期。

遠距辦公應該就是令人最吃驚的案例；與美國和歐洲國家進行比較，日本只有1/6的企業允許職員以此形態辦公。雖然日本政府積極推動創新的工作方式，遠距工作的比例緩慢增加中，這對大多數日本人而言，依然是一個陌生的型態。

百靈佳殷格翰日本子公司是遠距辦公的造浪者之一。日本子公司於2017年10月啟動「Design Your Day!」概念，並向同仁進行推廣，將遠距辦公視為工作型態改革的一部分。如「Design Your Day!」字面上的意思所言，我們希望員工能設計自己的一天，目標在於提高工作品質並且減少所耗費時間。

日本分公司總經理Thorsten Poehl 表示：「我們從『將自由最大化』作為計畫的初衷，以此為出發點，重新分配同仁的工作地點、時間長度，調整對工作節奏的諸多限制。重新檢視、考量同仁的多樣化工作型態和生活方式；對同仁與員工來說都有非常多好處。每一個同仁的觀點都不一樣，卻都非常重要；有時，當我們對未來的發展感到徬徨時，我們需要每一位同仁的投入與參與，方能做出抉擇。我相信百靈佳殷格翰日本子公司工作方式的改變，會為公司帶來新的價值，並且能為持續成長的業務帶來更多效益。」

Akiko Maruno 是長期遠距辦公的同仁之一，這位生物學家自1998年開始在百靈佳殷格翰任職，負責監管資訊管理。「公司導入遠距辦公的工作型態，對我的職涯和個人生活產生重大影響，因為在辦公室之外讓我得以保有自由和彈性，這是一個很大的優勢，我的生活因此更輕鬆。」

遠距辦公的工作型態，對人的職涯和個人生活產生重大影響

身為兩個孩子的母親，Akiko Maruno 與家人住在日本神戶—日本的第七大城市，兵庫縣首府。神戶約有150萬人口，工作日的交通高峰時間與其他主要城市一樣令人焦慮。Maruno 每天要花費近兩個小時通勤上下班，在家工作可以節省更多時間，她可以陪伴女兒，並且分擔社會責任。如今她每個月會擔任一次導路志工，協助小朋友們安全地從學校返回家裡。「這項勤務只會花費我半個小時的時間，但若我是一名全職、在公司辦公的職員，就很難能做到這件事。」Maruno 表示：「我很驕傲自己能為這個社會做出貢獻！」

遠距辦公的彈性，讓更多菁英人才更願意投入

遠距辦公為雇主和員工所帶來的優勢難以忽視：遠距辦公同仁們的工作效率，似乎比在現場作業的同仁更高；它提升了同仁的士氣，並且能延續這樣的好心情。百靈佳殷格翰日本分公司遠距工作負責人Kazuhito Kawahara 表示：「我們藉由遠距工作，招募到更多的菁英人才，尤其是那些希望可以將家庭、育兒與職涯相結合的人才。作為一間研究型製藥企業，我們依賴擁有高技能的專業人員，遠距辦公是讓我們得以與其他公司區隔的原因之一。」

Yasuhiro Wakui 是另一位百靈佳殷格翰日本分公司的同仁，他也非常享受遠距辦公的彈性。在動物保健產業工作近20年之後，他於2017年加入百靈佳殷格翰。他說：「這是我第一次進行遠距辦公，這樣的時間彈性大幅改變我工作之外的生活。」Wakui 與太太住在東京，每天需要花費將近四個小時通勤往返。「如果我在家工作，就能省下更多時間跟體力，也有更多時間在不疲憊的狀態下與家人溝通交流。我和太太正在規劃我們的新家，這些私人時間讓我非常珍惜、開心。」

百靈佳殷格翰日本分公司的遠距辦公計畫也得到其他公司和政治人物的認同。百靈佳殷格翰於2017年10月獲得東京都廳所頒發的「彈性通勤促進獎」，並於2011年獲得總務省的「前百遠距工作先鋒」獎。

Making work more flexible

Telework is uncommon in Japan. Boehringer Ingelheim helps to modernize the country’s work environment – for the benefit of the company, and above all, its employees.

Japan is an economic powerhouse and often ranked as one of the most innovative countries globally. Its advanced technological infrastructure and strong electronics good industry accelerate digital transformation in almost all areas of life such as mobility, school, and work. And yet there are still areas in life in which the benefits of technological advance fall short of their true potential.

Telework or telecommuting, as some call it, is one of the most surprising examples: Compared to the United States and Europe, where working from outside the office is a common practice for many employees, only one out of six companies in Japan offered their employees to work from outside the office in 2017. The numbers are slowly increasing and the Japanese government is actively promoting working-style innovation, but for most of the Japanese employees, telework is still no common practice.

“Telework is a great benefit and makes life much easier.” — AKIKO MARUNO

Boehringer Ingelheim Japan is one of the pioneers when it comes to telework. Already in October 2017, Boehringer Ingelheim Japan introduced telework as part of their work style reform, using “Design Your Day!” as the keyword. This is to have the employees design their day by themselves in order to enhance the quality of time spent both at work and in life.

“We started the project with ‘Maximum Freedom to simplify’, allowing to challenge many restrictions in terms of working location, hours, and frequency for its officework employees,” says Thorsten Poehl, Country Managing Director, Boehringer Ingelheim Japan. “Respecting the employees’ diverse ways of working and living becomes a plus not only for the employees but also for the company. This is because each employee’s perspective and diverse views are important and at a time where the future is less clearly visible we need engaged and empowered employees everywhere. I am convinced that the work style transformation at Boehringer Ingelheim Japan will offer new value to the company and contribute to the growth of sustainable business.”

Akiko Maruno is one of the employees who regularly use telework. The biologist who has been with the company since 1998 is working in the field of Regulatory Information Management. “The introduction of telework has had a significant impact on my professional and personal life. It gives me the freedom and the flexibility to work from outside the office if that is the best option for me. This is a great benefit and makes life much easier.”

“The introduction of telework has had a significant impact on my professional and personal life.” — AKIKO MARUNO

As a mother of two, Akiko Maruno is living with her family in the suburbs of Kobe, the seventh-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture. Kobe has a population of 1.5 million and the weekday rush hours are as intense and heavy as in the island’s other major cities. Maruno spends almost two hours commuting to work every day. If she works from home, she can save this time, play with her daughters and be socially committed. Maruno volunteers as a crossing guard once a month and guides pupils back from school to home. “That takes only half an hour, but as a fulltime employee without the option of telework, it would be quite difficult,” says Maruno. “I am really proud that I can also contribute to society.”

“WITH TELEWORK , WE ALSO SEEK TO A TTRACT T ALENTS ”

The benefits of telework for employers and employees are hard to refute: Teleworkers seem to be more productive than their counterparts on-site, it enhances the employee’s morale and increases the retention rates. “With telework, we also seek to attract talents, especially those who want to combine family, childcare, and their career,” adds Kazuhito Kawahara, who is now leading the telework project for Boehringer Ingelheim Japan. “As a research-driven pharmaceutical company, we are dependent on highly-skilled professionals and telework is one of the things that can set us apart from other companies.”

Yasuhiro Wakui is another employee of Boehringer Ingelheim Japan who enjoys the flexibility of telework. He joined Boehringer Ingelheim in 2017 after almost two decades in the animal health industry. “It is the first time I can use telework and it significantly improves my recovery from work.” Wakui lives with his wife in the Tokyo area. It takes almost four hours for him to get to the office and back home. “I save a lot of time if I work from home, and I can spend much more time to communicate with my family in a non-tired condition. My wife and I are currently planning our new home and I am really energized by the private time we gain.”

The telework initiative of Boehringer Ingelheim Japan has also been recognized by other companies and politicians. The company won the “Flexible Commuting Promotion Award” from the Tokyo Metropolitan Office in October 2017 and the “Top Hundred Telework Pioneers” from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication in November 2018.

“I save a lot of time if I work from home.” — YASUHIRO WAKUI