ADK, navy and freee join forces to establish Biz-Distance Association

ADK, navy and freee join forces to establish Biz-Distance Association,
a general incorporated association to study the ideal distancing in business.
Results of first study on the most recent remote-working styles are announced.

General Incorporated Association
Biz-Distance Association

Full-service ad agency ADK Holdings (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo, President and Group CEO: Shinichi Ueno, (to be referred to as “ADK”), ADK Group creative boutique navy Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo, President: Katsuo Yonezawa, (to be referred to as “navy”) and freee K.K. (Headquarters: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, Representative & CEO: Daisuke Sasaki, (to be referred to as “freee”) have joined forces to establish a general incorporated association, Biz-Distance Association (BDA). In these times where shifts are occurring to remote-working styles, Biz-Distance Association will look into new ways of working where each worker can give consideration to each other’s positions and situations and work effectively by keeping an effective distance. URL：https://www.biz-distance.or.jp/ (currently available in Japanese only)

As their first initiative, BDA conducted a survey that made "Advantages and challenges in working remotely" visible in a straightforward way, and have made some of the survey results available to the public.

The New Normal has become standard with social distancing now a main measure to prevent infection. In terms of working styles, an increasing number of companies have taken on remote working while others have reverted to the previously standard ways of working, and we can see that companies are looking for new ways of working. What is considered normal or valued can change, so the aim of Biz-Distance Association is not to propose ideals of “how things should be” but to provide a stage where each working individual such as employees, management and clients can search for “the right distance, the right way of working” by giving consideration to each other’s positions and situations. This is what BDA calls Biz-Distance, the right business distance.

ADK has supported the cross-company project #remote work for clients, a movement to take away the issues surrounding remote working. navy has contributed to this movement through development and execution of communications for this project. Through the establishment of this institute, and with the support of companies and organizations, the Biz-Distance Association aims to seek the actualization of Biz-Distance, where there will be a work style that everyone will be comfortable with.

[Summary of Research Results]

1.I want the freedom to choose remote work even after COVID-19 settles down
2.Job efficiency increased with remote work
3.I acquired a good rhythm for my daily life by working remote
4.There is more psychological distance with clients and other colleagues
5.It is more challenging than before to establish relations with clients
6.I feel there are harassments such as power harassments (blue: before remote work, pink: after)
7.Evaluation methods should not be the same as before

■ Approx. 90% of those who experienced working remote, hope for a system that will “allow all employees to have the freedom to choose remote work,” even after COVID-19 settles down.

・Among the 977 males and females who experienced remote working throughout Japan, 87.0% answered that they “wish for a system that will allow all employees to have the freedom to choose remote work.” Findings show that a majority of those who experienced remote work want to continue working this way.

■ As a positive effect of remote work, many found that “remote work helped in adjusting the pace of daily life” and “harassment issues (such as power harassment) were resolved.”

・58% of those who experienced remote work responded that they felt “remote work has helped to adjust the pace of daily life.” There was a positive effect on healthy lifestyles by adopting remote work.
Comparing before and after experiencing remote work, those who felt “there are issues such as power harassment” were 19.8% before remote work, and decreased to 8.5% after starting remote work.
By adopting remote work, some companies observed benefits going beyond physical merits such as shorter working hours, and extended to improvements in psychological aspects such as reduced stress.

■ On the other hand, there were negative effects and issues resulting from remote work.
Approx. 70% of those who experienced working remote responded that “there was more psychological distance with clients and colleagues.”

・Among those who experienced working remote, 63.4% responded that they felt more psychological distance with their clients and colleagues. And 63.4% responded that “building relations with clients is more difficult when working remote.”

・In terms of work efficiency, 50.6% responded that they felt they were working more efficiently when working remote, which means that those who felt improvement in work efficiency remained at about half of those surveyed.
It became apparent that not everything about remote work is positive.

■ Approx. 80% of those who worked remote responded that “it is necessary to incorporate a different evaluation method if remote working will be adopted on a regular basis.”

・Among those who experienced remote working, 77.7% responded that they felt the need for a different evaluation method if remote working will be adopted on a regular basis.
Many people seem to feel the need for an update of current evaluation methods if remote working becomes standard in their organizations.

[Survey Design]

Some of the research results can be found on the Biz-Distance Association website (currently only available in Japanese). There are also plans to make other research findings available soon. If corporations or organizations are interested, Biz-Distance Association will provide results free of charge. Please contact them through the Contact form on the Biz-Distance Association website (currently only available in Japanese).

Biz-Distance Association website: https://www.biz-distance.or.jp/

[Outline of Biz-Distance Association]

[English translation]
The right distance, the right way of working

Biz-Distance
noun
the right distance in business, contemplated by companies wanting to be considerate toward business partners

We are an institution established to promote Biz-Distance.
Hanko (stamps), paper documents and face-to-face meetings.
These disciplined & sincere working styles were an integral part of daily work for Japanese people who are very sensitive and considerate.
However, what is normal, and what people value, change over time.
Many companies are abolishing hanko, going paperless, and are resorting to video conferences.
On the other hand, remote work also brings its issues, and is not necessary the single ultimate solution.

We are all still working on the new, optimum way to work.
By being considerate of others and their positions/situations, we want to find the right distance and update our working styles.

General Incorporated Association
Biz-Distance Association

[Chairman Shoebill, Biz-Distance Association]

[English translation]

General Incorporated Association
Biz-Distance Association

Chairman Shoebill

He is the chairman of Biz-Distance Association, and loves working remote.
Working remote not because it’s easier, but because he thinks about others.
His headset is his lifeline and very important to him, but he will not disclose the price.
When necessary, he takes off his headset and flies over to the client.
He bows deep with affection toward clients.
Although he may look inattentive, he is very considerate inside.
His hero is Ikkyu-san (an eccentric and iconoclastic 15th century Zen monk) and will come up with witty comments that can be pointers for a new working style.

The shoebill is a large bird known for hardly moving.
They basically sit still, but move extremely quickly when necessary, like the moment they catch food.
They may be the only animal that is the embodiment of Biz-Distance.

[Outline of Organization]

For further information, please contact:
Yuri Hirao or Tsubasa Maruyama
Office of Corporate Communications
ADK Holdings Inc.
e-mail: adkpr@adk.jp

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