Image Caption - Participants gathered in the plaza at “Haneda Innovation City,” an office & commercial complex near Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, where Congrès Square Haneda is located.
On February 6, 2023, Congrès Inc. Tokyo Headquarters’ employees, together with members from our convention facility “Congrès Square Haneda” as well as from other facilities managed by Congrès, cooperated in a beautification campaign to clean up the surrounding area. The project was dubbed “Mission: Clean Haneda!” Congrès has established 4 materiality themes (priority issues or key challenges) as part of its sustainability policy. As a link to tackling one of these, “Supporting sustainable urban/town planning through facility management,” Congrès has conducted garbage collection missions in various communities in Tokyo up to now, including Tokyo SkyTree town (Sumida-ku), Roppongi (Minato-ku), Odaiba (Minato-ku) and Shibuya (Shibuya-ku). This is the 5th initiative.
In parallel, we conducted an experiential Workation geared for employees who participated in the beautification project, giving them the opportunity to spend their working day away from their usual office, in working spaces set up in the lounge at Congrès Square Haneda. This project was planned with the following objectives; “We want members to feel that they could casually participate” and “spend the work day with a new, fresh perspective in the Haneda Airport area, a place they may not normally have the opportunity to visit.” Workation can also lead to enhancing relationships between fellow members of the same workplace.
28 members from “Congrès Square Haneda” and Tokyo Headquarters gathered on the day. Even in implementing the activity, ecologically-friendly measures were adopted, such as providing protective gloves made from fiber waste. The starting point was Anamori Inari Jinja Shrine, where members’ paid their respects with gratitude to the community and wishing for a safe and successful mission, and they were off!
Participants paid their respects at Haneda’s famous Anamori Inari Jinja Shrine.
Formed 4 teams and started their mission.
4 teams took different routes through the area. Although there was minimal litter found near the shrine or in the shopping streets, the teams picked up more in the residential areas, parking lots and along the river. They gathered a whopping 9 large bags (total of approx. 400 liters) of trash. The members’ comments included: “I was able to communicate with other employees that I don’t know through my work – by means of collecting trash! A truly new experience.”
“As I picked up the litter, it came home to me how incredibly difficult and complex waste disposal is. I intend to once again re-think how I discard things and separate garbage.”
Communicating with fellow employees while picking up litter to give back to the community.
Everyone enjoying themselves as they separate the collected garbage for recycling.
Experiential Workation in parallel with convention facility inspection!
On the same day, Congrès carried out an experiential Workation at Congrès Square Haneda. Work spaces were arranged in the expansive lounge that features floor-to-ceiling windows, offering a feeling of openness. This experiential activity was implemented based on the concept that customers/visitors could utilize the work spaces. Employing the “Smart Lock” system, users can make bookings for the work spaces and also unlock the door to the work space upon arrival, via their devices including smartphones.
Expansive work spaces arranged in the facility’s lounge.
On clear days, the work spaces are more than sufficiently bright during the daytime, thanks to the natural light coming in through the large windows.
The employees who took part in the experiential Workation expressed; “Being able to work in this space with such an open feeling was truly a new experience – the views are totally different from my office in central Tokyo;” “The big windows and extensive space boosted my energy and mindset!” “The environment here was really conducive to concentration,” and more.
In Japan, the Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) is participating in projects to promote workations in Japan as a part of efforts to diversity work styles. Keidanren has published a guide geared for corporations on key points for introduction of workation and a booklet of “Case studies of Workation-related Products & Services,” which includes Congrès Square Haneda’s proposal for workation products/services.
Users can unlock the door to the workspace at the reserved time simply by using their smartphones.
Scenes of the airport area at dusk seen through the big windows give the workspaces a novel atmosphere.
As part of the experiential Workation, employees also had the opportunity to inspect “Haneda Innovation City,” the large multi-purpose complex where Congrès Square Haneda is located, to get a feel for what actual visitors would experience. At the complex, nicknamed “HICity,” visitors can enjoy “AI_SCAPE,” a restaurant where robots serve as both chefs and waiters, and the “Foot Spa & Sky Deck” where one can enjoy watching jets take off and land at Haneda Airport while dipping one’s feet in a hot spring! All in all, the day away proved to be refreshing for the employees in many ways.
Congrès Square Haneda: Hall 1 & 2.
Foot Spa & Sky Deck at HICity.
Workations expand work style options and are said to be effective in making employees feel refreshed and energized through working in environments that are different from a normal office. Furthermore, as Keidanren advocates, offering diverse work style options can enhance opportunities for active participation of more people in the nation’s workforce whose lifestyles may not fit conventional patterns, while in tandem revitalizing regional communities and enhancing the overall sustainability of society.
For more information, please access the following links
- Congrès Square Haneda – https://www.congre.com/en/news/20200703-1290/
- Haneda Innovation City – https://haneda-innovation-city.com/en/
- Haneda Innovation City “Concept Book” – https://haneda-innovation-city.com/assets/img/pdf/concept_book_web_en.pdf?v=200902
- Keidanren (Japan Business Federation): Outline of “The New Growth Strategy,” published November 17, 2020 – https://www.keidanren.or.jp/en/policy/2020/108_proposal.html?v=p