Categories: 그밖에 다양한 이야기

Three Principles to Increase ‘Work Immersion’

An article on “Work engagement” was published in the Weekly Biz that deals with the secret to the success of Don Quixote in Japan. Korean office workers’ work engagement rate stands at 12 percent, which is still lower than the average. Here is a summary of the article.

With its 34th consecutive year of expansion since its establishment in 1989, Don Quixote of Japan’s general store is attractive to fun. Part-timers dubbed “mates” contributed to Don Quixote’s success. Japan is seeking the secret of Don Quixote’s sales through immersion in its business.
Recently, the concept of work engagement is drawing attention in Japan because Japanese employees’ work engagement score was the worst in the world. According to a Gallup survey, Japan ranked last with 5 percent of work engagement. The world average score is 23 percent, while Korea’s score is only 12 percent, which is half of the world average.
Work commitment is important because the higher the level of commitment of employees, the more proportional the performance increases. Compared to the top 25% of employees with commitment and the bottom 25% of employees, the top employees showed positive indicators in all areas such as absenteeism rate, turnover rate, customer satisfaction, profitability, and productivity.
Forbes, an economic magazine, said that employee immersion is important for the establishment of high performance and culture, and explained that people want to contribute and be recognized based on a sense of purpose, development, and belonging rather than being considered a cogwheel part.
Leave 3 principles for immersion in work, communicate, and acknowledge them. The first thing to do is to trust your employees and give them freedom. When a company trusts its employees, they can be creative and innovative by thanking the company.
Communication between employees and supervisors is also important. An important factor in communication is feedback. It is for supervisors to evaluate what their subordinates are doing well and let them know what needs to be improved. German company Conquer gives an award called “Great Feedbacker,” which votes for employees who are good at feedback every year, and encourages active feedback among employees.
Lastly, it is important for employees to fully acknowledge each other. In particular, in Japan and Korea, where the culture of top and bottom lines is established, it is necessary to foster a boss who is recognized by his subordinates. In Japan, a system of choosing a boss that allows employees to choose a boss has been introduced. Through this system, communication between bosses and subordinates has become more common, and it has become easier to communicate opinions.