GMO Internet Group Completely Abolishes Telecommuting After 6.5 Years
The decision ends a 6.5-year experiment that began as one of Japan's earliest remote work policies, signaling a full return to in-office work.
Reporting from 1 source: ASCII.jp.
GMO Internet Group representative Kumagai Masatoshi announced on July 14 that the group has completely abolished telecommuting, ending a recommendation that had been in place for 6.5 years. The company was among the earliest in Japan to adopt telecommuting, shifting 4,000 employees to remote work in January 2020. Even after the pandemic, it allowed one day of telecommuting per week until this decision.
Kumagai Masatoshi posted the announcement on his X account on July 14, stating the group ended its telecommuting recommendation effective July 13. The company had been one of the first in Japan to implement telecommuting, moving 4,000 employees to remote work on January 29, 2020. After the pandemic, it allowed telecommuting one day a week for hiring and quality of life considerations. The group had already moved to in-office work in principle in February 2023, reducing telecommuting to zero days per week. Kumagai reflected on his blog that the early response to the pandemic had been effective.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- ASCII.jp GMO、在宅勤務を完全廃止 熊谷正寿氏が6年半続けた推奨を終了