Stand-up meeting space set up at Okayama Pref.

August 24, 2017

OKAYAMA- Employees at the government of Okayama Prefecture in western Japan have created a space where they can have meetings while standing, with the aim of spurring discussions and boosting productivity.

Such stand-up meeting spaces, which are believed to help users concentrate and encourage them to have livelier discussions, have also been established at private-sector companies.

The space at the Okayama government was created earlier this month at the industry and labor department, which is in charge of promoting tourism and supporting corporate management and human resources development.

The department believes that it needs to take the lead in implementing measures to improve productivity because it is also tasked with calling on local firms to promote work-style reforms.

After a similar space established at the end of fiscal 2016 was seldom used, 10 young workers at the department remade it into an area that is more functional and can also be used for workers to take a break.

The new space has a round table that can accommodate about four people and two personal computers placed on a counter by the wall. It also offers local area network cables, allowing employees to use their own PCs.

The floor is carpeted so users can take off their shoes, and snacks and beverages are available.

"We hope we can find something new and come up with novel ideas" at the new stand-up meeting space, an employee at the department said. Jiji Press