My name is Miyagawa and I am the manager of Monosus Thailand (Monotai) and I have been living in Thailand for four and a half years now.
Starting this year, Monotai has been working on having employees themselves propose new company systems, discuss them, and then systematize them.
Here we will introduce some of the systems that have emerged from these efforts.
Why we all need to create a system
Monotai currently has 20 members. Although the number of members has increased and decreased, the organization has gradually grown. As the organization expands, there are limits to what I can decide on my own. Although I like creating systems, I am more of a person who wants to develop and value what the staff who work there want to do and become, rather than forcing policies on them.
I believe that the more people who are serious about trying to improve an organization or environment, the better it will be. Rather than being satisfied with rules determined by someone else, I want as many staff members as possible to be involved in creating mechanisms and experience the fun of building an organization. With that thought in mind, I began creating this system.
To create the system, participants were recruited from each category, divided into small teams, and brainstormed ideas to develop the content of the initiatives.
Now, I would like to introduce some of the systems and initiatives that have been decided upon.
Identifying corporate culture
To begin creating the system, we asked Monotai members to list the good habits and cultures that already exist in Monotai. Each member wrote down their thoughts on sticky notes, then categorized and voted on them to organize them.
Collect everyone's opinions on sticky notes and classify them into a matrix
The following came up when asked: "No discrimination," "Not too strict rules," "Not blaming others for failure," "Praise each other for success," "Help each other with their work," "Work like brothers and sisters," "Eat lunch together," "Share good things," "Smile and say hello," "Take turns taking out the trash every day," "Welcoming and training new employees," "Sharing Japanese and Thai culture," "International cooperation system," "Various study sessions," "Sharing coding techniques," "Activities (badminton, etc.)," "Company trips," etc.
There were many things that we hadn't been particularly conscious of before, but by putting into words what we all unconsciously feel on a daily basis, it became clear why we naturally had a good atmosphere. We will continue to keep this good habit in mind and continue it in our efforts.
Recruiting and welcoming new employees
In order to hire members who can fit into Monotai's corporate culture and have the potential to further improve it, we have reviewed our recruitment methods and processes.
Until now, interviews were conducted only by me and an interpreter, but for the hiring interview of a Thai coder, several active coders participated except for me in the first half, so that we could chat in a relaxed atmosphere and share our personalities and the atmosphere of the company. The second half of the interview will be conducted by Miyagawa and an interpreter as usual.
Since implementing this system, two employees have already joined the company, and we feel that this has resulted in a flow that is more reliable and reduces mismatches in matching.
Also, since Monotai does not yet have its own website, we have created a Facebook page so that applicants can check out the company atmosphere and events.
・Monosus Thailand Facebook page
Once a new hire is selected, the next step is to join the company. It is necessary for new employees to become familiar with Monotai's members as quickly as possible, understand the company culture, and learn the job.
We started holding new employee welcome parties, which we had not been able to do before, and implemented a buddy system in which one senior employee takes responsibility for training one new employee. Previously, new employees had to set up their own PCs, but now senior employees complete the setup before the new employees join the company, and we have put in place a welcoming system.
Coder Tun presents Tae, a new employee, with a handmade flower decoration.
Celebrations
The importance and awareness of celebrations in Thailand seems to be much higher than in Japan.
In addition to the existing system of selecting an MVP at the end of the year, an MVP will also be selected for each season.
Also, I decided to make sure to celebrate birthdays, which I hadn't celebrated in a long time, all at once a month.
The surprise celebration doesn't happen on the actual birthday, but rather on the day you don't know when it will happen, so it's an unexpected thrill.
Monthly Activities
Two people are assigned to each month and an activity event is held once a month. This is based on the badminton club, which had several activities last year, but by sharing fun experiences such as karaoke, bowling tournaments, and trampolining, I feel that the sense of unity and connections between the members is visibly deepening.
Everyone seems to look forward to seeing what other activities will be proposed each month. We also set up a board to post such internal contact information.
The board will display event schedules and individual portraits. The monthly budget achievement status will also be posted.
Bowling tournament. Many Thai people participated for the first time, and due to its popularity, it was held for two consecutive months.
At the trampoline park. Kong, who was leaving work on his last day, showed off his child for the first time.
Share
Two initiatives were born with the aim of sharing values and experiences and giving back to members' families.
The first is to share "values and experiences" within a "team" by "subsidizing the costs of experiences that you have never had before and sharing what you gain from them with the team."
I also hope that this will be an opportunity for people to try their hand at something they've always wanted to do but haven't had the chance to do before.
The second goal is to create an opportunity to share "trust, security, and gratitude" with "family," so we have decided to hold an event where we invite staff's families to the company for a party.
In Thailand, family understanding of work and trust in the company are also important factors. I hope this will be a good opportunity for families to learn about how everyone is doing and how they work.
Let's start creating a system
When we started this initiative, I felt that everyone was more enthusiastic and seemed to enjoy discussing things than I had expected. As each person shared ideas for the system, it felt like the "awareness of wanting to improve the current environment" naturally grew. It's difficult to realize all of everyone's ideas, but I was reminded that the process of members thinking seriously about how to create an ideal environment is what is meaningful.
While the system we have established will become a habit, this is not the end of it; we will continue to gather feedback and refine it to make it even more effective.
In the second half of the year, we will be implementing study sessions and learning support systems to develop individual strengths and abilities, as well as initiatives to achieve team goals. We will also be taking inspiration from as many interesting systems as possible from other companies, and I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of system we will come up with.
MIYAKAWA Takuya