Taking a Nap While Getting a Massage... IT Industry's New Office Rivaling Hotels

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Choi] IT companies such as portals and game companies have set up the latest work environments in their new headquarters. They boast various welfare facilities and comfortable working environments to the extent that the 'headquarters itself is welfare.' This is to share management philosophy and improve work efficiency through the new headquarters.

According to the related industry on the 14th, Pearl Abyss moved into the new headquarters 'Home One' located in Gwacheon Knowledge Information Town on the 12th. It is a building with a site area of 2,121 pyeong, 15 floors above ground and 5 floors underground.

Pearl Abyss New Headquarters Home One
Photo by Pearl Abyss

Home One carries the meaning of 'the first home (headquarters)' and 'us gathering as one headquarters.' It means focusing on game development through fast collaboration in a comfortable space like home.

First, to improve work efficiency, they focused on employee welfare facilities. They newly established or expanded ▲in-house daycare center 'Deep Sea Whale Daycare' ▲in-house hospital ▲indoor basketball court and fitness center ▲massage room ▲psychological counseling center ▲free in-house cafeteria and cafe ▲parking facilities capable of accommodating all employees.

On the other hand, they emphasized connection and communication among employees. They created about 170 spaces such as large and small meeting rooms where employees can communicate frequently. All floors of the workspace are connected by vertical stairs so that employees can naturally communicate while moving around.

It is also notable that the headquarters itself is designed like a huge game development base. Centered on the game engine studio, which is core to new game development and games, it is equipped with the largest 'motion capture studio' in Korea, a Foley sound studio, composer rooms, dubbing rooms, and an 'audio room.' Additionally, the '3D Scan Studio' of the 'Art Center,' which is scheduled to be completed, will be added.

Earlier, Naver and Kakao, which opened their new headquarters, also boast comfortable working environments.

Naver made its second headquarters named '1784' a robot-friendly building. Under the motto 'the building itself is technology,' it established a technological ecosystem including robots, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud, and 5G specialized networks. It means to continuously experiment and challenge by using the headquarters as a huge testbed.

Naver New Headquarters 1784

Robots also contribute to welfare by delivering employees' lunch boxes. The robot picks up lunch boxes from the underground cafeteria and delivers them to employees' seats using a dedicated elevator.

They also take care of employees' health management. In the 300-pyeong in-house hospital, departments such as rehabilitation medicine, family medicine, otolaryngology, urology, and internal medicine are available. Medical services applying artificial intelligence (AI) technology are also provided.

Kakao started moving into its new headquarters 'Kakao Ajit,' which expanded facilities for executives and employees, from July.

Kakao New Headquarters Hideout
Photo by Kakao

On the first basement floor, places that help employees recover are concentrated. It is equipped with the 'Recovery Center' (meditation and yoga facilities), 'Tokui Bogam' (nurse's office), 'Tok Clinic' (massage), sleeping room, nursing room, and in-house cafeteria 'Chunsik Dorak.'

At 'Tok Terrace,' psychological counseling services such as 20 minutes of meditation every morning and one-on-one counseling are provided. At Tok Clinic, a nationally certified masseur belonging to Kakao subsidiary 'Linkage Lab' is stationed. Chunsik Dorak provides lunch and dinner to executives and employees at 4,000 won per meal and offers lunch boxes, salads, and vegan menus through a takeout corner.

On the second floor of the headquarters, a daycare center 'Ajitteul' of over 1,000 pyeong was opened. The capacity is 300, and children of Kakao headquarters crew and affiliate crews can also use it.