Workation Office 'U+TOPIA' Established in Gangneung
Playing a Key Role as a New Business Incubator
"Escaping from a cramped meeting room to hold meetings in an open space and sharing dinner with team members in a pleasant atmosphere has facilitated smooth consensus on tasks such as ideas, development, and planning."
Since the COVID-19 pandemic established the foundation for remote work, and as workplaces emphasizing work-life balance (Work-Life Balance, WoRaBal) have increased among the MZ generation (Millennials and Generation Z), more companies are adopting workation. Workation is a new work culture combining Work and Vacation, allowing employees to work and take a break simultaneously in spaces other than home or office.
Recently, LG Uplus, which opened the workation office 'U+TOPIA' in Gangwon-do where teams can work together, is building a successful case of workation culture, receiving enthusiastic responses from its employees.
Office with a Sea View in the 'Hae (Sea) Zone'
On the 24th, we visited LG Uplus's workation office U+TOPIA located at Anmok Beach in Gangneung, Gangwon-do. The office's location, with the East Sea spreading right before your eyes, was particularly striking. It was evident how much effort was put into selecting the location to enhance employees' work concentration.
The interior of the office was designed with nature as the theme, creating a comfortable atmosphere. The 60-pyeong (approximately 198 square meters) space can be used by one team (5 to 11 members) for 4 nights and 5 days, providing an environment that enhances focus compared to a traditional office. The lighting, natural light, and desk arrangements facing the windows gave it a caf?-like feel rather than a typical office.
LG Uplus decided on Gangneung as the location from the early planning stage of the workation program, considering employee convenience. Gangneung not only offers well-established natural scenery along the East Coast, such as Anmok Beach, but also has the advantage of being accessible from Seoul within about two hours via the KTX Gangneung Line.
The accommodation location was also chosen with employee convenience in mind. It is a hotel right next to the office. If you measure commuting time, it is a 30-second walk. The meticulousness stood out in preparing only sea-view accommodations so that employees could enjoy the atmosphere of the night sea not only while working but also during rest.
Inchiwon, team leader of the Joyful Workplace Team who planned U+TOPIA, explained, "Customer experience innovation is the company's principle, but we focused on the fact that positive experiences for our employees must come first." He added, "The goal was to create a creative work environment in a resort area to provide employees with an experience where they can work and enjoy themselves, thereby increasing their sense of belonging and work immersion."
There were also ups and downs in establishing U+TOPIA. Team leader In recalled, "We went everywhere for site selection. We scouted nationwide from Jeju Island, Busan, to Gangwon-do." He said, "There were many difficult points, such as when the accommodation was clean but there was no decent office space nearby, which was frustrating."
He said, "Once we found a decent office space, but it was in an old apartment commercial building. Thinking about our employees working in that building was quite unsettling."
After setting up the workation space in the optimal location, Team leader In explained that significant effects were seen in work efficiency and productivity. He said, "Since opening in February, about 120 employees have used this space over approximately 100 days, and 12 new ideas and improvement plans related to new businesses such as platforms and content have been generated." He added, "Among these, ideas from five organizations including the Metaverse Platform, Smart Mobility Platform, Commerce Platform, and Pet Mass Squad are either already applied to actual services or will be reflected in the future."
Collaboration, Concentration, and Satisfaction All Increase
On that day, the B2B new business organization ‘Smart Safety Business Squad’ was working at U+TOPIA. This team is responsible for developing smart safety solutions to enhance worker safety at industrial sites to prevent serious accidents.
Holding a proposal meeting in a private space, various opinions were exchanged in a comfortable atmosphere. After the meeting, each member sat at their personal seats overlooking Anmok Beach and the pine forest path to organize the meeting contents.
One employee said, "I thought it was just a playshop (play + workshop), but I ended up working more here. Still, taking a short walk in the pine forest helps me recharge," expressing satisfaction.
Myeong Noseong, Product Owner (PO) of the Smart Safety Business Squad, said, "Since we usually handle various tasks such as product planning, sales, and marketing, we lacked time for the whole team to brainstorm together. I participated in this workation program to discuss customer value for products from a long-term perspective." He added, "Working in a private space close to nature allowed us not only to generate ideas but also to proceed with work quickly."
As U+TOPIA gained a reputation among new business teams for helping improve teamwork and work performance, participation from existing business units has also increased. In fact, the competition rate for workation participation recently reached as high as 6 to 1, showing its popularity. A satisfaction survey of employees who have used this space scored 4.75 out of 5, indicating very positive responses.
Team leader In said, "We will continue to introduce various organizational culture programs and working methods so that employees can work with colleagues and immerse themselves in their tasks."
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