Even When 'Away from Desk,' Encouragement Over Criticism... Where Is the 'God's Workplace' for Parenting? [K Population Strategy]

(7) 'Finda' Introduces Personalized Work System
Flexible Work Within 40 Hours a Week Praised
Two-Thirds of Managers Raise Children
Helps Recruit Married Talent in Their 30s and 40s

Remote Work Allowed with Notification
Dads as 'Primary Caregivers' Say
"Understanding Atmosphere for Childcare" Is Important

Editor's NoteThe key to solving South Korea's population problem lies within companies. A workplace culture that evaluates employees based on their work regardless of gender and a family-friendly environment are crucial to addressing the K-population issue. Although low birth rates stem from complex factors, it is important to ensure that workplace burdens do not become obstacles that make people hesitate to have children. Asia Economy is visiting companies leading family-friendly policies to identify the factors that helped these systems settle stably, and will explore various approaches with companies that lack practical conditions. Through this, we encourage change starting from companies and analyze the government's role in enabling this. We listen to voices emphasizing that company culture and atmosphere that reduce psychological burdens are more important than financial support, and propose alternatives from diverse perspectives.

Even When 'Away from Desk,' Encouragement Over Criticism... Where Is the 'God's Workplace' for Parenting? [K Population Strategy]

Fintech company Finda employee Suji Kim, who is working from home, is smiling as she talks about what she played with her daughter Eunha Kim after picking her up from the daycare center. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

"Temporarily leaving to pick up my child and will return shortly."

On the afternoon of the 18th last month, Kim Suji (36), who works at the fintech (finance + technology) company Finda, left this message on the work messenger Slack at 5 p.m. and began putting on her clothes to pick up her daughter Kim Eunha (4). For Kim, choosing to work from home on days when the childcare helper is on leave or when her child is sick is completely natural. When the reporter visited Kim’s home in Sadang-dong, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, there was a separate office-like space equipped with two large monitors and a work desk for telecommuting.

Finda counts employees as having come to the office if they observe core hours from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and allows working from home twice a week. With the widespread adoption of the ‘Custom Work’ system, which requires employees to complete 40 hours per week flexibly, adjusting work hours is a daily routine for Finda employees. Because of this, many working moms and dads work at Finda. Ninety-five percent of managers are married, and two-thirds of them have children.

On the day she chose to work from home, Kim started work at 8 a.m. There was a company-wide weekly meeting before 11 a.m., a team member interview for recruitment at 2 p.m., and a marketing meeting at 3 p.m., all happening in quick succession. Kim explained, "It’s no different from being in the office. These processes just happen via video calls." She added, "That day was a relatively long workday, but there are days when I work only six hours."

Finda also live streams important meetings attended by all employees so they can participate online. Afterward, Kim communicated with her team members via Slack while working, then drove for 30 minutes starting at 5 p.m. to the daycare center in Sangdo-dong. She left her desk for about an hour to pick up her daughter and then returned.

Usually, Eunha would leave the daycare with the childcare helper, but on this day, she was visibly excited to be picked up by her mother. Holding Kim’s hand, she eagerly shared stories about her daycare friends. Even in the car on the way home, she excitedly chatted about the Christmas decorations outside the window that she usually admired on the way home.

Suji Kim, an employee of the fintech company Finda working from home, is walking home with her daughter Eunha Kim after picking her up from daycare on a darkening street. Eunha is holding out her hand, inviting to feel the cold ice she touched. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

Kim said, "When children are young, they often get sick, and in those cases, I choose to work from home." She added, "I don’t have to formally apply to work from home; I just share whether I’m working remotely or not." Employees can freely choose telecommuting without feeling pressured, and when face-to-face work is necessary, they coordinate schedules with their team members. Lunch breaks are also flexible at Finda. If lunch is delayed while working, employees simply post a ‘meal’ icon on Slack to share their status with the team.

Finda’s family-friendly policies also help attract talent like Kim. Having worked at Hyundai Motor Company and other firms, Kim said she gave high marks to Finda’s ‘Custom Work’ system when considering a job change. She recalled, "At Hyundai Motor, I worked in a male-dominated department, so there were no working mom or female executive role models, and I couldn’t envision my future 10 years down the line."

Finda fundamentally fosters a family-friendly culture within the company. It is not difficult to receive understanding and accommodation when working moms and dads leave their desks for 30 minutes to an hour due to childcare. Employees are responsible for their tasks while using their time flexibly. Taking time off because of a baby is not seen as something special but treated as ‘normal.’ Kim, who works in such an environment, emphasized, "In typical companies, even if working moms perform well, they inevitably accumulate ‘emotional debt.’ The difference lies between companies where rescheduling a meeting due to a child’s hospital visit is possible and those that respond with ‘Do you really have to go?’"

‘Leaving one’s desk’ applies to all employees, not just working parents, so there is less need to feel emotional guilt. Kim said, "In my team, some people leave to visit animal hospitals or get physical therapy for back pain. As long as the work is done properly, any reason for leaving is understood."

Because a family-friendly culture is well established, it is rare to find employees quitting due to childcare. Many employees are preparing for maternity leave, and many working dads have chosen to become the primary caregivers who take more responsibility for childcare. Finda’s first parental leave taker was also a male employee.

However, building trust among members is important to maintain such systems. If flexible work leads to neglect, it becomes difficult to sustain. Lee Jaekyung, Finda’s head of HR, said, "Because the system is well utilized, everyone takes extra care to ensure work quality doesn’t drop due to childcare. There’s a mindset that if you can only perform at 70% because of your child, the system could collapse, so people tend to work harder rather than less."

Ultimately, the key is a ‘culture that understands childcare,’ Lee emphasized. He explained, "At my previous company, taking time off for a baby was viewed negatively. Employees who couldn’t focus on work were stigmatized, so I just took half or full days off. But at Finda, you just need to communicate well, and sometimes resolving things briefly and returning actually leads to better continuity of work."

He added, "This kind of ‘company culture’ is more important than giving extra money for having a baby. Even if you get an extra 1 million won, if you suddenly can’t find a childcare helper or feel uncomfortable, it’s hard to balance childcare and work. Finda has a low turnover rate among married employees, and this environment cannot be ignored."