SUNNY SIDE UP Wins Gold at PRWeek Asia Best Places to Work 2021! We’re excited to share our work style reforms with you!

Hello! This is PR Sunny-chan.

As summer gradually comes to an end and the scent of autumn begins to fill the air, we found ourselves feeling a bit melancholic about not being able to fully enjoy the usual summer events. However, we’re delighted to share some wonderful news that has lifted our spirits!

Yesterday, the results were announced for the PRWeek Asia Best Places to Work 2021 awards, co-hosted by PRWeek and Campaign, leading global PR industry publications. We are thrilled to announce that SUNNY SIDE UP has won the gold award in the Large Agency category!

News release page: https://www.ssu.co.jp/news/2021/09/09/5110/

This award was launched this year in the Asia-Pacific region as a new opportunity to recognize and celebrate PR agencies and in-house teams in the public relations and communications field for their efforts in creating better workplaces and promoting diversity.

SUNNY SIDE UP GROUP has long been committed to creating an environment where everyone can work comfortably. We are particularly honored to receive this award the year following our major office renovation project, which was undertaken to create an even better working environment!

Here, we’d like to introduce our comprehensive initiatives for creating a better workplace!

Office Renovation

To implement work styles suited to the new era, we completed a full renovation of our headquarters at the Sendagaya office in November 2020!

At the heart of the new office, we placed a “Central Kitchen,” creating a space where team members can safely interact offline. We also enhanced facilities to accommodate the increase in online meetings that came with the spread of remote work. This new office, which flexibly adapts to each member’s work style, has received praise from visitors and has become a favorite space for our team members.

Read more about our office here:
The New Office Full of “Fun Excitement” Is Finally Complete! What Does This Office Look Like That Realizes Each Person’s “Fun”? [Hello, New Office!!]
https://blog.ssu.co.jp/blog/18228/

Introduced by Smile Keepers! A Large Kitchen in the Middle of the Office!? The Full Picture of SUNNY SIDE UP GROUP’s Renovated Office
https://blog.ssu.co.jp/blog/19701/

32 Benefits

Back in 2011, before the term “work style reform” even existed, we created our original employee benefits program called “32 Benefits” based on the belief that “when work is fulfilling, personal life becomes fulfilling, and when personal life is fulfilling, it leads to better work.” We introduced unique programs such as private life enhancement leave including “Romance Challenge Leave,” “Heartbreak Leave,” and “Family Holiday,” as well as the “Happiness Won’t Come Walking” program to promote health maintenance.

In addition, we are promoting the creation of an environmental system that enables a “flexible and diverse way of working” tailored to each member through the implementation of the “Tanokin” system, which encourages members to take “Premium Fridays,” and the “Happy Sunny Day” system, which encourages members to engage in sales activities outside the company and work from home once a month in order to foster more free thinking.

View the complete list of 32 Benefits here.
Read articles about 32 Benefits here.

Developing Work Styles, Environments, and Systems Where Women Can Thrive

▼ “Dear Woman Program”
▼ Internal Seminars on Women’s Health

In 2015, we became one of the first Japanese companies to start subsidizing the costs of egg freezing and storage. By expanding choices not only in work style but also in lifestyle, we support our team members in living confidently in their own way. In connection with this, we regularly hold internal seminars on women’s health. These sessions provide opportunities not only for women but also for male team members to think about the health of their family members and partners.

Read the article about our internal seminar on women’s health and egg freezing here:

March 8 Is International Women’s Day! An Opportunity to Think About Women’s Health and Life Planning Through an Internal Online Seminar
https://blog.ssu.co.jp/blog/19150/

▼ Premium Woman Day

This program presents “a slightly special Friday” to women who always work hard, held on March 8, International Women’s Day, which was established by the United Nations in 1975! In countries around the world, it is widely recognized as “a day to think about women’s lives and express gratitude to women.”

Read articles about Premium Woman Day here.

▼ Increasing the Percentage of Women in Management

While women in management positions are still relatively few, SUNNY SIDE UP achieved 31.2% as of February 2021, surpassing the government’s target of “30% women in management positions” as a company. Essential to increasing this percentage is reforming work styles and leave policies to create an environment that makes it easier to balance work with childbirth and childcare. We will continue to promote an environment where everyone can thrive.

Enhanced Benefits Respecting LGBTQ+

▼ “Partnership Program”

This program was created based on the concept of diversity, recognizing and respecting the diversity of our team members. We recognize marriage and childbirth celebration benefits and marriage leave for same-sex marriages and common-law marriages.

▼ Internal Seminars on LGBTQ+

We deepen understanding through projects such as “Tokyo Rainbow Pride,” which SUNNY SIDE UP has long supported, and “True Colors Festival – Super Diversity Arts Festival –,” for which we handle PR. We also hold internal seminars led by members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Read about the “True Colors Festival – Super Diversity Arts Festival –” here:
“Super Diversity”! What Is This Project That Recognizes and Celebrates All Individuality, Including Disabilities, Gender, and Nationality?
https://blog.ssu.co.jp/pr/sdgs/19985/

Initiatives to Improve Team Members’ Skills

▼ Creating PR Manuals and Publishing Books

We created a manual compiling all of SUNNY SIDE UP’s PR knowledge for use in training new graduates and mid-career hires. We then edited this manual into a book and published it. It is being used not only internally but also as a “basic guidebook” for PR professionals everywhere!

Read the book introduction article here:
Making Our Internal Manual Public!? SUNNY SIDE UP’s Step-by-Step PR Manual Book, Packed with Most of Our Operations, Is Now on Sale!
https://blog.ssu.co.jp/pr_methods/19483/

In addition, we work daily to improve team members’ skills through three-year courses to improve operational efficiency and seminars for management.

Adapting Work Styles to the COVID-19 Pandemic

▼ “Vaccination Leave”

In April 2021, we introduced a new “Vaccination Leave Program” to the 32 Benefits mentioned earlier! We established this employee benefit program so that team members who wish to be vaccinated can do so safely without hesitation. Additionally, in late June 2021, we implemented workplace vaccination for those working in the entertainment industry.

SUNNY SIDE UP GROUP Introduces “Vaccination Leave Program” Within Its Original Employee Benefits Program “32 Benefits”
https://www.ssu.co.jp/news/2021/04/12/4922/

We Are Sequentially Starting Workplace Vaccinations for Entertainment Industry Workers!
https://blog.ssu.co.jp/blog/19741/

———————————————–

This has been somewhat lengthy, but following this award, we will continue to advance “creating an environment where each individual can work in their own way” with methods that look ahead to the next era, and we will strive to become an “international role model company.”

PRWeek Asia Best Places to Work 2021 results page: https://www.prweek.com/article/1726758/best-places-work-asia-2021-winners-revealed

Article featuring SUNNY SIDE UP’s award: https://www.prweek.com/article/1726770/best-places-work-asia-2021-best-large-agency

Please look forward to our next article. Take care of your health during this change of seasons!