SUNNY SIDE UP Looks Back on Its First Premium Friday (Fri, Feb 24)
Hello, this is PR Sunny-chan!
Premium Friday is coming up again this month!
On Friday, February 24—the very first Premium Friday—while few companies had adopted it yet, we decided to implement it as a historic first step toward changing the way we work, thinking, “If SUNNY SIDE UP doesn’t get on board, who will?”
We also put up posters in the office and ran a campaign with messages like, “Make sure you go home on time,” and “Don’t just go home and sleep—use your time meaningfully.”
This time, we look back on Premium Friday on February 24.
Even if we try to separate on and off time, PR work is not something that can be neatly limited to set hours, so it tends to become irregular. Even when it comes to just one task—preparing for a PR event—we often end up working late in order to improve the quality.
However, if we keep saying, “That’s just the nature of this job, so it’s impossible,” the way we work will never change. Each department—and each employee—began to rack their brains for Premium Friday, but to be honest, we were nervous about how it would go right up until the day (laugh).
On the day, many members of the media came to cover the office closing at 3:00 PM.
And then, 3:00 PM!
With the call, “Today is Premium Friday! Let’s get ready to go home and head out!”
everyone stood up at once—and they are receiving something near the entrance!
That’s right!
In the elevator hall, executives welcomed employees and handed out “Premium Friday support funds” of ¥3,200 in person so everyone could enjoy a fun Friday.
The ¥3,200 amount was, of course, a play on words tied to “Sunny.”
You get to go home early and even receive support funds. Employees who received them in person were thrilled!
Each envelope also included a different, handwritten message from the president, filled with the sentiment, “Make sure you enjoy yourself.”
It seems these handwritten message envelopes were also well received!
Turning our attention to the office…
Completely empty!
No one in the office during bright weekday hours—naturally, this was the first time we had ever seen such a scene.
It felt surreal.
In the end, we turned off the office lights and locked up. The office was completely closed.
An indescribable sense of accomplishment and excitement. It was simply the act of everyone leaving at 3:00 PM together, but that “all together” feeling turned it into a small festival.
Many employees had plans they had prepared, such as “going to see a movie as a couple” or “meeting friends for a meal.” It seems everyone looked forward to how Premium Friday would be carried out—and how they themselves would join in.
So, our impression after the day was over was “We can do it if we try!!” (laugh).
Of course, there are challenges to address in order to make it an even more fulfilling program, but by the company declaring that it would introduce Premium Friday, each person thought about how to finish their work by 3:00 PM and became more mindful of it. It also led to greater work efficiency.
We would like to continue creating an environment where we can welcome the last Friday of each month with excitement.
