Sophisticated Customized Work-Life Balance... Crossing the COVID Valley

Asia Economy and Seoul City Joint Project [Era of Work-Life Balance 2.0]

Work-Life Balance Strong Small Business - Cosmetics Manufacturer CMSLAB

Full Remote Work Allowed Since COVID-19 Outbreak
Work Environment Tailored to Department Characteristics and Individual Situations
Employee Satisfaction with Thoughtful Systems Like 'Half-Day Off' Policy

CMSLAB selects two employees each year through a contest and sends them on an overseas backpacking trip. Each individual receives 15 days of paid leave along with 5 million KRW in support. The above photo was taken by an employee who toured Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon in the United States with the company's support. (Photo by CMSLAB)

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] CMSLAB, a cosmetics manufacturing company located in Seocho-gu, Seoul, realized the need to expand flexible work arrangements as COVID-19 infections spread. Although they had already implemented staggered working hours, the situation where two employees brought their children to the office because they could not send them to school created an atmosphere where remote work had to be seriously discussed. Previously, remote work was only allowed for pregnant employees.

The company immediately implemented remote work on a company-wide level. During the first one to two weeks, most employees were unfamiliar with the system, and the HR team received continuous inquiries. Executives at the team leader level and above asked questions ranging from whether it was appropriate to give work instructions while employees were at home, concerns that employees’ work concentration might decrease during remote work, to how sales departments, where remote work was impossible, should proceed.

The HR team collected questions every Friday and created solutions under the CEO’s leadership. CMSLAB concluded that instead of having a single system, they would flexibly allow remote work, shortened work hours, and adjusted commuting times by considering the characteristics of each department and individual circumstances. Accordingly, employees who came to the office reduced their working hours to 4 hours, and the start time was set to 12 noon, around lunchtime. This avoided rush hour congestion and minimized the risk of infection at nearby restaurants since there was no company cafeteria. If commuting by public transportation was difficult, taxi fares or parking fees were provided. As the remote work period extended, the use of Google Hangouts and KakaoTalk video calls was encouraged. After transitioning to a daily quarantine system, working hours were increased by 2 hours to return to the original schedule. Even now, remote work is allowed anytime regardless of gender when necessary.

Once a year in autumn, we go on a 2-day, 1-night workshop. Last year, the concept was 1999, so we dressed, made up, and styled our hair as they did back then, and even performed. (Provided by CMSLAB)

Ji Hyun-ah, a design team leader, said, "I have two children attending elementary school and daycare. In the mornings, I worked remotely while taking care of the children, and in the afternoons, I came to the office to organize reports and worked in a hybrid manner. If I had stayed only at home, I wouldn’t have been able to concentrate on work, and if I had only been at the office, I would have worried about my children, so I was able to adjust appropriately."

Because the company had already implemented a work-life balance system, male employees can also work remotely for childcare without feeling pressured. Lee Han-gyu, an IT team manager in the management division who alternated between remote work and commuting for about two months, said, "There are many working moms, so there are many work-life balance-related systems, and this time I became a beneficiary as well. I have a 15-month-old child, and since both my wife and I work, we were very worried, but we alternated remote work every 2-3 days." He added, "At my previous company, I often couldn’t use even half of my annual leave, but here I felt an attitude that respects autonomy and personal life."

Founded in 2001, CMSLAB also implements staggered working hours, half-day (4 hours), and quarter-day (2 hours) leave systems. The 94% annual leave utilization rate is one of the company’s prides. When employees work on weekends, substitute holidays are provided, and support is given for foreign language education fees (up to 100,000 KRW per month), gym memberships, and recreational facilities (coupons worth about 160,000 KRW), fostering an atmosphere that supports employees’ personal areas. The company pursues a detailed work-life balance system based on the judgment that if the system is not implemented in a way that individuals can best utilize it, it is ineffective. Park Young-woo, deputy head of the HR team, said, "Unlike large companies where multiple employees handle the same tasks, we face difficulties, but we have tried to find consensus through honest communication."

Employees who are about to get married or have children are celebrated with a company-wide party. (Provided by CMSLAB)

The strong will of CEO Lee Jin-su was a major factor in creating this culture. CEO Lee is highly interested in related systems to the extent that he personally took work-life balance leadership training. Now in his fifth year as CEO, he said the group encourages work-life balance systems at the corporate level.

CEO Lee’s office is located on the 8th floor, not the top 16th floor of the company building. He values open communication the most and always keeps the door open so that all employees can come in at any time. CEO Lee said, "It’s not important whether a system is established, but rather that systems are created according to individual needs case by case. Lowering turnover rates is important." He added, "I believe good employees make a good company."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.