Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Ministry of the Interior and Safety Selects 'Outstanding Spatial Innovation Institutions'... Emphasizing Communication, Creativity, and Innovation

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups was the only central government agency selected as an excellent institution in the 2021 'Public Sector Space Innovation Best Practices Contest' hosted by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.

This year, a total of 26 central agencies, local governments, and public institutions participated, and four institutions, including the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, were selected as excellent institutions (in the field of workspace innovation). It is the first time since the contest began that a headquarters, which is not a government-affiliated institution, has been selected.

The new Ministry of SMEs and Startups headquarters, established in Eojin-dong, Sejong City in July, was designed with input from both the minister and employees. Minister Kwon Chil-seung emphasized creating an innovative space to ensure communication and a creative organizational culture take root, under the belief that "changes in the working space transform the way and culture of work within the organization."

To reflect employees' opinions, design idea contests (April), naming contests for shared spaces (June), and design contests for department-specific meeting rooms (June) were held. They also benchmarked private companies by visiting to study spaces such as book cafes, personal spaces, and central lounges.

As a result, to promote communication and collaboration, office partitions were removed or lowered as much as possible to create an open-plan layout. Each department's meeting room was designed to reflect employees' ideas, creating spaces that embody the vision and personality of each department.

Video conferencing systems were installed in all shared meeting rooms, and a smart office was separately prepared for business travelers. The archive room was transformed into a book cafe to increase its utilization. Additionally, the civil service office was designed as a cafe-style space, and exclusive face-to-face and video meeting rooms for visitors were provided to enhance convenience.

Lee Sang-chang, head of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups Operations Support Division, stated, "The Ministry of SMEs and Startups will continue to promote innovation in work methods and spaces to lead government innovation in the future."

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