Japan has some of the longest work hours in the world, but not necessarily the most productive hours. A graying population leaves only 62% of the population at working age. Many women find inflexible workplaces prevent them from returning to their careers after they have children. The Japan Productivity Center ranked Japan lowest of the Group of Seven most advanced nations in productivity.

We asked Deloitte to take a look at how mobile devices and digital tools might help in the workforce.

According to their report, Japan’s Mobile Potential, more flexible IT policies could help unlock almost 2 trillion yen for the Japanese economy and keep some of Japan’s most skilled people in the workforce.

Here are some the findings that led to that number.

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Mobiles are almost everywhere in Japan, except the office
The gap between the technology Japan's young workers experience in their personal and professional lives is immense. Deloitte found that despite having one of the highest rates of smartphone use in the world — 75% of people between 18 and 49 own a personal smartphone — less than 9% of that age group use their smartphone for work. Of the same group, 20% of people own a tablet computer at home, but only 3% of these people have access to a tablet for work their work tasks.




People want to work more flexibly with digital and mobile tools
71% of people said that they would be more productive if they had access to digital tools like smartphones, laptops and tablets for work, as it would enable them to work from home or while commuting.

Workplace IT has some catching up to do
Many people say that their home IT is better than what they’re given at work. They rate their home technology as more user friendly (51%), more up to date (45%) and said that their internet was faster (43%). Almost half of the respondents said that they are frustrated with their workplace IT, as their computers and internet speeds as too slow and their devices are outdated.

Employees with flexible workplace IT policies are more productive
Businesses that allow their employees to work from home or work remotely with digital tools said they are more productive. And none of the respondents with flexible workplace IT policies said they work overtime, while 31% of those without this approach said they regularly work overtime.

Mobile devices and flexible IT policies could unlock two trillion yen for the Japanese economy
Deloitte found that two trillion yen could be unlocked for the Japanese economy if businesses provided skilled people who want to work, but need to be able to work remotely or from home, with digital tools like smartphones, laptops and tablets that allow them to do so. When you consider that they did not calculate the impact of giving people who are working access to digital tools and flexible workplace policies, this figure could be much higher.

Deloitte has found that digital tools and flexible IT practices can enable skilled professionals to remain in the workforce and help people work more effectively. Read the full report (in Japanese) from Deloitte here or find out how Google can help your company work flexibly with mobile tools at the Google Enterprise website.

Posted by Shinichi Abe, Enterprise Managing Director, Google Japan