including my husband who works at the same place, my col-leagues, and the nursery teachers.Now that the number of women in the company has in-creased, I am in a position to support the activities of em-ployees as a manager. I have responsibility for my section and subordinates, and each time I change my position from section manager to general manager, I feel that my per-spective has changed and my view has broadened. It is an experience I could not have gained as a sales representa-tive. Currently, four people in the Sales Management De-partment are on maternity or childcare leave. In the past 10 years, no one has left the company due to childbirth. Some have returned after having two or three children. Perhaps it’s because there are so many role models close to them that they think, “I’ll come back after I have a baby”.My husband works at the Nagoya branch. There are many in-house marriages, and some couples have men tak-ing maternity leave. I think it would be better if more and more people took maternity leave. This is the era from now on. Whenever employees ask for permission, such as if they want to work from home because their child in the early grades of elementary school comes home early, or if they want to go home early for family reasons, I allow them to do so. It’s natural for men to take care of children as well, and if they need to take a day off, they should take a day off.For example, if you work only routine jobs with shorter hours while having and raising two children, you will quickly have a career gap of about 7 to 8 years, which will leave you with a huge gap between you and your male peers.In addition to myself, there are two other female manag-ers in the Head Office Sales Management Department, but the five section managers who run the section are all men. Strangely, only men are nominated for section manager po-sitions, even though the female managers are as talented as the men. If we don’t develop our female employees in the same way as male employees, it’s obvious that there will be a shortage of human resources soon. For my part, I want them to gain experience in a way that they can after they return to work, even though their time is limited.There is also a need to change the mindset of women. Many women hesitate to become managers because they are raising children, or feel guilty about the way they work. Based on my own experience, I would like to understand the situation that “housework and childcare are burdensome for women,” while trying to pull them upward somehow.Mrs. Sasai in the Design Office, who gave birth earlier than I did, was a pioneer in our company. I feel as if I have al-ways followed behind her as she struggled. We have shared the growth and hardships of our children since they were small. Even now, it’s fun and refreshing to chat with her.I give a concrete shape to the image of the product ac-cording to the customer’s request. The image may be con-veyed in words, or images, illustrations, or other companies’ Mrs. Tomoko SasaiGive shape to my thoughts on productI wanted to work in package design, so I entered the com-pany in 1998 in a design position. My starting point was a high school excursion. At a souvenir store in Kyoto, I saw candy packaging with a region-specific design that was not available in Tokyo, and I was impressed by the interesting idea of changing the packaging, which has stayed with me ever since, and led to a job that I will do for the rest of my life.Packaging is something that consumers pick up and see at the final stage of purchasing a product in a store. I am happy to be involved in this process. I try to create a de-sign that catches people’s attention and makes them want to pick it up and say “I want it!”.44Planning and Design OfficeArt Director and DesignerConcentrate on design at her deskIncrease female managersI think the company has become a good place to work in terms of returning to work after childbirth. What concerns me is the career development of women afterward. I some-times see men giving women shorter working hours or sup-plementary jobs out of consideration that they can’t work the same way as before after having a baby. This may be “men’s good intentions,” but the late 20s and 30s are the most interesting period for women as we can do more work on our own. It would be a waste to lose opportunities for growth by limiting work.
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