I took maternity and childcare leave for a year from 2016 to 2017.
In the sales team I belonged to at the time, there were many young people and none of them had taken maternity or childcare leave, but my supervisors and colleagues around me were very warm and supportive, and it was psychologically easy for me to take the leave.
The Works Applications Group's maternity and childcare leave system is more extensive than legally required, but I think we are very fortunate because not only the system, but also the workplace encourages employees to take the leave, and there is an atmosphere of support for childcare.

When my first and second children were born, I took 3 months each at the end of January 2020 and December 2021. My work was busiest in January, and I received a lot of help from others in taking the leave.
At first, I planned to take childcare leave for about one month, but my boss encouraged me to take a longer period because it would be difficult with only one wife, so I decided to take three months.
There were many male employees around me who had taken childcare leave, and they were very understanding, so it was very easy for me to take the time off.

It was my first experience raising a child, and I was full of anxiety because I didn't know what was right and what was left. I couldn't take my eyes off my child, and there were many things I didn't know how to deal with, so it was very difficult to choose and discard information. There were many difficult decisions to make, such as what to feed my baby or how to put my child to bed.
However, as I raised my children, I developed a strong sense of mission to protect them, and I felt a great sense of responsibility. I still often scold my children, but I have become more careful than ever about my own behavior, such as not saying unreasonable things. I want to show my children that I have a strong back.
I also wanted to return to work as soon as possible because I lost my connection with society during my childcare leave. My workplace welcomed me back to work, so I was able to return to work smoothly.
I am very grateful to the people and the personnel system at Works Applications Group, and my maternity and childcare leave has made me even more eager to contribute to the company.

Raising my first child was quite difficult, and I experienced great hardship. During the maternity leave, I was so busy with childcare that I often had trouble sleeping and didn't really feel like I was taking time off work. like F.F., this was my first experience with childcare and I didn't know how to handle it, so every day was a trial and error process.
It was very difficult even though we worked together, so if I had not taken childcare leave, I am sure my wife would have had even more trouble trying to take care of the child and raise the child on her own.
Having experienced childbirth and childcare, my perspective on parents in the world has changed dramatically.
I also started to pay more attention to my own behavior so that I can have as positive an influence on my children as possible. I am especially careful with my language.
During the three months I was on childcare leave, I concentrated on raising my child, but I was not worried about returning to work. I think it was because there was a culture of following each other throughout the team so that I could balance my private life and work.

First of all, working by teleworking gives me a great sense of security because I can work while being close to my children.
When something happens, such as a disaster, or when they get sick, I can get to them right away, and it is very good to be able to respond immediately to any sudden events of the children's lives.
Also, thanks to the full-flex system, I can easily attend my children's events by adjusting my work hours, and I can work with a relaxed mind.
As a side note, I personally would like to encourage all Works Applications Group fathers to take advantage of the flexible work hours and participate in childcare visits from the very first time. If you don't go the first time, it will be hard to attend after that... (laughter)

I also find it very easy to raise my children thanks to the ability to work remotely.
My child is not yet attending daycare, so I am happy to be able to eat lunch with my child when I work from home.
Currently, my wife, who is on childcare leave, takes the lead in taking care of our child, but I am also able to help her immediately if something happens, so that the burden is not placed on her alone.
I think the full-flex system is also good.
Many people in my department are raising children, but I am able to balance work and childcare by adjusting my work hours and taking time off from work to raise my child.

When my child was about 2 years old, I had an opportunity to talk with my boss about my future career.
At that time, I was so busy raising my child that I honestly did not have much time to think about my future career.
Of course, I intended to be faithful to my work, but perhaps my capacity was too limited, or perhaps I thought I would think about the future after childcare had calmed down a bit.
However, when my child turned 3 years old, the time I had to devote to child-rearing gradually decreased, and I began to have more time to think about my career.
I want to make sure that my own workload does not become too heavy, while at the same time achieving good results at work.
Also, since I started working while raising my children, I am now thinking more than ever about how to work efficiently so that childcare is not neglected.

It is said that children only play with you for 10 years, and there are many things you can only enjoy now, so I want to cherish the time when I can raise my children.
However, I like my job itself, and there are many areas where I have become more efficient in order to achieve results in the limited time I have to spend with my children, so I feel that childcare is having a positive impact on my work.

First of all, I think that increasing the number of cases of male employees taking this leave will encourage other employees. Since my own boss had taken childcare leave, it was easy for me to have an idea of the support I needed, and he was very generous in helping me adjust my work until I took my leave.
I think there are still many men who leave child-rearing to women, but raising a child is harder than you might imagine.
For example, as F.F. mentioned, there are many situations where there is too much information and it is difficult to make a decision when researching something you don't know, such as what baby food you should feed your child.
Just being able to think together as a couple at such times eases my anxiety a little.
If people knew how hard it is to raise children, I think there would be fewer men who neglect child-rearing and go out drinking every day (laughs).
At Works Applications Group, it is easy to take childcare leave. A mother's physical condition and stamina do not recover immediately after giving birth, so I would like men to take advantage of childcare leave as well.

I myself didn't have much trouble (laughs).
The company had a support system in place, and the people in my department welcomed me back with open arms, so there was always an atmosphere that made it easy for me to return.
Before I started my leave, I was very excited about taking a long leave, but when I actually took a long leave of absence from work, I felt like I was losing my connection with society, and I gradually became more and more anxious (laugh).
(Laughs) I knew that childcare alone would not be enough for me, so my only thought was to return to work.
I think the reason why mothers in the world are unsure whether to return to work is because they have a strong desire to be with their children more when they are young.
I know how that feels, and it takes about 10 years for a child to be so attached to you. Even if you are able to have both, continuing to work will also mean less time for childcare, so I think it depends on the person's will whether or not they want to continue working.

Our company has an extensive personnel system that includes childcare leave and a childcare support system.
That said, there is nothing at all like being forced to take childcare leave in order to increase the rate of childcare leave (laughs), and all of our employees take childcare leave of their own volition. (Laughs). We also have a culture that allows people to work flexibly, assuming that they produce results, so it is not limited to those who want to prioritize family, but also those who want to take time off for their hobbies or other individual needs.
Of course, people who want to work hard can also be active.
Everyone's approach to work may change as their life stage or lifestyle changes, and Works Applications Group is a company that can flexibly respond to such changes.

I am currently using a system mainly related to childcare, but the company is also willing to consider other personal circumstances such as caring for a parent.
I think this is the perfect company for those who want to enrich both their personal and professional lives, as they can work flexibly according to their individual life events.
While working while raising a child myself, I feel that I have been very supported by the members around me and the company, and that is why I have a strong desire to contribute to the company. I would be happy if you can share these values with me and apply for the position.

I think that the Works Applications Group's childcare support system has always been well-developed, but now that the system has been renewed and men are also eligible, I think that the system has become even better by expanding the range of working styles.
In particular, I think the system of "half childcare leave" (available within the range of 12 to 20 hours per week) is good.
As I have experienced myself, it takes a lot of courage to take a complete leave of absence from work to devote yourself to childcare. In such a situation, I think that a system of semi-parental leave would help lower the hurdle for returning to work, as it would prevent "losing one's work instincts" while taking care of one's child. Also, it would be nice to know that taking leave to care for a child would be paid, not absent. Childcare is expensive (laughs).

When I took childcare leave, men were still not eligible for the system, but now that the support system has been extended to include men, I think it has been a positive development for both the company and the employees.
Taking maternity leave, regardless of gender, may be a burden for the company and the organization, but I think it is very important. What I particularly like is the shortened working hour system (available in the range of 4 to 8 hours/day) that can be used until the child graduates from elementary school. I think it is very attractive to be able to control working hours according to the child's situation.