Pets × IT?! About our unique internal initiative, the "Pet × Well-being Project"

Hello. This is the Fujitsu Public Relations Note editorial team.
This time, we are talking about pets, which bring healing and vitality to our daily lives.
In Japan, the pet boom accelerated following the behavioral restrictions caused by the spread of COVID-19 in 2020,and it is said that the number of dogs and cats kept as pets in 2023 exceeded 15.9 million, surpassing the population of children (under 15 years old) of 14.35 million.Fujitsu has been strengthening its well-being initiatives so that employees can face the values they cherish in both their work and private lives, and move toward their own future happiness every day. Furthermore,
we are also carrying out various initiatives regarding the well-being of pets, which are important beings to our employees(although it was a while ago, setting up an office where you can bring your dog to work was part of those activities).We would like to introduce our internal initiative for the well-being of pets and employees, the "Pet × Well-being Project."

What kind of project is the "Pet × Well-being Project"?

In the "Pet × Well-being Project",we combine Fujitsu's DX technology with the knowledge of experts both inside and outside the company to disseminate pet-related information and provide a place where owners can communicate across organizational boundaries.Specifically, this is a Fujitsu-like initiative that includes holding seminars using virtual spaces and opening internal social media where owners can connect, which is suitable for many employees working remotely. Volunteers within the Fujitsu Group bring their individual expertise and skills to promote the project through trial and error.

In the online seminar for employees held last year, we invited external experts (pet food-related companies, veterinarians, animal welfare organizations, etc.) to conduct lectures on pet health and events connecting employees with animal welfare organizations focusing on social issues. Rather than a general online meeting style, we designed it as a virtual space where participants' pets could play (Image 1) so that participants could relax and enjoy themselves.
The number of seminar participants was over 100 for the first session and over 200 for the second, and the number of fans has been steadily increasing in less than a year since its launch.

Thoughts from the leaders of the "Pet × Well-being Project"

We received comments from the members who passionately promote the "Pet × Well-being Project."

Project Leader Matsubara

I live with a toy poodle who is 13 years old this year, and I am always healed by her. Since I cannot communicate with animals in words, I feel the need to provide devoted care for illnesses and injuries. Following the example of countries known as leaders in animal welfare, such as Germany and the UK, I hope that DX will advance in Japan to realize a safe and secure life for animals and their owners, such as the use of PHR (Personal Health Records) to centrally manage pet health and medical information, and the spread of monitoring systems. Through this project, I hope to contribute in my own small way to creating an environment where people and pets can live comfortably and to the utilization of IT.

Project PR Representative Wakabayashi

Through this project, I have come to strongly feel that I want to find what I can do not only for my own dog, which was the reason I joined, but also for animals living in the same society. At events where we invited experts, I was able to gain practical knowledge such as how to communicate with pets to understand their hearts and about common pet illnesses and injuries. Also, through activities to promote understanding of this project, I was able to experience public relations work that I had been interested in for a long time, and I feel that everything is becoming a source of personal growth.
This year, following last year, the main focus will be on activities to revitalize internal communication aimed at creating well-being for employees and their pets. Toward the further development of this project, I would like to collaborate with the external experts who have cooperated with us so far to promote animal welfare activities and the well-being of employees and their pets.
I would be happy if this new combination of animal welfare and pet well-being could be a catalyst for further expanding Fujitsu's potential.

Related Links

Fujitsu's Well-being: https://www.fujitsu.com/jp/about/csr/wellbeing/