GMO internet,Inc.

GMO Internet Group has completely abolished its remote work recommendation policy, and CEO Masatoshi Kumagai's social media post stating 'remote work is a negative' has caused a stir. Kumagai later apologized for the excessive expression, but maintained the policy of requiring employees to work in the office in principle. Major companies are increasingly moving back to in-office work, with LINE Yahoo eliminating full remote work in 2025 and raising the requirement to three days a week in the office starting this year, and Accenture Japan also adopting a principle of full five-day office attendance. From management's perspective, a disparity in the burden of miscellaneous tasks such as answering phone calls and handling visitors has emerged between in-office and remote employees, and the resulting sense of unfairness is pointed to as the 'real enemy' that causes organizational division. On the other hand, there are also drawbacks, such as the outflow of highly marketable talent who dislike the return to the office and headwinds against diversity.

GMO Internet Group founder Masatoshi Kumagai announced on his X account on the 14th that the group had completely abolished its recommendation for remote work as of the 13th. The company had allowed one day of remote work per week even after the pandemic, but has now discontinued this practice. GMO was known for its early adoption of large-scale remote work in late January 2020 in response to the novel coronavirus, and had continued safety measures such as mask-wearing and a ban on face-to-face dining even after employees returned to the office.