
To reduce the gap in children's experience
Support the expansion of future possibilities with "Oshigoto Kengaku"
"Oshigoto Kengaku (Job Discovery)" is a job introduction program held during school vacations that uses an online delivery service to make it easy for children to participate. Since its launch in 2022, the program has been held seven times with a cumulative total of approximately 4,900 participants. We interviewed Ms. Yamamoto, the program organizer.
Please give us an overview of "Oshigoto Kengaku" .
HIS has an online travel salon "TABIFLEEEEEK" as a community to keep people interested in both travel and global interest, and it serves as a place for members to freely exchange opinions . Within this community, one of the members suggested that we could create a place where children could discover a world they wouldn't normally be exposed to. The economic disparity widened due to the decrease in income caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, along with the difference in opportunities for children to experience the world in their childhood depending on where they live, both have become social issues as disparities in experiences for children. In 2022, we started an online job tour for children in the hope of alleviating these disparities, even if only a little.
Since everything has been online since the Covid-19 pandemic, we thought that by conducting tours online, we would be able to lower barriers such as location, time and cost to participate. There is no participation fee, and the flexibility of accepting applications up to one hour prior to the start of the event is also an attractive feature of the online program. Programs are divided into two age groups: for younger children (5-8 years old) and for older children (9-12 years old), with younger children often participating together with their parents. The reason for separating the programs according to age is that we believe 30 minutes is a standard amount of time for young children to participate in a fun program without becoming bored. On the other hand, for older children, the content is designed to enable them to envision a more concrete career, and each session is 45 minutes long. However, the target age group is only a rough estimate, so children are welcome to participate if they wish.
We believe that children will learn there are many professions in the world other than the ones they are used to encountering in their daily lives, such as school teachers. By interacting with adults outside of school and home, they will broaden their knowledge of social enjoyment and connections made in society, which will lead to more options for their future.
How did you gather people from a wide range of professions to participate in this project?
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In our opening program, we asked the members of the online salon themselves to appear on the show. Although they live in different places and have different occupations, they all share the same passion for children. After that, we consulted directly with the members' contacts and those whose occupations were requested in the survey. Thankfully, many professionals have supported our efforts and objectives and have participated with us.
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With HIS's online salon members, who are also the management members
While we leave the program's content up to the participants, we request a space where children can experience the ride together and engage in an interactive Q&A with adults. To facilitate interactive exchanges, we have included a moderator as a handler with an animal avatar. It is quite difficult to talk while keeping an eye on the chat box at all times, so we have included an animal avatar as a handler to help in this regard. The reason why we use avatars is to capture children's attention and make the video more engaging. There was a proposal to use a black screen with the camera off so that only the voice could be heard, but we settled on an avatar which would not get in the way and would allow the children to focus on the screen while adding a sense of entertainment. As for the hands-on experience, for example, in the doctor's session, we were taught how to wash our hands. In the cake shop session, we all did apple-polishing together. I am sure there will be more job-related experiences such as how to hold a scalpel or how to decorate a cake, but we hope that those experiences could be found in our daily existence so that people will remember and practice them in their everyday lives whenever the opportunity presents itself.
You used to work in the travel business. How did you feel when you were transferred to the online business?
After working in overseas travel tour planning and advertisement production, I was transferred to the online business, which was a new venture. I was not anxious at all about being involved in a new business, but rather excited, because I like to create things from scratch. At the time, spurred by the Covid-19 Pandemic, the company was just starting to explore new business ventures, and I was thrilled to join one of them.
I was put in charge of managing an online salon to increase community contacts online. With the rise of various services due to the development of digital technology, I felt that it was a great idea for HIS to create such a fan-based community space. I believe the online business has really expanded our relationship worldwide thanks to its global connectivity. I also believe that "Oshigoto Kengaku" would not have been possible without the use of online services, and it sure was a significant factor in expanding the possibilities of the project.

How was the response from the children and exhibitors who participated?
Many children showed genuine interest and enjoyment in the profession, saying, "I learned a lot and had fun," and "I definitely want to be a doctor in the future!". One parent even commented, "I was even more impressed with the whole experience than my children!." We feel that by engaging with professionals from various fields, visitors were able to experience new discoveries and was genuinely inspired. At the same time, one of the exhibitors said, "It gave me a chance to stop and think about the purpose and why I enjoy doing my current job", and another said, "I could almost feel what I share in the program could be useful for the children in the years to come." We also received comments such as "I felt that what I was talking about could be of use to the children in the future. We surveyed the exhibitors, and thankfully, every single one expressed interest in participating again. It really was a pleasant surprise that this event created a place where not only children, but also all age groups, were able to mutually inspire each other.
What are things you strive for in the programs?
What we always try to do is to provide children with "exciting" experiences so that they can concretely dream about their future. To achieve this, I believe it is important to stimulate children's intellectual curiosity by exposing them to diverse careers and adults they wouldn't encounter at school or home. We aim to build an environment where children can feel comfortable asking adults any questions, no matter how big or small, and receive sincere answers to deepen their learning.

With management member
What are your goals and ambitions for the future?
First, we want more people to know about "Oshigoto Kengaku". We are determined to continue creating opportunities of hands-on experience for children, and to make this a sustainable project that will help reduce the social issue of unequal opportunities among all children. It is a major ambition of this project to contribute to the manifestation of a society in which children are exposed to various occupations, expand their potentials, and freely choose their futures.
The next event is scheduled for August this year, and we are planning to offer about 15 different programs. We will continue our efforts to make sure the children who participate will find a rewarding experience through the program.
Oshigoto Kengaku
https://oshigoto-kengaku.com/-
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Yamamoto Kuniko
H.I.S. Co., Ltd.
Future Creation Office, New Business Management Division
Community Business TeamJoined the company in 2005. After working as a consultant at a sales office, being a tour planner for Hawaii and Europe, and producing advertising creatives, she holds her current position. As a new place for connection, she manages HIS's online salon "TABIFLEEEEEK".
*Please note that the content of this article was current at the time of the interview.