Misfortunes never come alone

It is well known that a new mutant strain called Omicron was discovered in South Africa just before seeing the effects of COVID-19 were beginning to show signs of abating. In Japan, the lesson from its previous defence measures against COVID-19 made our quick reaction to put a one-month ban on entry to the country from other countries, starting today, the 30th. I think it is a quick response, given our country’s past practice. In particular, we must say that this is thanks to the solemn measures taken by former Prime Minister Kan, no matter what criticism he received. However, like Beethoven’s Ninth, it was supposed to be a year of joy in a bright world, but we may say that we are encountering a situation where dark clouds are coming in the future.

The arrival of new mutant strains and the establishment of telecommuting

Under these circumstances, even for development engineers who are in charge of new product development, in addition to the influence of COVID-19, the arrival of a new mutant strain called Omicron can be said to be a “bee on a crying face” or a “turn from bad to worse”. It would be no exaggeration to say that a series of disasters have been hitting them. However, for development engineers, this may be a second chance next to the impact of COVID-19. That’s because avoiding dense workplaces and working from home is about to get established for sure, that I can say. In other words, it means that to avoid denseness, a working style centred on web meetings will take hold. However, the Web meetings are supposed to save you time, but the reality is that each decision-making process is getting delayed. It is because no established decision-making method based on the Web meeting. A book entitled “Web Meetings and Decision Making” might be published early next year.