Toward Universal Design in the Workplace:
Guidelines to Create Strategic Workplaces Usable for Diverse Workers

Shiro Nitanai, Japan Post, Tokyo, Japan
Kaori H. Nose, Fujitsu, Tokyo, Japan
Yoko Saito, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MIAbstract
We are faced with the arrival of an aging society accompanied by a decline in the younger work force.
This dynamic demographic change raises a new requirement to the workplace; how broadly it canaccommodate diverse workers with different physical abilities. This aspect will soon become one of thekey factors in determining the value of workplaces. In order to maximize the adaptability of work
environments, universal design, a concept of designing products and environments to be accessible/usable
as possible for people of all ages and abilities, is expected to play an important role. It will eventually
increase both the performance of facilities and the productivity of workers.
During the last two years, the Universal Design Research Committee of the Japan Facility
Management Promotion Association (JFMA-UD) worked to develop practical guidelines on how facility
managers can apply universal design to their workplaces.

The accomplishment of this work waspublished in 2004, titled Toward Universal Design in the Workplace: Guidelines to Create Strategic
Workplaces Usable for Diverse Workers.
Based on this accomplishment, this session will introduce some of our recommendations for theimportant processes and criteria that facility managers should keep in mind when planning universallydesigned workplaces.
presented.

A case study that suggests how to apply the guidelines in practice will also beIntroduction: For the well-being of workers and organizations

Universal design is becoming more and more popular—it is applied as a main design concept in manyindustries, such as the automotive, housing, stationery, and information technology fields.

The

popularity of universal design is based on not only the accessibility’s point of view that takes into
consideration aging societies and the increasing social participation of people with disabilities, but also
the increasing business competition that emphasizes the importance of customer-oriented design
development to satisfy a variety of customers’ needs.

Universal design strongly emphasizes thecustomers’ perspective and their satisfaction.

In the field of workplace design, target “customers” have been thought to be “Mr. Average”—young,healthy, average men.

Compared to public spaces where accessibility has been promoted by laws, it isobvious that the field of workplace design lacks studies regarding accommodations for diverse workers,
including women, older people, people with disabilities, and second-language speakers.
Facing the transition from the industrial to the knowledge society, however, many successfulorganizations have revealed that the diversity of the workforce is one of the most important aspects ofmaintaining organizational productivity and competitiveness in the global market.

Therefore, universal

design is increasingly seen as a long-term managerial strategy to establish the lasting strengths oforganizations by physically accommodating a wider range of competitive workers as human capital.

Meanwhile, the trends in workplace diversity and universal design are being supported by thepolitical movement in Japan.

For example, there is a movement that local governments publicly disclosethe employment rate of people with disabilities in each organization.

In addition, the Law for Buildings

Accessible to and Usable by the Elderly and Physically Disabled Persons was amended in 2002 so that theowners of office buildings are now obligated to makeevery effort to provide accessibility.

These politicalmovements will change the notion of what is requiredin the workplace.

As a response to these circumstances, in July
2003, the Japan Facility Management Promotion
Association (JFMA) established the Universal Design
Research Committee (JFMA-UD), whose objective is
to examine the effectiveness of universal design in theworkplace.

As part of its ongoing research, theJFMA-UD developed the guidelines for introducing universal design in the workplace.

In 2004, theseguidelines were published as a research report entitled Toward Universal Design in the Workplace:
Guidelines to Create Strategic Workplaces Usable for Diverse Workers.

The purpose of this report is to provide facility managers with a tool for adopting universal design intheir workplaces. Thus, this report takes the particular stance to discuss universal design from theperspective of facility managers.

Therefore, the proposals in this report are practical and comprehensive

rather than academic and rigorous.

We hope that this report can contribute to improving the quality ofwork lives among the wider range of people, as well as the well-being of organizations.

Steps to Universal Design in the Workplace

Traditionally, accessibility regulations have not taken into account the issues of workplace
accessibility as much as public buildings.

However, many social movements surrounding current

business environments are accelerating the need for universal design in the workplace beyond merecompliance with regulations.

For example, the changes in the employment background, such as a

hyper-aging society, equity in employment, and globalization of the human resource market, affect theincreasing diversity of workers. Moreover, societal attention to corporate social responsibility isincreasing social responsibility investments, social infrastructuralization of real estate, and corporate
responsibility for workers ﾕ health and safety.

These movements, in addition to prospected regulatory

and institutional changes, will consequently drive the further application of universal design in theworkplace.
The effectiveness of applying universal design in the workplace should be considered in the broader
aspects of corporate management, such as an increase in employee satisfaction, the improvement ofworkers’ productivity, and the enhancement of corporate images.

Step 1: Balanced scorecard analysisThe balanced scorecard (BSC) is a multi-dimensional framework to measure organizational
performance from four perspectives: financial, customers, internal business processes, and learning andgrowth.

BSC was developed based on a concept that it is essential for the long-lasting prosperity oforganizations to keep positive relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
Using BSC as a framework to assess the impacts of applying universal design on corporate
management, the first step toward workplace universal design is to analyze the expected advantages anddisadvantages of universal design forboth facility owners and office tenants.

Step 2: Critical success factors ofuniversal design in the FM-cycle

The next step is to identify critical
success factors (CSFs) in each stage ofthe facility management business cyclethat are crucial in order to accomplish
universal design.
For example, in the stage of project
management, 30 CFSs, each of which
belongs to one of ten categories, can beidentified.

Step 3: Goal of each critical successfactor

The third step is to determine thegoal of each CSF based on user needs.
In order to make goals manageable andpractical, it is effective to take thefollowing approaches to establishinggoals:(1) Identify the minimum level ofrequirements
This level shows basic practices
regardless of costs, including
compliance with regulations.
(2) Assume

thebestlevelofpracticeThis shows an ideal level ofuniversal design practice, whichincorporates viewpoints of universal design to the greatest extent.
(3) Set goals between minimum and best
The realistic level of goals can be determined between the minimum and the best levels, by taking
into account the priority of user needs and case studies that provide the ideas of possible solutions.

Step 4: Universal design review

Universal design review is a very simple and effective method to manage processes to apply universal
design in a building project.
In each stage of design processes (five stages in total, for example), a universal design team (coldteam, which represents users) reviews the proposals of a design team (hot team, responsible for overalldesign) and offers better alternatives from the perspective of universal design.

By repeating thisapproach, it is possible to continuously improve usability and accessibility without regression.
Representatives from older people, those with disabilities, and other diverse groups can be invited toparticipate in a universal design team if necessary.

A Case Study of Universal Design in the Workplace