focus on calendar, Concept of four or 4 days work week showing by young man working in background ... [+]
There is ample evidence to suggest the four-day work week attracts top talent and improves business outcomes. Yet, many organizations are resistant to moving to the four-day week.
In my interview with Grace Tallon, chief operating officer (COO) at Work Time Reduction, she indicated that “mindset plays a significant role in moving to a shorter work week. The standard five-day week and eight-hour-day work structure are very deeply ingrained, and with it an approach which often uses hours as an ineffective proxy for productivity, and which rewards performative busyness over efficiency. It takes a substantial shift in mindset to imbed new norms, habits and behaviors to adopt a reduced-hour, outcomes-focused work model.”
Humans naturally resist change. Neuroscience indicates that the amygdala (the fear center) becomes stimulated with change and signals to our bodies to prepare to go into fight-or-flight mode as it would to respond to a serious threat or predator.
The four-day work week is a significant change to the workplace. Instead of overhauling the complete culture and workplace norms, subtle shifts can help implement change more effectively. There are four primary shifts necessary to make the pivot to the four-day week.
Shift #1: Organization-Wide Commitment
Tallon notes, “Moving to a four-day work week in a predominantly five-day-week world requires an organization-wide commitment to operational excellence and continuous improvement to successfully and sustainably pull off the transition. Some of the barriers are logistical, such as redesigning schedules to accommodate the shift. Some are operational, such as re-engineering processes. And some are cultural, requiring a delicate balance between trust, autonomy and collective accountability.”
Leaders need to be committed to change. If leaders begin working on the designated day off or working more hours than agreed, it signals to the rest of the team that the commitment is not serious. The commitment needs to be demonstrated at all levels of the organization. As an analogy, when paid paternity leave is offered as a benefit and senior leaders who were fathers do not utilize it, other men follow suit and do not use the benefit. It's important that leaders model the behaviors for the team to follow.
Shift #2: Practice First
Because of these necessary shifts, many of which cannot be fully anticipated until the transition occurs, Tallon’s team facilitates practice sessions to prepare teams for the four-day week. The practice sessions are more about reinforcing the new habits and behaviors that employees have adopted during their planning and preparation for a work-time-reduction program.
Practice sessions begin by slowly implementing what the four-day work week could look like. The team might experiment with different days to take off or different meeting times or settings to see what works and what doesn't. Teams also measure outcomes to see the impact on productivity and the quality of work. Some of the most common early gains are more efficient meetings, more streamlined communications and more focused work environments. Without interventions and ongoing coaching, people may revert to old habits, so it is important to learn from early setbacks and to capture and celebrate successes.
Shift #3: Get the Naysayers on Board
Just as the senior leadership team is pivotal to the implementation of the four-day work week, so are the resistors. These are the naysayers who say it won't work or question why the change is occurring. Even a small vocal group can cause disruption in the change-management process.
Leaders need to be clear on the why for the change, emphasize what's in it for the people and take baby steps to coach people through the change. By meeting people where they are and understanding their hesitations, you can appeal to their personal motivations and help them understand how this change helps them and the team work better.
Shift #4: Address the Limitations
For operational parts of the business, frontline or customer-facing roles, the four-day work week can be more complex to implement. Some teams implement job sharing or redesign their shifts to make the four-day work week possible for all employees. If it's truly not a possibility, be clear about that. Don't pretend this works for everyone if there is a subgroup of the organization for whom it is not possible. Acknowledge their sacrifice and try to find other benefits to close the gap. Other incentives could include extra pay or vacation time to account for the difference in time worked. This is important because having different rules for different people is a recipe for mistrust.
Organizations are pivoting to the four-day work week in growing numbers. For those that want to make the shift, ensure there is a strong organization-wide commitment, practice first, get the naysayers on board and acknowledge limitations for success.
