Transitioning to a 4-day week can be a daunting prospect for any business owner. Making such a monumental shift to how your business operates requires careful planning, research and tweaking. Having operated on a 4-day week for the past 3 years, MRL Consulting Group have outlined their 5 top tips for making the switch.
Research
If you’re thinking about moving to a 4-day week, that’s great, but be warned; the road to successfully adopting this new way of working is far from straight forward and you need to do your research before you think about making the switch.
Every business is different; the way they operate, their employees, their clients and their services. Understanding how to successfully transition to a 4-day week starts with understanding exactly how each aspect of your business will have to adapt. There are currently over 40 businesses in the UK that have successfully implemented a 4-day week, and thousands of case studies from around the globe. Read as much as you can about why these businesses transitioned, how they done it, and what they would do differently if they could start again.
Trial Run
When MRL Consulting Group announced the transition to a 4-day week in 2019, they started with a 6-month trial. This gave MRL a ‘grace period’ to put their research into practice and fine tune how it worked as they went. The best way to learn is often to do, so giving your business and your employees a period of time to transition, voice concerns and provide feedback will ultimately lead to the best way for your company to make the 4-day week work.
Make sure you listen to your employees during this time, those at the coalface of your organisation will be able to tell you exactly what is or isn’t working and what needs to be done. For your clients and customers, be upfront about your choice to move to a 4-day week, and keep your office open on that 5th day. If someone has to book something in on that 5th day, then let them, just don’t make them.
Keep your culture alive
Transitioning to a 4-day week can’t be a replacement for your current employee wellbeing strategy, you have to trust in the process and continue to provide everything else you currently do; don’t skip out on company incentives, don’t reduce holiday, and if you can, don’t split your team. Giving everyone at the company the same day off will do wonders for your company culture; your people can socialise on the extra day off, and for the 4 days they’re in, they’ll still be together. Move your company social events to a day when everyone is in the office so they can still attend.
Don’t cheat the system
A 4-day week isn’t stretching 5 days’ worth of hours into 4, or reducing holiday to cover the extra days off, or reducing salaries / commission to make up for the lost hours. If you do it right, the increases you’ll see in productivity will make up for the lost hours. Don’t cheat it.
Support your staff and invest in training
Speaking of productivity, this won’t increase on its own. You have to invest in your staff and the training they receive to help them make the most out of the 4 days they’re working. Look at ways of streamlining your processes and introducing software to support your employees and customers.
Above all else, be open and honest with everyone affected by your adoption of a 4-day week. If you know someone who has implemented it for their company, reach out to them. 4dayweek.com are hosting a pilot to support businesses making the transition by proving a support network for business owners. On top of this, they offer expert advice for those considering a 4-day week with the full support of over 30 companies who have successfully implemented it for themselves.
Don’t go it alone, trust in the process and listen to everyone within your company; it’s a long road, but your company’s future will be brighter for it.
