Experiments with the four-day week are multiplying. Although it is still too early to draw any definitive conclusions, some feedback seems promising—as at Perpetual Guardian, a property management company in New Zealand, where this set-up allowed employee engagement rates to increase by 40%. However, feedback underlines two essential conditions for the viability of this new rhythm:

– More than imposing one fixed working day less, the main thing is that employees obtain the free time that has the most value to them. At Perpetual Guardian, some people thus opted for an entire day off; others preferred to work five days, but with shortened working hours—particularly some parents, in order to facilitate childcare.

– This new organization must be accompanied by an in-depth reflection on how to improve productivity. An efficient approach consists in helping everyone to think about the least productive moments of their day and in reviewing certain processes accordingly. This could involve, for instance, introducing interruption-free time slots, holding shorter meetings, or making rest areas available.

Source: The Four-Day Workweek: How to Make It Work in Your Organization, Andrew Barnes, MIT Sloan Management Review, June 2023.