On a sunny morning this summer, Watts, now a team leader, was preparing for a new test. The 26-year-old was worried his work was about to become more intense and stressful. Yet he was determined to make it a success.By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc.
Snap, the tech company, which earlier this year announced lay-offs, recently asked employees to come to the office four days a week.Joe O’Connor, the chief executive of 4 Day Week Global, says: “This was something which, pre-pandemic, was a growing niche [but] still very much a fringe concept…The impact of the pandemic has turbocharged the four-day-week movement.”
Detractors fear a loss of output, alongside other risks such as burnout, erosion of workplace culture or the uptake of second jobs. The risks were not only a decline in output but that the intensity of working fewer days might offset any gains from having one extra day off.Article content At Hutch, leaders answered and publicly shared the answers to more than 140 anonymous questions and ran Q&A sessions with each team. Senior leadership likes to joke it took six months of six-day weeks to transition to four days.
For two hours every Wednesday, Hutch employees focus on so-called deep work, uninterrupted by meetings or calls. The company also created a dedicated quiet area.