Despite the widespread success of pilot programs for a four-day workweek worldwide, it is still not a common practice in many organizations.
Leslie Joseph, a principal analyst at Forrester, notes that traditional thinking and resistance from management are major obstacles to implementing four-day workweeks.
Companies that have tried the four-day workweek have seen positive outcomes, especially when there is strong organizational support. Employees have reported increased productivity, better mental health, and improved work-life balance.
While some believe that a 32-hour workweek may not be as productive as a 40-hour one, advancements in automation and AI tools, such as generative AI, have helped organizations succeed with shorter workweeks.
Colin Bryce, managing director of Cobry, introduced a four-day workweek to the company before the rise of generative AI tools. He found that phased transitions to a shorter workweek often led to analysis paralysis, recommending a direct approach instead.
When implementing the four-day workweek at Cobry, Bryce emphasized principles like automation, elimination, outsourcing, delegation, and education to maintain efficiency. The integration of AI tools like ChatGPT further enhanced the effectiveness of the shorter workweek.
Despite operational challenges like asynchronous work due to the “20% time” policy, Cobry leveraged its modern tech stack to overcome these obstacles. Tools like Asana and Notion were instrumental in managing work and knowledge effectively.
2024-07-26 15:15:03
Article from www.computerworld.com