Innovation management platform Edison365 has permanently moved to a 32-hour four-day week following a successful three-month pilot scheme for its 30 employees across its UK and USA offices.
The business, which originally trialled a 4.5-day working week in 2020 where staff were allowed to finish at 2pm each Friday, has had positive feedback from both employees and customers regarding its four-day week with no reduction in salary.
Members of staff can choose between Monday and Friday as their day off, or can split it and have two half-days off if they prefer. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays will remain core business days with everyone working, and throughout the working week continuity of staffing levels will be maintained to ensure customer service levels do not change.
The trial has meant that staff can spend more time on what matters to them, such as having quality time with their children or taking up a new hobby.
CEO Ivan Lloyd, who has been pursuing a better work-life balance for all of his staff, explained that he believes giving everybody an opportunity to have an extra day to do the things they want to do is important, and also helps the business to stand out from the crowd when recruiting.
“We’ve seen a definite uptick in the numbers of people signing up for our vacancy notifications; our latest role posting on recruitment sites has had to be pulled early due to the high quantity of respondents. We believe that these changes will help to not only improve our teams’ wellbeing, but also the productivity of the [organisation] as a whole.
“We're happy to be pioneers in a space that, we believe, represents a true work-life balance and a path to a healthier life as a society. We'll be sharing our knowledge and best practice with those willing to embark on this journey,” he said.
