When it comes to managing team well-being and performance, we use data to find the “signal” but the “fix” is in the imperfect execution. You introduce strategies and playbooks on a MANAGER/MICRO level which will allow you to find patterns in real-time. If the pattern is beneficial, you add resources and double down. If it’s negative, you iterate and try again.
As we like to say, "you don’t create well-being and high-growth performance. You create environments which allow well-being to emerge."
When it comes to understanding when to implement a 4 day work week Playbook with your team, as we mentioned before, it's necessary to determine the direction of travel, and what you are trying to impact. In our opinion, that boils down to two simple concepts:
This direction of travel is necessary for understanding the means by which you want to start a 4 day work week Playbook.
Let's break down these two concepts a bit more...
A 4 day work week is a powerful way to better support your teams. From burnout and mental health improvements to allowing more personal freedom, the key is to understand where your team is at today, and what strategy is best to use before the entire place burns down.
Fast-growing companies should be designed to support and empower their teams—and the 4 day work week is a powerful way to improve your team’s wellbeing.
Companies that have used the 4-day workweek say their team is...
So the question you need to ask yourself is this: Is my team at risk of burnout? If you answered no, maybe you should read on...
According to a new survey from anonymous workplace chat app Blind, which surveyed 3,023 employees at companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Facebook. Blind’s poll found that employees at some of the world’s biggest tech companies are feeling more burned out and unhappy at their jobs than ever before.
To add to the point, according to LEON's Performance Index data, over 82% of employees at any given time are at risk, trending or are currently experiencing burnout.
But what most companies fail to understand is that a 4 day work week doesn't need to be a long-term, company wide solution.
As a matter of fact, when trying to support your teams or reduce burnout risk, adopting a 4 day work week Playbook over the course of a few weeks, or even an entire quarter can be an amazing strategy to boost morale and improve well-being.
For more general information on starting a 4 day work week, see our overview guide here.
This is where the team at LEON likes to break the mold a bit and discuss the concept of using a 4 day work week Playbook as a growth lever.
As mentioned in the first part of this guide, a 4 day work week can be used as a tool to produce more output and more productivity over a given period. And the data supports this concept!
Fast-growing companies that have adopted a 4-day workweek see a positive impact on the bottom line.
Take for example a high-growth sales team at your typical SaaS company. These teams are mostly overworked and are constantly under pressure to drive revenue at hockey stick level growth.
A 4 day work week Playbook could be used at the end of a quarter to not only focus the team on the mission at hand but also has provided value from a reward mechanism standpoint. (who doesn't love time off!)
With a simple 2-3 week Playbook at the end of the quarter your team gets a much-needed break from the week to week monotony of selling, a few Fridays off to be with family and friends, but also, it allows them to drive production over four days.
As you can see, understanding the right lever to pull at the right time, based on the needs of your teams, is the "secret sauce" to understanding HOW to start a 4 day work week with your team.
From supporting your teams' mental health and driving recovery to challenging your teams to more sustainable hockey stick growth, the trick to adopting a successful 4 day work week Playbook is not about the strategy itself, but more about the direction you want to travel in.
Curious to understand more about what your team needs today? Check out some of the links below:
