Implementing Reduced Work Hour Models with 4 Day Week Global founder Charlotte Lockhart
This week on The Work Well Podcast, we are delighted to welcome the founder and CEO of 4 Day Week Global all the way from Auckland, New Zealand, Charlotte Lockhart.
Charlotte is a business advocate, investor, and philanthropist with more than 25 years of experience in multiple industries around the world. She works to promote internationally the benefits of a productivity-based and reduced-hours workplace. She’s on the board of the Wellbeing Research Centre at Oxford University and the advisory boards of the US Campaign and the Ireland campaign for the 4 Day Week Programme.
A few episodes back, Joe O’Connor introduced the 4 Day Working Week Movement to us and we talked about its impact in Ireland with Breann McGarry also. Now, we can have a closer look at the project with the founder of the movement.
The 4 Day Week Global Programme with Charlotte Lockhart
4 Day Week Global was created as a way to replicate the success Charlotte and her team had at Perpetual Guardian when they became the first organisation in the world to introduce a 4 day working week for all employees. And they've been working with that model ever since. The idea they promote is 100% of the productivity, 80% of the time and 100% of the pay.
Charlotte stresses that the model might look different in every organisation because leaders have to adapt it to their company’s needs.
It is not about closing your business for a whole day, but rather finding a way to give employees enough time off so they can be more productive during the time they spend at work.
Changing the concept of free time in people’s minds
One of the objectives of 4 Day Week Global is to change people’s concept of free time. Most workers and employers don’t always appreciate the importance of engaging in activities outside of work, and they often lack the incentive to do them.
“One of the saddest things that we hear, and you’ll hear it no matter how nice your country is, people say, ‘I'm not sure what I would do with the free time’”, Charlotte states. The invitation here is to encourage people to have hobbies away from work and develop themselves in other areas beyond what they do for a living.
This comes from creating structures that support people’s fulfilment in the workplace and that allow them to physically and mentally leave work after their shift is over to focus on themselves.
Hybrid working models and the 4 Day Week Movement
How does a hybrid working model, which is now becoming the norm in the post-pandemic world, coexist with other wellbeing initiatives like the 4 Day Working Week Movement? This is an ongoing conversation amongst wellness leaders and Charlotte was well aware of this, even before the pandemic hit.
For Charlotte, the crisis that followed lockdown, solved two key questions to help improve wellbeing within organisations: Can people work from home? Yes. Can we trust employees to work in an unsupervised environment? We can if we provide appropriate structures and guidance for work and tasks.
And this not only solved operational problems but also opened the door for people to have a voice in their own work environment. As Charlotte mentions, “They don't expect to be told how to work. They want to be consulted as to what the new normal is”.
How does the 4 Day Week Programme pilot work for companies?
The idea of reducing work time is not new and companies can do this on their own. However, by joining an official 4 Day Week pilot programme, companies are also signing up for guidance and support from the 4 Day Week Global team as well as peer support from other companies going through the very same process with similar challenges.
“Realistically, this is about how we bring in companies, and they can learn from each other because we can provide guidance and we can provide a structure for you to follow”, adds Charlotte.
Another benefit of being part of the pilot programme is having access to the ongoing research the company keeps, which allows leaders to evaluate and improve their team’s wellbeing by creating solutions supported by data from their own company and others.
What companies can expect from implementing the 4 Day Week Programme
Not all companies adapt quickly to a reduced working hour model and it often takes a period of trial and error before organisations find the right solutions to fit their needs. Charlotte advises wellbeing leaders and CEOs to, firstly, trust the process they are going through.
“There's the quote that's often attributed to Henry Ford, which is ‘Whether you think you can, or whether you think you can't, you're right”, says Charlotte.
One of the pitfalls wellbeing leaders encounter most often is overthinking and rushing their decisions when they don’t see results right away. It’s crucial to understand that, even within the same organisation, each team and department has their own needs and the challenge is to find a balance between what leaders can do from an organisational point of view and what works for employees..
If you’d prefer to watch our conversation, you can view it on YouTube through this link.
If you liked this episode and want to know more about Charlotte Lockhart and 4 Day Week Global, you can check out their Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Remember you still have time to sign up for the Irish pilot and the US pilot if you wish to be part of this amazing community.
Our Partners
This episode is brought to you in partnership with AJ Products who are leading the way in Ergonomic and Active workplace furniture solutions at ajproducts.ie
About Your Host
Brian Crooke is a wellbeing educator, speaker and adviser, empowering organisations to promote and sustain wellbeing within their workplaces.
He is the founder of The Work Well Institute and the Work Well Community and is Course Director of the Postgraduate Certificate in Workplace Wellness at Tangent, Trinity College Dublin. He is the host of The Work Well Podcast.
If you’re looking to bring sustainable wellbeing to your workplace then check out The Work Well Institute’s flagship programme, Developing a Workplace Wellness Programme that Lasts.
In his spare time, Brian is bringing free resistance training to every county and community in Ireland through his parkHIIT social enterprise.
If you have any suggestions for future topics you'd like to hear on the show, email Brian directly, brian@workwellpodcast.com