The Productivity Show

The Four Day Work Week Experiment: Tips and Lessons Learned (TPS382)


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Today’s episode is going to be a bit different.

From time to time we do episodes about how we do things at AE, for two reasons:

  1.  Going back to the early days of the blog in 2011 and the podcast in 2015, we get a LOT of questions about behind the scenes aspects of running AE
  2. We are always doing experiments to try to improve the company, be more productive, and have happier team members
  3. You know what they say – “Happy people are productive people”; so we’d like to share what we learn from these experiments with you

    A few summers ago we did an experiment: what if we ran the company just 4 days a week throughout the whole summer?

    We had a vote and… SURPRISE… The team voted yes.

    We’ve done it a few times since, and are midway through another run at it, doing it during December for the first time.

    If you’ve ever thought about trying a 4-day work week, we’ll share our lessons and insights with you that can help you decide if it’s right for you.

    Perhaps you already do a 4-day work week and want more tips to make it more effective, we got you covered too.

    Free $75 credit to upgrade your post at Indeed.com/tps. Terms and conditions apply. Offer valid through December 31, 2021.

    Thanks to Mack Weldon. For 20% off your first order, visit mackweldon.com/TPS with promo code TPS.

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    You can find links to everything that we share in the show notes by going to theproductivityshow.com/382.

    Cheat Sheet:
    • Why did Thanh decide to do an episode on the Four Day Work Week? [4:15]
    • Top 3 Productivity Resources [5:10]
    • When did the AE Team implement the Four Day Work Week? [7:34]
    • How does Thanh feel about employees essentially getting a free day off through Four Day Work Weeks? [12:11]
    • What is Labor-Efficiency Ratio? [15:21]
    • How does Thanh feel about AE’s first Four Day Work Week experiment in 2020? [19:19]
    • Why was AE’s first Four Day Work Week successful? [26:02]
    • How do you work a Four Day Work Week around employees that have to work certain hours of the day? [35:19]
    • Which is better— using Four Day Work Weeks as a reward/incentive, or implementing them consistently? [38:00]
    • What are some things to be aware of when trying out a Four Day Work Week, according to Thanh? [41:08]
    • How does Brooks feel the quality of work changed when AE implemented a Four Day Work Week? [45:39]
    • Why does AE only do Four Day Work Weeks in the summer and December? Why not all the time? [48:38]
    • What are Thanh’s tips for advocating for the Four Day Work Week? [51:46]
    • Action step to integrate today’s topic into your life [54:08]
    • Links:
      • Book: Remote: Office Not Required
      • Book: Scaling Up
      • GROK
      • Dojo
      • TPS+
      • Quiz
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