Technology enables four-day week

The number of organizations that have adopted or are thinking about adopting the four-day workweek to promote long-term worker health and productivity is on the rise. Planio[1], a Berlin-based company that develops project management software, introduced a four-day work week for its employees last year. The British medical research charity, Wellcome Trust[2], on the other hand, conducted a feasibility study before ultimately deciding not to adopt the four-day model.

Employees want to make more of a difference

Even if the switch to a four-day workweek is still a long way off for most, the study by Ricoh, that across all age groups, the majority of workers have an expressed desire to be more engaged in the workplace and to increase their productivity through training and technology. Nearly three-quarters of workers (72 %) say they want to contribute more to the design of their workplace. This statement indicates a clear desire among workers to want to make more of a difference.

Continuously educate yourself

But workers in Europe also know that they can't do it alone. Seven in ten workers (70 %) believe they will need to keep learning throughout their career, while 63 percent believe technology should play a central role in helping them work to the best of their ability. The fact that circa four in 10 workers said automation (44 %) and AI (39 %) are likely to help them do their jobs also cools some of the heated discussions about the impact of technology on jobs.

More than two-thirds of workers (69 %) also believe that top companies excel at investing in digital technologies to upskill their employees, emphasizing the critical impact the right tools and training can have on job satisfaction and productivity.

Thanks to technology to the four-day week?

It is noteworthy that across generations*, the studies showed little disagreement on the above points, suggesting that discussions of conflicting views or demands among Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y, and Generation Z are not appropriate.

David Mills, CEO of Ricoh Europe, said: "Managers should feel encouraged by these results. Workers are united by their strong desire to make a difference and achieve more at work. This finding is the first step in improving the stagnant productivity that has plagued businesses in Europe, particularly since the financial crisis in 2008. Our study underpins that the significant productivity challenge of improving[3] cannot be mastered by putting pressure on workers or by half-heartedly pursuing innovation. Instead, helping employees learn new skills and deploy technology-driven efficiencies can lead to significant productivity results - and perhaps even a shorter workweek."

Sources:

[1] https://plan.io/blog/four-day-workweek/
[2] https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/apr/12/wellcome-trust-drops-plans-to-trial-four-day-working-week
[3] https://www.economist.com/buttonwoods-notebook/2017/01/11/the-curious-case-of-missing-global-productivity-growth