Can ‘less is more’ apply to the working week?

Flexible working is still proving controversial in the profession. In the eyes of many, it has increased productivity, reduced stress and cut operating costs. Against that, opponents believe that it was conjured up by the devil to sabotage their businesses.

For most of us, the answer probably lies somewhere between these two poles. We might have recruited staff who would otherwise look elsewhere and cut office space with few adverse consequences but also been obliged to take disciplinary action against the occasional slacker.

If you fall into the group that has seen little but upside from the experiment, the next step could be to consider cutting the working week.

Four is the new five

According to the 4 Day Week Campaign, the benefits are blindingly obvious. As they note, “The 9-to-5, five-day working week is outdated and no longer fit for purpose.” Few in the profession would disagree, though not always for the reasons that those behind the campaign might imagine.

They are campaigning for a four-day, 32-hour working week with no loss of pay. Many accountants are only contracted to work 35-hour weeks and therefore the theoretical time lost would be less than 10%.

At the moment, having run one successful pilot they are in the throes of launching another. The big question is whether any firm of accountants has the courage to take the plunge.

If the campaign is to be believed, on top of the obvious benefits for workers who would enjoy better work-life balance, an extra free day a week and reduced costs of childcare and commuting, employers would also reap rich rewards.

It might sound counterintuitive but the policy can lead to higher performance and profits. “Trials and real-world examples show that employers who move to a four-day week increase productivity and reduce costs.” Remarkably, a Henley Business School study in 2021 calculated that if every business in the country swapped to a four-day week, they would benefit to the tune of £104bn a year.

This would partly be achieved by improving the talent pool, since it would be easier to attract high-quality employees who would be happier, less stressed and take fewer sick days.

How is this possible?

I imagine that by this point, some readers are choking on their cornflakes. How can we operate on a four-day week when it seems impossible to get all of the work done in five?

Such a move isn’t unprecedented in the profession, since PwC introduced half days on Fridays during the summer months three years ago. However, although the policy continues, the number of weeks has now been halved from an original 12.

If nothing else, considering the underlying principles might lead to a significant re-evaluation of operating practices.

Although a diligent employee might arrive at the office at nine and leave at seven, this does not mean that he or she does anything like 10 hours of productive work.

Someone following a typical accountant around with a stopwatch would probably discover that even a non-smoker might spend large amounts of time chatting, wandering around and surfing the internet in the hope of an eBay bargain or that they might find new accommodation before their current tenancy ends.

In addition, although the position appears to have improved with the advent of more home-working, accountants cannot resist calling endless, pointless meetings, primarily to feed their love of pontification. I wouldn’t deny that some meetings have great value but many others disappeared without trace at the start of the pandemic and nobody noticed.

Careful re-engineering

The key must be to plan such a re-engineering project very carefully. It is hard to imagine that any firms of accountants would merely lock up the office on Thursday night and not reopen until Monday morning. Instead, while each individual might only work on four days, there would need to be cover every day. That is no different from some aspects of home-working, days out visiting clients (or attending sporting events?) and holiday season.

If cutting down to four-day week sounds a step too far, a nine-day fortnight might be more palatable. I tried it myself some years ago and it works. Indeed, if this were built around eight-hour days, then in theory some employers might actually gain an hour a week on average.

As with current working, adaptability is the key. We already expect staff to put in additional hours when projects have to be completed and clearly that would continue to be the case under a four-day week regime. However, knowing that an additional day off is just around the corner would be a strong incentive to burn the midnight oil every now and then.

Finally, before responding that this is clearly going to be a disaster for any accountant, note that after the first pilot trialists reported that revenues were up 35%, while employee staff churn was down 57%.

From the employee’s perspective 71% had reduced levels of burnout, while 39% reported feeling less stress.

Is this the way forward for the profession? Almost certainly not, although it would be good to see some firms piloting the scheme to discover whether they might benefit.