Welcome to another chapter in my monthly column here in All Things Business following Amplitude’s journey as part of the UK’s four-day work week trial. For those new to us, Amplitude is a creative marketing agency based in Northampton, working in branding, film production, animation, photography and design.
Back in June, we decided to take up the mantle as one of the first UK companies to move to a fourday work week. Over 70 companies signed up to the trial, which represents the biggest shake up to working life in a century. I’ve been writing about our journey here in All Things Business for the last five months, charting the ups and downs, the good and bad. You can catch up with all my previous columns online.
So far, I’ve talked about training, culture, productivity, and how we’ve managed when things have gone slightly awry. But there’s one burning question I keep being asked that we’ve yet to cover here, and that’s what this has boiled down to in pounds and pennies, for us as a company, for our team, and the impact on the wider economy.
Now I’m sure I don’t need to spell it out, we as a nation are in a very different place economically now than we were when this trial began. I’m sure I am not alone amongst the business owners taking part in the trial in being a little unnerved by doing something so radical at a time of economic instability. The natural instinct at these times is to start grinding the mill, to push everyone that little bit harder, and to make hay whenever there is even a sliver of sunshine. And, of course, in light of the cost-of-living crisis and economic downturn I, like every other responsible employer, am currently watching the P&L like a hawk. And now, near the end of the trial, I am in a good position to assess if our move to the four-day week has resulted in a loss of revenue or profitability, and I’m pleased to report, we’re very much still on target for the year.
What’s more, the four-day week offers an opportunity for businesses to actually save money. For larger companies, completely closing offices for a day can save on heating, cooling, and those dreaded electricity bills. For staff, there are lower commuting costs too, alongside things like work lunches. These might sound small, but over a 12-month period, the impact could be quite significant. That, coupled with the long-term increase in productivity that most people report, could be a real win at a time when everyone is nervously watching the economy.
As we enter the last month of the trial, we’re now at a point where we need to start thinking about how this will look in the long term. We still have few HR hoops to jump through and are actively seeking guidance with (things like holiday allowances and overtime if we permanently make the change) and, of course, we need to get the opinions of our team and our clients. We’ve always maintained that we’ll be transparent about the trial, good and bad, and we need to ensure all voices are heard before we can make the call.
However, we move forward, and I still firmly remain an advocate for a change in how we all work, be it the four-day week or offering hybrid and flexible options. I believe a change is essential for the evolution of business and work-life balance, and to enable us to face the huge challenges yet to come.
As they say, ‘change a gonna come’ and I’m proud that the whole team here at Amplitude are looking forward and making that happen.
You can keep up with all the latest over at www.thisisamplitude.co.uk
