More Revenue, Fewer Hours: Company Says 4-Day Work Week Increased Productivity

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (CBS Boston) – The five-day work week is as American as apple pie, but in recent years, it’s been called into question. Turning the weekend into a three-day period is something that’s been tossed around by some experts and even the subject of various studies. Now, one company says giving its employees an extra day off has actually wound up making them even more money.

In May of 2020, Dockwa, a marina reservation app that connects boaters and marinas across the country, did away with the dreaded Monday workday. It doesn’t look like they’ll be returning down that road anytime soon. “We wanted to combat employee burnout,” says Jessica Palmer, VP of People Operations. “We realized that the state of the world was changing, and we really wanted to make sure that our employees were present, that they remained happy.”

The start-up company has offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Newport, Rhode Island. They say since switching to a four-day work week, the numbers speak for themselves. “What we found was in the year after we implemented the change, we saw nearly 100% year over year growth in ARR, which is revenue. We were able to do that in spite of working fewer hours,” says Meghan Anderson, Chief Marketing Officer.

“I don’t see a world where I could go really go back to a five-day work week,” adds Austin Schofield, Marina Success Manager.

Pay and time off were not affected for Dockwa’s 50 employees, who have been noticeably happier and more productive when they’re on the clock. “Dive right into Tuesday and having that compressed week really keeps you a lot more focused and optimizes your time and just operating more efficiently,” says Schofield.

So while Dockwa helps their customers enjoy the outdoors, it’s something their employees can do more of now too with more free time. “Being able to sort of walk that walk with its own employees and allow them to close their devices, get offline, get out into the world, I think it really bodes well for the values of the company,” says Anderson.

The model has also attracted new employees to work there.

“I started with the company in February of last year and it was a major factor in why I chose the role. I’m a parent, I’ve got a four-year-old daughter. Having Monday off allows me to have just a little bit of time back for my own sanity,” Anderson adds.

“We can do life. Whether it’s participating in things on a weekday that we weren’t able to in the past, or really focus on our wellness so we can come back to work at 100%,” says Palmer.