You know that feeling of dread, the waves are pumping and you’re stuff in work smashing your head repeatedly on the desk thinking of what you’re missing out on. Well not the crew at Cardiff branding agency Cre8ion, according to the BBC this is how they are gonna roll.
Allowing staff to take Friday off every two weeks to “do sport, go surfing or read a book all day” has boosted employee performance, according to a company boss.
Cardiff branding agency Cre8ion said the move improved its creativity and staff retention
For six months, the nine-strong team at Cre8ion, which has offices in Cardiff and Bristol, has worked a two-week pattern where staff take the first Friday off entirely, then on the second they work on research and development and their own ideas, either in the office or wherever they want.
How does it work?
“Talk to most creative agencies, Friday afternoons are a bit of a write-off, so you’re only really losing a morning,” said chief executive Darrell Irwin.
As long as employees plan ahead and know their deadlines they do not “miss a beat”, he said.
“Having that extra space has helped them creatively. There are other industries that are similar, where they’re always thinking.
“It’s a passion… allow people to experiment, allow their passion to flourish.”
“Having that extra day back, allowing them to go and do sport, go surfing or read a book all day, that gives them that time back.
“And people can think ‘well it might not work in my industry’, so I challenge people: ‘Well if you can’t give a Friday off to all your workforce, why not have half the work force take Friday off and the other half take Monday off?’
“If you’re looking to retain millennials, these sorts of things are really important to them.”
He said the move could improve companies’ bottom line, but it takes a “leap of faith”.
Read more about on the BBC here
