For our ongoing seriesFundamentals, were looking at different companies worldwide and the basic principles they were built on.
This time: financial solutions company Collins SBA.
At first glance, Collins SBA comes off as some sort of travel agency.
In reality, Collins SBA is a financial consulting company employing about 35 people.
Every single one of them gets to enjoy these marvelous outdoor activities because the firm offers five-hour working days.
Jonathan Elliot, managing director at Collins SBA, successfully proposed the idea in 2015.
I interviewed him via video chat because hes in Hobart, Tasmania 17,000 km away and 10 hours ahead.
Hes taking the call in his living room, while his toddler is playing in the background.
Its 6 PM where he is, and hes been home for three hours already.
Switching to 5-hour working days
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Collins SBA was already paying competitive salaries, so Elliot needed something new to differentiate his company from competitors.
The other reason is deeply personal.
Around that same time, Elliots wife was diagnosed with cancer.
We went through the whole process surgery, chemotherapy, recovery.
My daughter was only six months old at the time.
So naturally, I had to become a husband and father first, and a managing director second.
So Elliot set some ground rules.
People had to come in between 8 and 9 AM to get to leave between 1 and 2 PM.
No personal appointments during those hours, unless theyd been officially approved.
And no going out for coffee or lunch we provided coffee and healthy snacks at the office.
Fewer emails, shorter meetings
Its been two years since Collins SBA started the pilot.
One of its main findings was that five-hour workings days are pretty damn short.
People do enjoy occasional five-hour days, but rarely work 25-hour weeks, Elliot says.
Some days theyll need six hours, other days its seven.
But they never work 38 hour-weeks, the number mentioned on their contract.
Having said that, moving to five-hour days was a big success.
Business benchmarks could be set higher.
Sick leave went down by 12 percent.
But even more important was how it spurred a change in mindset, Elliot says.
It motivated people to rethink their work process; what they could do differently to be more efficient.
The firm also offered some tools here.
One-hour meetings were abolished unless absolutely necessary, while all employees received training to manage their email overload.
And we check this on a weekly basis.
Employees who keep hitting huge numbers 50 emails or more need to redo the training.
Enforced productivity
This kind of enforced productivity isnt for everyone, it turned out.
Five employees left since the firm moved to 5-hour days, most of them on their own account.
Some people just dont like change, Elliot says.
She decided to leave and we assisted her in finding a new job.
While a few employees decided to leave, the five-hour working day policy did prove a smart recruitment strategy.
Our pool of candidates is now bigger than before, says Elliot.
And we see a higher number of people reaching out to us proactively.
The many press stories about Collins SBA have definitely helped here, he adds.
But if a job candidate brings up our five-hour workday very early on, thats a red flag.
Our team is made up of regular people who do remarkable things.
Pilots, runners, riders and divers.
Golfers and gardeners; cooks and coaches.
Accountants and advisors too, of course!
Like their actual jobs are more of a side-hustle to their adventurous lifestyles.
Easy target
How do clients feel about the change?
They didnt even notice at first, says Elliot.
Eventually, word got out and clients were informed.
Overall, theyve been supportive and have no problem adapting to the schedule, says Elliot.
Polarizing concept
Collins SBAs five-hour working day has been widely covered in the media.
While it definitely sparked conversation, very few companies have followed in its footsteps.
A handful of companiesare experimentingwith four-day working weeks, but thats about it.
Some people can get very defensive whenever I talk to them about this, Elliot says.
The concept is way more polarizing then I expected.
The biggest resistance comes from other CEOs and business owners, particularly those running companies providing professional services.
If you charge clients by the hour, this will blow up your business.
Thats just ridiculous to me.
Nobody is productive for 10 hours straight.
Weve been doing this for two years now, so it has become the new norm, Elliot says.
Working till 5 PM feels like putting in overtime.
In hindsight, he shouldnt have called it the five-hour working day, he concludes.
I would have gone with flexible working hours instead.
Working five-hour days is still a reward, not a right.
Story byAnouk Vleugels
As Publisher, Anouk is responsible for TNW’s overall media strategy.
