Free Fridays in August

The four-day work week is not a concept anymore. Many countries and companies have already successfully introduced it into their culture and operation.

The four-day work week is not a concept anymore. Many countries and companies have already successfully introduced it into their culture and operation, at least for a shorter period of time. Several factors, such as the expectations of new generations stepping into the world of work or the push for remote working, are fuelling this trend.

But to us, it’s not about the number of hours and days; it’s about employees desiring trust, independence, flexibility, and time. If all conditions are met, it’s an easy challenge to finish (what was thought to be a) five-day workload in four days.

An internal survey showed that the best we can give our colleagues is time to further improve their mental well-being. “Extra time was one of the most common requests, and the free Friday initiative came up as an obvious solution,” says Zsófia Komáromi, Head of Talent at Publicis Groupe Hungary.

Therefore, we are stepping into the trend followed by several multinational brands and, in August, most of our colleagues will be completing tasks efficiently from Monday through Thursday, and will enjoy Fridays off.

It’s important to highlight that serving our clients remains a key priority for us. While pivoting new possibilities, we maintain a habitual work schedule in all areas of operation that require five-day or even 24/7 accessibility.

We move forward in small steps, but we see that it’s only the beginning. We keep on embracing flexibility both in time and location, with project-based, hybrid and remote work all becoming the new normal. We hope to be more invested in providing opportunities and free space for personal needs.