Web-to-print (W2P) specialist Infigo is implementing a permanent four-day working week protocol, following a successful trial over the previous 12 months.

Following the trial, in which Infigo took part alongside 60 other UK companies as part of an initiative coordinated by the 4 Day Week organisation, this has now been made a permanent move.

Analysis by the University of Cambridge and Boston College following the trial have revealed a ‘significant’ drop in the rates of stress and illness among the around 2900 staff trying the shorter working week. Specifically, sick days fell by a third and attrition dropped by 57% across all companies involved in the trial. At the same time, company revenues increased by 1.4% on average over the trial period, and by 35% when compared to the same six-month period in 2021. When implemented alongside flexible working practices, the results are said to lead to a better work-life balance, lower stress levels, increased productivity and reduced environmental impacts.

Infigo CEO and founder Douglas Gibson noted that when the company started talking to its partners about trialling a four-day working week, ‘they practically laughed us out of the room.

‘However, our employees have embraced it and we have seen the benefits across the organisation. Not only has the last year been the most successful yet in terms of revenue, but the research shows our team are happier, healthier and more productive. And it’s been a great recruitment tool, that helps us attract the best talent. Who wouldn’t want to work for a company that gives you a three-day weekend, every weekend?!’

Photonic printing specialist Datalase has similarly reported its success after implementing a four-day week.

A four-day week is the latest wellness initiative offered by Infigo to its employees. The company already offers remote working – with regularly organised meetups – for its 45 employees who are based in the UK, Germany, Moldova, Spain and India. Those that choose to use the office are encouraged to bring in their dogs. The company also offers mental health support and has been certified as a ‘Great Place to Work UK’ and has received recognition as one of the UK’s ‘Best Workplaces in Tech’ and ‘Best Workplaces for Wellbeing.’

Julie Minn, head of HR and legal at Infigo, said, ‘As a tech company, we not only want to be innovative with the solutions we provide for the print industry, but we also want to be a trailblazer as an employer. Trialling a four-day week was a major part of that. Obviously, we had seen previous studies around the benefits, but now we have seen the results ourselves, and it’s been an overwhelming success.

‘Looking after our teams is majorly important to us, and all our induction of new talent is based around this. We are bringing in some great people and intend to look after them, whether that’s offering a great working environment or providing help and advice for our employees via The Printing Charity that we actively support.’

As previously noted by Mr Gibson, the last year been the most successful yet in terms of revenue at Infigo and alongside staff support via the aforementioned initiatives, Infigo has invested heavily in customer support by employing additional technical support analysts and extending support hours to 9-6pm GMT, five days a week. It has also implemented and integrated a number of updates and modules to enhance the end user experience. One of the latest has been its work with EngView to ‘craft a user-friendly yet robust web-to-pack solution’.

Next on Infigo’s agenda is reducing the carbon footprint of both the organisation and its customers. The first goal in achieving this is to obtain the PAS2060 Carbon Neutrality Standard and Certification.