New Disabled South
By: Barbara Abadi
Introduction
Not a “nice to have” but a must have. A 4-day work week supports both New Disabled South’s mission and values of healing and sustainability for its disabled beneficiaries and employees.
New Disabled South is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization fighting for disability rights and justice in 14 states. The organization’s mission is to improve the lives of disabled people and cultivate strong disability rights and disability justice frameworks in the South.
Disabled South’s 4-Day Work Week Journey
When Dom Kelly, Co-Founder, President & CEO of New Disabled South, and Kehsi Iman, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer, sat down to establish the basic operating mechanisms for New Disabled South, they considered a variety of potential issues including potential employee burnout.
When they raised the possibility of a 4-day work week, they asked each other “Can we really do that?” After thoughtful consideration and discussion, the two co-founders concluded “Yes, we can make this choice.”
Not only was a 4-day work week within the co-founders’ power, but it also supported their mission of improving the lives of disabled people because all of New Disabled South’s 10 directors and project support are disabled. The 4-day workweek also perfectly aligns with the organization’s value statement “We center care for self and community — Not a “nice to have” but a must-have.
New Disabled South then implemented a 4-day workweek where 9 of 10 employees work 32 hours Monday through Thursday and 1 employee works by choice 32 hours Tuesday through Friday. Wellbeing is a core value in action at New Disabled South.
What Works Well
Clear communication and strong processes are the backbone of the 4-day work week success at New Disabled South. When someone suggests a meeting, everyone is trained to consider whether the meeting could instead be a call, an email, or an asynchronous conversation thereby conserving valuable time for more impactful work.
Asana and Salesforce are key tools used by all to manage projects and stakeholder communications.
If one or more Directors will be out of office, the team adapts to the absence by utilizing the MOCHA framework to support its project management efforts. MOCHA has been shown to be an optimal tool for their needs. https://www.teamwork.com/blog/mocha-project management/
MOCHA’s greatest value added is clarity around the roles and responsibilities within a project: the Manager oversees the project, the Owner takes responsibility for the outcomes of project, the Consultant offers expertise, the Helper supports the Owner, and the Approver has the authority to sign off.
Challenges
Ironically, the only notable challenge has been sticking to the 4-day work week. It turns out that ingrained habits and passion for their work has at times caused people to slip over the 32-hour week boundary. Dom Kelly emphasized the importance of protecting the well-being of all employees and stakeholders by respecting the 32-hour parameters as best possible.
One quasi-challenge early on was that when the co-founders were discussing the 4-day work week with funders, there was a bit of skepticism as to how effective it would be in practice and whether it would in any way negatively impact stakeholders.
Skepticism however waned over time based on positive outcomes and satisfied stakeholders.
Advice to Potential 4-Day Work Week Adopters
Dom Kelly is an ardent advocate of the 4-Day Work Week with other nonprofits in the Southern region he covers. His advice to potential adopters is “Take a serious look at the 4-Day Work Week at nonprofit organizations that have made it work and ask yourselves - Can we do this?”