Andrew Barnes (businessman)

Andrew Barnes
ONZM
Barnes at the 4 Day Week Global
Born
Andrew Howard Barnes

(1960-02-05) 5 February 1960
Carlisle, England
CitizenshipNew Zealand
EducationHutton Grammar School, University of Cambridge
OccupationBusinessman
Known forFour-day workweek advocacy

Andrew Howard Barnes ONZM (born 5 February 1960) is a New Zealand-based businessman and workplace reform advocate. He is the founder of Perpetual Guardian and is known for promoting the four-day working week following a 2018 trial at the company.[1][2]

Barnes is a co-founder of the organisation 4 Day Week Global, which promotes reduced working hours and flexible work practices.[3] He has also contributed to public discussion on productivity and urban economic development in New Zealand.[4]

In the 2024 King's Birthday Honours, Barnes was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to business and philanthropy.[5][6] In 2024 he was appointed as a board member of The King’s Trust Aotearoa NZ.[7]

Education

Barnes attended Hutton Grammar School before studying at the University of Cambridge, where he was a member of Selwyn College and completed a Master of Arts degree in law and archaeology in 1981.[8]

He is an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and attended the Program for Management Development at Harvard Business School in 1992.[9]

Career

Barnes began his career in financial services in the United Kingdom before moving to Australia in his late 20s.[10]

He spent approximately two decades in Australia, where he held senior roles in financial services companies including Macquarie Bank, Citibank, Tower, and County NatWest.[11] During this period, he was involved in the listing of realestate.com.au on the Australian Securities Exchange in 1999.[12]

Barnes later returned to the United Kingdom, where he served as a director of Bestinvest.[11]

New Zealand and Perpetual Guardian

In 2013, Barnes acquired Perpetual Trust in New Zealand. In 2014, he founded Complectus and acquired Guardian Trust, combining the businesses to form Perpetual Guardian.[10]

In 2015, Complectus acquired the digital estate planning platform My Bucket List and later that year acquired Foundation Corporate Trust.[13]

In 2020, Perpetual Guardian acquired the crowdfunding platform Givealittle from the Spark Foundation.[14][15]

In 2021, Barnes oversaw the sale of Guardian Trust and Covenant to the Hong Kong-based firm Tricor.[16]

In 2024, Perpetual Guardian Group acquired the private wealth division of Trustees Executors.[17]

Governance roles

Barnes has held governance positions including chair of Regional Facilities Auckland and chair of the payroll software company PaySauce.[18]

COVID-19 response

During the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand, Barnes advocated for legal changes to allow the use of digital signatures on wills during lockdown restrictions.[19]

Four-day week trial and advocacy

In 2018, Barnes announced that the New Zealand trust company Perpetual Guardian would trial a four-day working week, with employees receiving an additional day off on full pay without increasing working hours.[20][21]

Following the trial, the company reported improvements in employee work–life balance and reductions in stress levels, alongside stable productivity.[22] The policy was subsequently adopted on a permanent basis.[23]

The trial attracted international media attention and contributed to wider discussion of the four-day week as a model for improving productivity and employee wellbeing.[24]

Barnes later co-founded the advocacy organisation 4 Day Week Global, which promotes shorter working weeks internationally. The organisation runs pilot programmes enabling businesses worldwide to trial reduced working hours and was recognised by TIME magazine in its 2023 TIME100 list of the world’s most influential companies.[25][26]

He has also written and spoken on the subject, including in his 2020 book The 4 Day Week.[27]

Philanthropy

Barnes has been involved in philanthropic initiatives in New Zealand. As chief executive of Perpetual Guardian, he established the Perpetual Guardian Foundation,[28] which pools small donations for causes including food security, education, the arts, and environmental protection.[29][30]

Perpetual Guardian has sponsored educational programs, including visits by 3,500 children from rural or low-decile schools to Otago Museum's planetarium.[31] In 2018, the company provided financial support for the Auckland Primary Schools Music Festival.[32]

Barnes has also contributed to research and historical preservation. He established the NZ Bomber Command Fund to support initiatives related to the legacy of the Bomber Command in New Zealand,[33] and collaborated with MOTAT on related exhibitions and archival projects.[34]

He has supported legislative initiatives, including assisting the Funeral Directors Association of NZ with advocacy to allow funeral directors to make final arrangements for individuals without wills.[35][36]

Barnes has participated in cultural preservation initiatives, including the restoration of the 1904 Auckland-built racing yacht Ariki in 2017. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he provided funding for a virtual Poppy Appeal run by the RSA.[37]

He has donated to Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, supporting improvements to accessibility along the Toi Art walkway. Barnes also commissioned a sculpture at the British High Commission in Wellington, created by Anton Forde in collaboration with Te Āti Awa.

Barnes is a trustee and benefactor of the New Zealand Memorial Museum Trust, which established the New Zealand Liberation Museum (Musée Néo-Zélandais de la Libération, Le Quesnoy, France; Māori: Te Arawhata) to preserve the history of New Zealand soldiers involved in the liberation of Le Quesnoy in 1918.[38]

Public commentary and media appearances

Future of work and productivity

Barnes has been an active commentator on productivity, flexible work, and the future of work. He has written and spoken extensively on the four-day week, including his 2020 book The 4 Day Week, keynote presentations at conferences, and international interviews.[39][40][41]

He has appeared on international media, including the TED conference.

Auckland CBD and urban policy

Barnes has also publicly commented on Auckland's central business district (CBD), proposing strategies for revitalising the area, improving safety, and reimagining commercial space to attract residents and visitors.

His views have been reported in national media outlets, including discussions on stadium strategies and urban planning responses following COVID-19 lockdowns.[42][43]

Honours and awards

Barnes (right), after his investiture as an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit by the governor-general, Dame Cindy Kiro, at Government House, Auckland, on 26 September 2024

Barnes was a finalist in the New Zealand EY Entrepreneur of the Year awards in 2015 and 2016.[44][45]

In the 2024 King's Birthday Honours, Barnes was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM), for services to business and philanthropy.[46][47]

Other recognition

In 2022, Barnes and 4 Day Week Global were featured in Forbes’ “Special Report: The Future of Work.” [48]

Barnes serves on the advisory boards of several local 4 Day Week campaigns, as well as the advisory board of the Wellbeing Research Centre at University of Oxford.[49]

References

  1. ↑ Roy, Eleanor Ainge (10 July 2018). "New Zealand firm tries four-day week and reports success". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  2. ↑ "Four-day week trial a success, says Perpetual Guardian". BBC News. 24 July 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  3. ↑ "About us". 4 Day Week Global. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  4. ↑ "Calls to rethink Auckland CBD as work patterns shift". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  5. ↑ "King's Birthday Honours List 2024". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (New Zealand). Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  6. ↑ "Business leaders recognised in King's Birthday Honours". 1News. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  7. ↑ "King's Trust Aotearoa NZ". Retrieved 26 April 2026.
  8. ↑ "Andrew Barnes". Selwyn College, Cambridge. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  9. ↑ "Andrew Barnes profile". Perpetual Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  10. 1 2 "Entrepreneur steps back from daily management of trustee business". Stuff. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  11. 1 2 "Executive Profile: Andrew Howard Barnes". Bloomberg. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  12. ↑ "Success stories chase top spot". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  13. ↑ "Complectus continues buying spree with Foundation Corporate Trust". National Business Review. 4 August 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  14. ↑ "The Givealittle crowdfunding service has been sold for an undisclosed price". Stuff. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  15. ↑ "Givealittle sold to company championing the four-day week". RNZ. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  16. ↑ "Andrew Barnes sells Guardian Trust and Covenant to Hong Kong's Tricor". BusinessDesk. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  17. ↑ "Perpetual Guardian buys Trustees Executors' private wealth division". BusinessDesk. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  18. ↑ "Payroll provider PaySauce has ambitious growth plans". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  19. ↑ Stock, Rob (24 March 2020). "How to make a legally defensible will in coronavirus lockdown". Stuff. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  20. ↑ "Kiwi firm Perpetual Guardian to test four-day week with workers on full pay". The New Zealand Herald. 7 February 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  21. ↑ "Perpetual Guardian to test four-day week". Stuff. 8 February 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  22. ↑ "Working four-day weeks for five days' pay? Research shows it pays off". Stuff. 24 July 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  23. ↑ "Perpetual Guardian makes four-day week permanent". Stuff. October 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  24. ↑ Roy, Eleanor Ainge (9 February 2018). "Work four days, get paid for five: New Zealand company's new shorter week". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  25. ↑ "'Cruel hoax' or 'work-life balance nirvana': whatever happened to the four-day work week?". The Guardian. 16 March 2026. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  26. ↑ "TIME100 Most Influential Companies 2023". TIME. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  27. ↑ Stock, Rob (22 January 2020). "The world can't get enough of New Zealand four-day working week entrepreneur". Stuff. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  28. ↑ "Appointment announcement - Perpetual Guardian Philanthropy". The National Business Review. 26 May 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  29. ↑ "Perpetual Guardian Foundation". www.perpetualguardian.co.nz. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  30. ↑ "Plan to change the way we give to charity". Stuff. 13 August 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  31. ↑ "Sponsor helps museum reach for the stars". Otago Daily Times. 3 October 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  32. ↑ Collins, Simon (28 February 2018). "Sponsor saves iconic Auckland Primary Schools Music Festival". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  33. ↑ "Philanthropy report ranks Kiwis third most generous in the world". Stuff. December 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  34. ↑ "Aerial salute to Les Munro". The New Zealand Herald. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  35. ↑ "Company offers to help in case of man's body held in Dargaville funeral home for seven months". The New Zealand Herald. 6 February 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  36. ↑ Laird, Lindy (22 February 2018). "Vigil nearly over for Dargaville man Thomas Brugman, unclaimed and unburied after seven months". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  37. ↑ "Kiwi philanthropist creates virtual solution amid postponement of Poppy Appeal during Covid-19". TVNZ One News. TVNZ. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  38. ↑ "Te Arawhata: NZ's Liberation Museum in France receives boost but needs more support". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  39. ↑ Stock, Rob (22 January 2020). "The world can't get enough of New Zealand four-day working week entrepreneur". Stuff. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
  40. ↑ "Special Report: The Future of Work". Forbes. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
  41. ↑ "4-Day Work Week Test Deemed 'Resounding Success'". CBS News. 16 March 2026. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
  42. ↑ Barnes, Andrew (2021). "We already have an ultimate stadium strategy for Auckland". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
  43. ↑ "Auckland 'needs venue rethink' if sport suffers after coronavirus lockdown". Stuff. 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
  44. ↑ "EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2015 finalists named". Stuff. 22 July 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  45. ↑ "Wide range of backgrounds in candidates for entrepreneur award". The New Zealand Herald. 22 July 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  46. ↑ "King's Birthday Honours List 2024 – Citations for Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  47. ↑ "King's Birthday Honours 2024: The full list of all recipients". The New Zealand Herald. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  48. ↑ "Special Report: The Future of Work". Forbes. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  49. ↑ "People". Wellbeing Research Centre. Retrieved 1 April 2026.
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