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LinkedIn is the latest in a series of companies to announce “discretionary time off” (DTO, aka unlimited vacation) for approximately 6,000 U.S. employees. But experts caution only organizations with an entrepreneurial corporate culture and excellent communication practices can successfully implement a DTO program.
“For a culture that is really more oriented to accountability, it makes sense to offer paid time-off on an as-needed basis instead of accruing a limited number of annual days,” says Carol Sladek, a partner at Aon Hewitt and leader of the firm’s work-Life consulting business.
LinkedIn announced it is moving from 15 days of accrued vacation and 13 paid holidays to the DTO model plus 17 paid holidays, effective November 1st. In a blog post, the company’s senior vice president of global talent organization Pat Waldors explained why she believes the company’s culture is tailor-made to support the new program.
Also see: “3 risks of unlimited vacation.”
“Our six values and culture [tenets] are the principles that guide the day-to-day decisions of all of our talented employees,” Waldors wrote. “One of these values is ‘Act Like An Owner,’ which for our employees is a rallying cry to always step up and be empowered.”
Research conducted by the Society for Human Resources confirms that only about one percent of U.S. companies surveyed offer unlimited paid time-off. Netflix was one of the early adopters, followed by...