Unlimited PTO

TOMIS is Defined by Employee Satisfaction

As more companies begin to implement unlimited PTO, the controversy surrounding the policy is becoming a more frequent discussion. Is unlimited vacation truly unlimited? Are companies implementing the policy for the right reasons, or merely to save money in hopes that they don’t have accrual pay-out costs at the end of the year? Do employees feel comfortable asking for time off, or is guilt causing people to take less time off? As these questions linger, TOMIS decided to test the waters for themselves.

While there isn’t a single policy that will work for every company, employers who have had success with unlimited PTO stress the importance of trusting their employees; thus, not having reason to monitor how much vacation time they are taking. Director of People Operations for the travel management app, Lola.com, Emma Brudner, discusses that “part of the benefit of having the policy in the first place is so we don’t have to waste time on administrative tracking of PTO and can instead use our time on more strategic people initiatives.” In the article 4 Lessons About Unlimited Vacation, Brudner discusses that hours worked doesn’t necessarily correlate with performance and people often feel more committed to their jobs when they don’t feel “nickel and dimed” with time off – “especially when that time off represents having to choose between work and taking care of themselves, or fulfilling their other obligations in life.”

Happy, satisfied employees lead to increased productivity, engagement, and loyalty. Historically, employers have prioritized employees’ workplace success, but, today the trend is becoming more apparent that in order to be satisfied, employees across generations are looking to feel successful in all aspects of life. This is why companies such as Netflix, HubSpot, Roki, Grubhub, Sony, and LinkedIn have adopted unlimited PTO as well.

“Today, in the information age, what matters is what you achieve, not how many hours you clock. I have never paid attention to how many hours people are working. When it comes to how we judge performance at Netflix, hard work is irrelevant… So, why should I care if an employee works 50 weeks a year or 48 weeks a year?” – Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings

“It’s part of a growing movement to place more focus on results and empowerment, not hours worked. And it’s an important step to help employees recharge and keep engaged.” -LinkedIn’s Top HR Exec, Pat Wadors

Since its implementation in January of 2021, TOMIS’s unlimited vacation policy has proven to be successful. Rather than micromanaging how people complete their tasks, management instead focuses on the results. The policy makes us feel as though we are more than just our job title. We are encouraged to enjoy and take care of ourselves. The policy allows us to go home when we’re feeling sick, rather than debating whether we should persevere through the day and avoid losing a PTO day. It allows us to take off early on a Friday and hit the river, adhere to family needs, or take a mental health day. We monitor our own work-life balance and take ownership of our schedules and responsibilities. We trust our employer and our employer trusts us. We encourage our co-workers to go out and experience new, exciting adventures. It is a time to recharge, creating increased productivity in the workplace and ultimately preventing burnout.

“After working at TOMIS for less than 3 months, I was able to take days off during the week when prices were better to travel to see my family! I was able to take a half-day when I wanted to do a morning 9-mile hike. Having unlimited PTO allows me to do great work that I love and still be able to live my life and enjoy the things I love to do.” – TOMIS Marketing Manager, Gaby Gebo

“Unlimited PTO is my absolute favorite benefit! It feels good to work for a company that trusts and empowers its employees to take significant time off. My work/life balance has never been better!”
– TOMIS Lead Developer, Austin Lords

At TOMIS, two of our three core values include “Take ownership” and living out a “Company with Soul.” Our management team strives to exceed employees’ satisfaction and encourage personal and professional growth. What better way to encourage a happy soul while simultaneously encouraging individuals to take ownership of their personal responsibilities than an unlimited PTO policy? When chatting with CEO, Evan Tipton, about the policy he acknowledged the importance of management leading by example in order for the rest of the team to feel encouraged and comfortable to take time off.

“With unlimited days off, you don’t want employees to feel that they didn’t earn the time off or feel guilty doing so. From management team members taking weeklong trips to Hawaii to floating the Middle Fork of the Salmon River, to quarterly anonymous surveys asking employees’ satisfaction with the program, to an internal Slack channel where employees are encouraged to share photos and stories about their time off, I feel very good about the rollout of unlimited PTO and surely don’t mind having to lead by example!”
– TOMIS CEO, Evan Tipton