Of Vacation Policies, Sick Days, and Corporate Culture
Lately I've been considering going back out on my own. Maybe with a few friends, but much, much smaller than what Port-to-Port became. When you have a lot of employees it changes what you're responsible for, and I want to stay doing things, as opposed to managing the business of those doing it. And the reason for this contemplation is that we have been discussing things at the Shop - things like vacation policy, sick days, and the like.
It all started when a co-worker brought up the fact that many places had no vacation policy. Actually, that's not entirely true. Their policy was that they didn't need a complex policy. Rather, they used the simple statement:
Achieving a balance between work and rest is important for everyone. Work has to get done and responsibilities covered. Good people know how to manage both.
and while this is heavily paraphrased, it's the essence of the policy that I liked.
Responsibility. Personal Responsibility, on a corporate scale.
I don't take a lot of vacation time, but I'd like not to even think about it. I work exceptionally hard and deliver results and products that are far above the norm. It's just the way it is. I'm not going to apologize for working 11 hr days, and working faster and smarter than most of the folks around me. Not all, mind you, and when I get to work with really sharp people, it's a treat. Really.
But it's the concept that I have to count these days. Moreover, when there is a "pool" of vacation and sick days, most people will look at sick days and say "I'm not that sick today to use a vacation day" - and so they bring their germs to work. Thus putting all of us with families at risk. It's the culture that there's a limited resource (days off), and the use of them needs to be personally justified.
This can get so bad that when there are "use it or loose it" days, people take off when they don't really want to because they feel they have to use this resource. Silly, yes. But very real. I've seen it happen at the Shop and I've only been here nine months.
As this email 'conversation' developed, the Netflix corporate culture docs (recently released) came up. And they are amazing. It's been talked about quite a bit, and I have to agree with all of them. What gets me most today are these:
- Adequate performers get generous severance packages.
- Evaluate performance based on effectiveness and results.
They go on to say that they see themselves as a Major League baseball team. Pay well, treat well, but expect stellar performance. If not, then be gracious, and show them the door. It's perfect.
Recently, I've been struggling with the very slip-shod work of people not really paying attention. It's not that they are really doing their best and just aren't capable of doing better - it's that they are being careless because they think it doesn't matter. They are wrong. It all matters.
So while I don't hold out a lot of hope that things will change at the Shop, I can hold out hope that I'll find the magic ingredients to cut out on my own, or with a few friends, and set up some place that adheres to these same guidelines. It's about the only new job I'm interested in looking at.