Dutch IT companies introduce unlimited staff holidays

Employer branding

Tilburg University’s Freese said having no fixed amount of leave may also be good branding for an employer. “With rules like this, you can present yourself as an employer with modern working conditions,” she said.

That is exactly what Nerds&Company was aiming to do. It hoped that its holiday strategy would attract the best programmers and designers. “We want to provide the best possible working environment,” said Geerdink. “Anyone can organise their own time, not only in terms of working hours, but also in terms of holidays.”

The same culture exists at Decos. “With us, everyone determines their own working hours and the location where they want to work,” said Hendriks. “Our office has become more of a meeting place.”

Bynder has also abandoned strict working hours. “We find that people cope well when we show confidence in them,” said Moedt.

Freedom and responsibility

Nerds&Company’s Geerdink has yet to discover what abolishing restrictions on holidays will cost or yield the company. “What I do see is that we are creating a sense of ownership,” he said. “People will look proactively at workplace planning issues. They feel far more responsible towards their colleagues.”

Decos’ Hendriks only sees advantages in the strategy. “OK, it was a bit difficult to implement,” he said jokingly, “because the auditors’ difficulty was that it was not clear in advance how many holidays would be taken. But I now see that our employees feel empowered that they can organise their own time. They feel energy and inspiration. Everything succeeds or fails according to the trust you place in your people.”

Last year, Bynder’s employees took about 11% more holidays than they did before the scheme was introduced. “The average number of vacation days taken by our employees is 24, which is not much different from companies where the maximum number is fixed,” said Moedt. 

For the marketing software specialist, the system also works well for recruitment, she added. “It shows how we as a company interact with our employees. Many companies say they give their people a lot of freedom and responsibility, but have a staff handbook of 100 pages with all kinds of rules.”

IT is results-driven

The reason why unlimited holidays works in the IT sector is because “the output in our industry is not driven by time”, said Geerdink. “We are much more results-driven. We have a challenge that needs to be solved. Also, you work at the intersection of technology and liberal arts. You have to be creative and this cannot be forced.”

Bynder works with many international clients across the world. “Our colleagues have meetings at the oddest times of the day,” said Moedt. “We expect a lot of flexibility from them and can give something back with this measure. I think many IT companies are naturally innovative, but I am convinced that abolishing holiday limits can also work in other sectors, especially in organisations with positively motivated people who can handle responsibility, and where the company’s philosophy is to give people freedom and responsibility.”

Decos’ Hendriks added: “I think a system such as this is particularly suitable for organisations that work in an agile way, in short cycles and in a team.”