Just How Unlimited is Hudl’s Unlimited Vacation?
Ever wondered what unlimited vacation is all about? Maybe you felt it was corporate America’s dirty trick for discouraging vacation, or even thought it sounded too good to be true. At Hudl, unlimited vacation isn’t any of that.
Here it’s all about clear expectations, trust and flexibility. We know there’s no right way to prescribe the exact amount of paid time off. We also know that Hudlies are adults, and we trust them to communicate when and how they plan to use their time, both in the office and away from it.
Sound simple? It is. Our emphasis is on setting clear expectations around the work to be completed, and it’s up to our Hudlies to decide how they’ll meet their expectations. (Also, life happens and unlimited vacation is there for you when it does).
Like many of Hudl’s perks, unlimited vacation is a customizable experience, tailored to your life and role’s needs. On our sales team, expectations are often set by way of monthly quotas. Our sales team has a ton of autonomy in the way they achieve those, including when they use their unlimited vacation.
Audrey Joslin, an inside sales specialist, said she’s trusted to get her work done.
“My managers have trusted me to know when I need to take a break so that I can come back to work motivated to crush it in my position. I absolutely know that some months are better than others to take vacations but have never felt pressured to not take a vacation.
“My managers regularly encourage me to take a few days off after big weeks of work travel to make sure that I’m not experiencing any sort of burnout. It is incredible to be at a place that not only has unlimited vacation but also where people are encouraged to use it!”
Another inside sales specialist, Teresa Tucker lives two states away from her family, so unlimited vacation has been her favorite perk of the job. “It has allowed me to take time to plan my wedding in Illinois, witness the birth of my nephew and spend time with family over the holidays,” said Tucker.
Sales team members are very comfortable with their respective season cadences, and use their planned out of office (OOO) time in their offseason. “There are definite expectations around planning days off around the seasonality of the sport(s) we’re selling,” said Tucker. “Hudl has a ‘work hard, play hard’ mentality, so I like to think that if we all grind while we’re in the office, our time outside the office is well deserved.”
Hudl’s unlimited vacation flexibility extends to where employees work from day to day allowing them to take time away from the office without taking days off.
“Personally, I don’t necessarily take advantage of the “unlimited” vacation,” said Kory Lamet, inside sales specialist. “Because in my territory, there are teams playing every season, so there’s not necessarily a ‘better’ time for me to take vacation. The working from home aspect is huge, as I can go back to California for an entire week but only take two days off for travel.”
Our senior director of sales, Trey Boyer, put it best: “Hudl values output and productivity over desk time. Leadership trusts its employees to accomplish their responsibilities.”
