Hotcaller

Field Sales Representative

“Unlimited” PTO..?

My company offers unlimited PTO. Would you say this is better or worse than having a set amount? I’d almost prefer to have a set amount so that I know what the expectation is. With “unlimited,” I’ll never know if my manager thinks I’m taking too much, until it’s too late and he’s already resenting me for it.

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LordBusiness

Politicker

Chief Revenue Officer

Unlimited PTO is a companies way to save themselves having to pay for unused vacation days to exiting employees beautifully masked as a "perk" years ago. The reality of it is that while a small % will abuse this "perk" most employees will generally take less time off given the lack of guidelines on what is deemed "appropriate" by their company.

poweredbycaffeine

WR Lieutenant

☕️

Came here to say this. It's a tax and compensation loophole that companies exploit as a "perk".

Incognito

WR Officer

Master of Disaster

Sure it’s unlimited...... if you’re hitting your numbers? Taking too much time off is gonna hurt you in the long run so it’s kinda your responsibility to regulate it.

I guess it depends on the compensation structure.

Hotcaller

Good Citizen

Field Sales Representative

You can hit your numbers all day and still have a manager that doesn’t like how much vacation you take.

Incognito

WR Officer

Master of Disaster

Ok so then it wouldn’t be unlimited PTO?

Hotcaller

Good Citizen

Field Sales Representative

That’s exactly my point and why I don’t love it

Rallier

Politicker

SDR Manager and Consultant

One of my friend's companies has a minimum vacation policy. I always thought that was interesting, and they seem like it a lot

softwaresails

Politicker

Sales Manager

I’ve never been somewhere that has unlimited PTO so I don’t have any experience with it but I feel like I would also struggle with that.

My organization has actually had quite a few discussions about unlimited PTO and have opted to have set amounts for this exact reason.

I’ve been told that those with unlimited PTO actually take less time off than those with a set number of days. I don’t know if that’s true but I can see how it could be.

sahil

Notable Contributor

Deepak Chopra of Sales

Unlimited PTO is a catch-22 when you're in sales. In any other position, I'd say you can safely take 2-3 weeks and no one will care.

But in sales, it's all about where you are with performance. If you're hitting quota and on top of leaderboard, nobody will care if you take even a full month off. (Done it multiple times myself.) But that's only if you're on top.

If you're not, then ... I'd probably keep slaying until I am.

Coffeesforclosers

Notable Contributor

Director Sales and Market Development

Company knows what they are doing. It protects them from writing a check for unused time and roll over in California. Nobody abuses it, hell most people in sales don't take it. We I'm sales leadership at my company take the first week off any new quarter. It's the company that typically makes out in this offer. Remember you're number doesn't have unlimited misses

SgtAE

WR Officer

We just got back our 4 weeks PTO which is great :)

chef

Fire Starter

Manager, Enterprise Sales

I'm not a big fan of unlimited PTO. I find if I have a set amount of days, I very much feel entitled to take time off. With unlimited, I don't feel as comfortable, unless over quota. Plus of course, with unlimited, they don't need to pay you out on as much unused vacation. I never use all of my vacation days, so typically makes for a nice new year bonus.

MMMGood

Celebrated Contributor

Senior Account Executive

I’ve had the unlimited PTO setup for 6 years now and love it. Nice not having to worry about how many you have banked, how many to take, do they roll over or not, Etc. I still probably take the same amount of days off, but it’s just easier to manage.

JDialz

Politicker

Chief Operating Officer

Kind of like how your income potential is unlimited - or whatever recruiters say. AMIRITE?

I think I would prefer having a set number of days. If you're in a competitve market you'll probably be given close to however many days you would end up taking with "unlimited PTO" anyway. I hear what you're saying about possible resentment, and that may help avoid a situation like that.

NorthernSalesGuru

Politicker

Manager, Outbound Sales

Honestly, it’s a sham.

I have unlimited PTO as well, but honestly, there’s no time to take it lol.

It’s a way for them to create allure but in reality they’re doing it exchange for your commitment to them.

Even if it’s unlimited, my guess is, it’s still subject to approval of some sort given business needs/demands etc.

My philosophy with my unlimited PTO is, so long as I take care of my number, I have no reason to worry how many days I take off.

bigpicturemaverickstuff

Good Citizen

Senior Manager, Sales Development

As a manager, there always seems to be one person who tries to abuse it. Usually floating near 100% or slight over quota and tries to slip in a lot more days than others. In general, it feels like a benefit to me and 99% of my employees get it.

It does take a Manager that is open and transparent about their needs and wants of the team. My guys know that end of the month/end of the quarter is a no go unless they are over 100% or its complete unavoidable. That's pretty much my only rule, and honestly I'm a softy and have never declined anything.

SADNES5

Politicker

down voters are marketing spies

If you quit or get fired, it's a sneaky way for them not to pay you vacation owed...

Accidental_Sales_Guy

Politicker

Account Executive

It all comes down to your relationship with your manager IMO. Good managers lead by example by taking planning time off, and encouraging the team to do the same.

My manager let me take a 3 weeks for my wedding/honeymoon- and let me know missing quota would not affect my promotion path. 'Twas awesome.

However, it does feel that sales is adversely aligned with PTO. Taking time off sacrifices commission you could be making. If you're crushing, it's a choice between mad accelerator money or recharging your batteries.

RedLightning

Politicker

Mid-Market AE

As a salesperson, you can't really effectively use it and hit your target either. It's a recruitment tactic

Broncosfan

Politicker

Account Manager

Unlimited PTO is a complete scam for the exact reason you described and them saving money by not paying out when you leave/term.

Ace

Arsonist

CEO

Netflix does this and it works for them

Broncosfan

Politicker

Account Manager

Quick question, has anyone ever tried to put in something absurd like 2 years of PTO knowing its a benefit and they wouldn't be able to term you for lack of production?

stratman

Politicker

Sales Engineer

I'd trade "unlimited" PTO for 4 weeks a year; one week per quarter. The rest I can come up w/ on my own while I take the family on vacation.

looper1010

Celebrated Contributor

Solutions Specialist

I love my unlimited PTO. My partner doesn't have unlimited, so I make sure to take my PTO with him and not leave anything "unused."

MidWestAE

Good Citizen

Enterprise Account Executive

My experience is as long as its not in the last month of the quarter... you're good to go... Most of my colleagues take off the first week or so of a new quarter (maybe longer if they just wrapped up a hot streak).

Salespreuner

Big Shot

Regional Sales Director

I would give it a fifty fifty on both employee and employer

as an employee, the benefit is good for many reasons in that time spent with fam can be increased well - as long as you work there!

Allisce

Tycoon

Account Executive

came here to say what everyone else has said. I worked at one company that had a yearly use it or lose it date on my pto and that really forced me to take time off, so while it is forced and you can't accumulate I do appreciate the approach. time off is so important

BCD

Politicker

BDR

nice thing with PTO is the pay out when you leave. with unlimited, do you really use an "unlimited" amount? and when you leave, no pay out!

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Hotcaller

“Unlimited” PTO..?

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