Experiences, not cash, are the new corporate bonus
It was while planning a vacation to the Philippines, one filled with dreams of hiking through rainforests and climbing volcanoes, that Rob Towne had a small epiphany: “I figured I was having plenty of fun experiences for myself, but I should do what I can to help others, too.”
Upon landing in the island nation, Towne grabbed his backpack and a 50-pound cardboard box of donated children’s books he brought along. He drove his cargo several hours to a city north of Manila, where an impoverished library had little but bare shelves and photocopies of books. The teachers and kids who received the precious volumes were thrilled.
What made Towne’s trip different was that it was financed mostly by Qualtrics, a data analytics firm in Utah where he works as digital advertising manager. Each year, Qualtrics offers every employee $1,500 to have an experience that they might not otherwise have the extra cash or time to afford. “It’s the kind of gesture that shows they value me not just for my contributions in the office, but for who I am and what I can become,” said Towne.
Employees have used their “Qualtrics Experience” dollars to dive with manta rays and explore Mayan ruins. Justin Ethington, a researcher there, donated his money to help a Kenyan orphanage build a security wall, to stop thieves from stealing their food. Some experiences can be less far-flung, but just as meaningful. Account executive Nathan Price went on a Disney Cruise with his children, ages 6 and 8. “My wife and I were coming to the sad realization their precious years of childhood are passing way too fast,” he said.
In today’s hyper-competitive recruiting environment, once you’ve got great employees, you want to keep them. Unorthodox perks such as paid experiences are an essential way to attract, retain and motivate top talent. Sharp employers realize that these journeys of self-fulfillment and discovery can produce the kind of creative sparks and life-clarifying moments that seldom come when staring dead-eyed at another PowerPoint.
They’re also a useful recruiting tool. According to a Glassdoor survey, great perks are a vital consideration in wooing top talent, and employers need to think about a broad range of non-traditional compensation. It’s no longer enough to offer goat curry in the cafeteria, onsite car washes or Friday happy hours. Those are so 2016. Top employees seek organizations with a corporate culture that supports worklife balance and espouses values that align with their own. For employers, that means your gig should help your employees become better people, who can use their skills and creativity to improve the world.
Airbnb provides an annual $2,000 stipend for employees to travel and stay in an Airbnb listing around the world. Patagonia offers a paid Environmental Internship Program, in which employees can spend up to two months away from their regular roles interning fulltime with the nonprofit environmental group of their choice. At Salesforce, “giving back is part of our DNA,” said spokesperson Cheyenne King. Each employee is allotted seven days of Volunteer Time Off (VTO) each year to dedicate to work and causes they find personally meaningful. These have ranged from coaching Little League or helping out at a neighborhood school, to building low-cost housing or leading a social media campaign designed to reduce domestic violence.
It’s an extremely popular program: Salesforce has recorded 2.6 million global volunteer hours since it began in 1999, and 85 percent of employees participate, said King. The trend toward VTO is growing. In a recent survey of more than 250 of the world’s largest companies, 61 percent now offer VTO as a benefit to their employees.
In the grand scheme of things, there is more than beneficence in this corporate altruism. Many employers believe that a rested and relaxed employee is an invigorated one. Time off helps the time on. Like a lot of tech firms, Evernote gives its employees unlimited vacation time (with, of course, a manager’s signoff ). It also encourages staffers to take a real restorative vacation and not merely a week off catching up on appointments or cleaning the garage. So Evernote primes the vacation pump with a $1,000 check, designed to be put toward a great adventure. “We want to treat employees like adults, and we don’t want being in the office to seem like a punishment,” Phil Libin, former chief executive of Evernote, told the New York Times.
Most companies impose few limits on these adventures, except one: They frown on conducting business during the time off. No sneaking in an important email or jumping on a quick Skype call. “And for sales guys, that’s tough,” Towne admitted. “But it’s much better to turn off the email and go have an unforgettable experience.” So much so that once an Experience ends, planning for the next eagerly begins. On the drawing board for Towne is a monthlong hike through Spain with his dad. “I’m already thinking a lot about it,” he said. “I can’t wait.”
James Daly is a veteran tech journalist and media entrepreneur. He has written for Wired, Forbes, Rolling Stone, TED, the San Francisco Chronicle and the Los Angeles Times.