Take as much time off as you want

re: Take as much time off as you want

Tim — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 02:18:11 GMT

Weirdly my company has neither a vacation policy or a sick policy. Our president just says, "If you're sick, stay home. If you want a vacation, talk to your manager and work it out." I'm not sure it works as well for our smaller offices (who might have 3 people working in it), but for our large one, it works out well. People seem to not take as much vacation as you would think.

Oh yeah, and they let me bring my kids in when they're out of school. Bonus!

re: Take as much time off as you want

Andrew — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 21:37:43 GMT

That's great! I would love to have unlimited days off. Heather, can you tell me how many days off Microsoft employees get? The website says that when hired employees get 15 days off. How many days/weeks do they get after 3, 5, 10,... years?

Thanks much.

re: Take as much time off as you want

HeatherLeigh — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 18:28:41 GMT

Andy, I'm with you on that!

Francesco - I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!

eRock - it does have it's pluses and minuses....more minuses when you get to be my age :)

Wine-Oh - sounds like aniceplace to work!

Patblue - that is because you think camping is a perfectly acceptable thing to do with your timer off and I don't ; ) I may actually take some time off to work onmy yard and I'm kind of looking forward to it!

re: Take as much time off as you want

Patblue — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 17:35:10 GMT

HH - sorry to hear you have to take bereavement leave. I have visited that while at msft, and it is a great benefit to have when you don't have the emotional bandwidth to worry or deal with petty stuff.

When we have lunch again, we will need to discuss your curiosity about more than 4 weeks off...:-). I will take your time if you don't want to use it!

re: Take as much time off as you want

Wine-Oh — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 17:13:11 GMT

I work for another large well known fortune 500 co. The work life balance is great. One can work from home when needed, we get other perks and steep discounts on merchandise. Sometimes I think its about building a community with the mentality of "build it and they will come." But the truth is we are doing some awesome things and its great to be a part of it. It echos some of the same sentiments above.

re: Take as much time off as you want

eR0CK — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 16:59:31 GMT

Cavorting has it's pluses and minuses.

Trust me, I've certainly done my fair share and I still get to go out here and there.

re: Take as much time off as you want

Francesco Esposito — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 06:09:33 GMT

Heather - Thanks, now if only I could get an interview with you all... :-P

re: Take as much time off as you want

Andy — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 03:56:50 GMT

I agree 100% with your assessment. I looked at Google when they decided to put a facility in Hood River which is not that far from where I live. I also have seen MSFTs benefits package up close and personal since many of my friends work there and have been kind enough to share their info with me. I could never put my finger on it but you are exactly right, Google reminded me of a college dorm or frat house and MSFT is a professional working environment for adults. Some people thrive in the "college" style environment of startups. I don't. I worked for AT&T for many years as a developer and that is what I enjoy. MSFT is a lot like AT&T from what I have seen and like I said before I would much, much, much, rather have MSFTs benefits and professional engineering environment than Googles dorm room environment. To each their own but I am far to old to be riding a skateboard indoors and wearing ratty T-shirts to work and doing my laundry with 100 other people. I left that life behind when I got out of the Marines and I do not miss it.

re: Take as much time off as you want

HeatherLeigh — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 01:07:44 GMT

Andy- you're coming around, I can tell : ) I think the difference between Google's benefits and ours have to do with their target candidate base. I've never visited there but I've gotten plenty of recruiting calls. In my opinion, they have set up their "perks" to create an environment as much like college as possible. They hire smart people and I suspect that college is when a lot of those people really came into their own (maybe found some othe similarly incluned people...got recognized for how smart they were,etc.). So re-creating that environment attracts a certain type of person that appreciates that environment. I feel that our benefits are really more focused on the whole life of the employee. Our healthcare benefits are the best I have ever seen. In my mind, it's really up to the individual to select what matters to them most. For many/most, it would be about the type of work they would be doing and I think both companies have compelling jobs (I tend to think ours are more so, or I wouldn't be working here). Plus, I don't want to work in an environment that is that similar to college. Early in my career at Microsoft, the Office dev team had set up a foosball table outside my office door and it almost pushed me over the edge. I'm here to get stuff done and then log off and live my life. Sure, there's always some cross-over, but a "fun" work enviornment is not a substitute for having stuff going on outside. Well, that's just how I see it. : )

Jim S - yeah, cavorting on the weekends and then worrying about not growing up to be important during the week. Or was that just my twenties? Man, you could not pay me to go through that again.

re: Take as much time off as you want

Jim S — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 22:20:01 GMT

eR0CK, you're supposed to be cavorting on weekends. It will feel like you've vacationed for four months out of the year. You kids should know better. It should be your instinct.