A CEO explains the simple way he deters his employees from 'quiet vacationing'

13.07.2024 - 05:38 / insider.com

Quiet vacationing — or taking time off or working from across the world without telling your boss — seems to be growing in popularity.

Millennials, in particular, appear especially fond of the trend. A recent survey by The Harris Poll found that nearly four out of 10 millennial respondents admitted to taking time off without informing higher-ups, a higher share than other generations.

So what's a boss to do if he wants to stop employees from sneaking out of the office behind his back?

David Barkoe, the CEO and founder of the Florida PR firm Carve Communications, says it all comes down to creating a culture of trust with your employees.

"Go live your life, but get the job done," Barkoe told Business Insider while describing his approach. "I'm going to trust you from minute one, from the moment I hire you, to just get the job done, however you feel best to do it."

In practice, that culture takes a lot of forms. Sometimes, it's an employee working a couple of hours early in the morning so they can sign off early to make their kid's swim meet. Other times, it's an employee taking a three-week trip to Europe but working remotely for two of those weeks.

Barkoe said the open and flexible culture — promoted and practiced by higher-ups — keeps employees from feeling as if they need to sneak away just to get a break.

"It's absolutely culture-driven," he said.

Barkoe says that one reason people might take quiet vacations is that they think their employer isn't treating them with trust and respect.

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As for bosses who are worried having such a flexible culture would result in less work getting done, Barkoe has found the opposite to be true. When Carve went fully remote in 2020, Barkoe said, he realized quickly they were never going back to the office.

"It was just working," he said. "People were more motivated."

Though it may be different at a company with thousands of employees, Barkoe said, "As a small organization, if you're not doing your job, it's pretty hard to hide." He added that if someone does take advantage, then they're probably not the right person for your team, regardless.

Ashton Mathai, the associate director of content at Barkoe's firm, told BI she makes the most of Carve's unlimited PTO policy and work-from-anywhere culture.

Last year, Mathai traveled to Europe for two months. She took 10 days of PTO to start the trip and then spent the rest of the time working from places including Scotland, Amsterdam, Portugal, and Italy. Because of the time differences, she'd often work 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. local time and spend the morning doing a tour or going to the beach.

"I would live my life in the morning and then in the afternoon, night, I would do my work," she said.

Mathai said before she