Grant Thornton has rolled out a new benefit enhancement that will allow the firm’s employees to take time off as needed to meet their individual needs instead of a predetermined set of paid time off days.
Like PricewaterhouseCoopers, which recently introduced a new perk to help young accountants pay off their student loans, Grant Thornton hopes to get ahead of its peers with an attractive new benefit that could help with both recruitment and retention (see
“As the first public accounting and consulting firm to move away from the traditional paid time off model in an industry focused on utilization, we realize our employees are not just talented professionals — they also aspire to be leaders, mentors, community advocates, dedicated parents and friends,” said Pamela Harless, chief people and culture officer for Grant Thornton, in a statement. “Our goal is to further enhance our culture of trust where employees are empowered to manage their own time, which allows them to return to work refreshed, with better ideas and solutions for clients. We believe our flex time off policy is the model for the professional services firm of the future.”
On top of that, this year Grant Thornton will be closed for two weeks during the holiday season, beginning on December 21 through New Year’s Day. Among the major accounting and consulting firms, Grant Thornton said it is the first to initiate an extended holiday time off schedule.
“In addition to providing outstanding client service, we are deeply committed to building a healthy, high-performance culture in which our employees feel inspired and valued,” said Harless. “We are confident this change will enhance our ability to exceed client expectations by ensuring our people bring their ‘whole selves’ to work and are at their very best.”
To watch a video showing some employees’ reactions to the announcement of Grant Thornton’s paid time off policy,
