Working Mother Magazine honored this year’s 100 Best Companies at the 2009 WorkLife Congress in NYC last week. Elizabeth, co-founder of yourSABBATICAL, and I were invited to present and facilitate a session, Career Sabbatical Programs that Retain, Recruit and Develop Talent.
Along with participants wildly interested in having a sabbatical program at their companies, some attended for the purpose of “dusting off” a sabbatical program already in place. These were smart, forward thinking people looking for innovative ideas.
Onsite child care was the big offering 10 or 15 years ago, and the top 10 Best Companies on Working Mother’s list stepped up to the plate. One hundred percent of these companies now provide childcare.
Now these trail-blazing companies are looking for other ways to meet the needs of their diverse workforces. On the horizon of what companies could do to create brand loyalty, recruit and retain talent, motivate and rejuvenate their human capital are career sabbatical programs. The career sabbatical idea fits the description given in a NY Times article this year – a “sleeping giant”.
Where do you begin with a group of highly motivated, curious senior executives interested in this topic? Considering our constiuents – partners, C-suite, employees at large companies – we discussed what pops in and out of brains when we hear the word “sabbatical.”
- Isn’t it sort of like a vacation?
- It’s what people do when they are between jobs.
- How is a sabbatical different than extended leave?
- Could a career sabbatical be a job rotation?
This lively discussion never needed nudging. What emerged was a potentially gigantic communication problem. The word “sabbatical” holds different meanings for individuals. Language is powerful. At yourSABBATICAL we have had passionate discourse on whether making up a new term or word to replace “sabbatical” would be better than facing the uphill struggle of educating and/or enlightening people about the “contemporary meaning” of this age-old word.
At yourSABBATICAL the definition is quite clear. Career sabbaticals are planned, strategic job pauses that allow you to travel, do research, volunteer, learn a new skill, or fulfill a lifelong dream. The most meaningful sabbaticals are planned ones – with specific goals and objectives designed to benefit both you and your company. A sabbatical is an opportunity for intentional reflection, professional development, personal growth, transformative insights, and renewed passion.
Later in the day of our Working Mother session, during a cocktail reception, a senior executive said to us: “Sabbaticals? Isn’t that what college professors do?”
What do you think of when you hear the word “sabbatical” or “career sabbatical?” How close do your initial thoughts overlay into the concepts and definitions presented by yourSABBATICAL?
And the big question: Do we need a new word to replace “sabbatical”? We’re listening.
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