Partners Unplug and Recharge

Don’t use the excuse “I’m too busy to take a vacation” at one Missouri-based accounting and financial services firm.

BKD LLP of Springfield, Mo., requires partners to take a one-month paid sabbatical every five years.

Randy Hultz, BKD’s director of human resources, said the time off not only allows partners to recover from the demands of client service and continually building professional expertise, but also serves as a teambuilding exercise.

“When a partner is away, he or she learns what the rest of the team can do. For team members, it’s a chance to show they can handle extra responsibilities. That enables a company to consider succession planning by identifying the next generation of partners,” Hultz said.

Tempted to work from home? Don’t even think about it—partners on sabbatical have their e-mail accounts disabled.