Designing Equitable Sabbatical Policies that Encourage High Retention
Designed for HR business partners and People Operations leaders at midsize tech companies experiencing voluntary turnover among high-performing, mid-career employees to spark real collaboration and high-energy learning.
A 90-minute hybrid workshop for HR and People Ops leaders (in-person and remote). Participants are grappling with burnout among high performers and a lack of modern, retention-focused leave policies. The group is eager for practical policy design tools but skeptical about whether sabbaticals drive organizational ROI or equity.
Retention Mystery Unboxing
Kick off with a sealed envelope containing three anonymized employee exit interview snippets, each referencing sabbatical policy gaps. Participants collectively predict which snippet led to the highest turnover risk, then unbox the real answer. This primes curiosity about how policy details impact retention.
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Why this works
Surprise-driven inquiry activates critical thinking and creates emotional investment in the topic, grounding abstract policy design in personal stories.
Policy Myth Busting Roulette
Spin a digital wheel with common sabbatical policy myths (e.g., 'Sabbaticals are only for executives', 'They’re too expensive', 'Employees abuse leave'). Each participant volunteers to debunk one myth using provided data, then the group discusses misconceptions.
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Why this works
Actively confronting myths lowers defensiveness and builds shared factual foundations, key for shifting stakeholder mindsets.
Sabbatical Wish Wall
Each participant anonymously submits a one-sentence ‘wish’ for what an ideal sabbatical policy would solve for their company. The facilitator posts these on a virtual wall, inviting low-pressure votes or emoji reactions. This surfaces diverse needs without spotlighting individuals.
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Why this works
Anonymous input lowers social risk and encourages honest participation from all personality types, ensuring quieter voices inform policy design.
Equity Policy Speed Remix
Divide participants into small teams and give each a real company sabbatical policy (from a public HR repository). Teams have 10 minutes to ‘remix’ one element to increase equity or retention, then pitch their change to the room in a one-minute burst.
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Why this works
Collaborative ideation under time constraint boosts energy and commitment, while peer pitching builds confidence in pragmatic change.
Executive Dilemma Simulator
Present participants with a fictional C-suite email: 'We need a sabbatical policy, but we can’t afford lost productivity—help!' Teams brainstorm short, business-aligned responses that balance equity and retention, then discuss tradeoffs. The facilitator shares how actual executives responded in comparable dilemmas.
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Why this works
Applying learning to real-world dilemmas simulates stakeholder negotiation and helps participants link policy design to business imperatives.
Sabbatical Story Canvas
Invite each participant to reflect on a time when they—or someone they managed—would have benefited from a sabbatical. Using a provided canvas (physical or digital), they sketch out the before, during, and after of that experience. Volunteers share their canvases, connecting personal insight to policy vision.
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Why this works
Personal storytelling deepens empathy and commitment, anchoring abstract design work in lived experience and emotional resonance.
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