Fantasy sports company Dream 11 is reported to have formulated a company police where it will fine employees Rs 1 lakh for disturbing ‘unplugged’ employees who are on holidays. The policy is given the name of Dream 11 Unplug policy, under which, employees can take an entire week off from work, which would include even responding to emails, messages, calls and even interactions from colleagues who are working.
In a recent interview with CNBC, Harsh Jain, the Culture Enforcement Officer (CEO) of the company said, “Once a year, for one week, you’re kicked out of the [company] system … you don’t have Slack, emails and calls”. The move is not only for employees to get some time to unwind, but also for the company to gauge whether there is too much dependency on a particular person.
“..it helps you greatly to have that one week of uninterrupted time and it helps the business to know whether we’re dependent on anyone,” Jain had said in his interview.
While it is not revealed as to when it was first introduced, the company’s top-executives also come under the ambit of the policy. In his interview with CNBC, Jain said that the policy has been quite effective so far.
The popular fantasy sports company is valued $8 million.
The Facts of the Matter
Imagine being on a leave, going to a nice vacation and you are buzzed by your colleagues for some “inputs” or “clearance” regarding a project. Not only can it dampen the holiday spirit, but can also put pressure on employee who may deem that he is burdened by over-reliance by the company.
To see the problem through, Indian fantasy sports startup Dream 11 has come up with a company policy called ‘Unplug Policy’. Under the policy, if an employee reaches out to another Dream 11 employee who is ‘unplugged’ for a week of holiday, he may be fined up to Rs 1 lakh.
What is Dream 11 ‘Unplug Policy’
The company in its LinkedIn post introduced the policy and wrote – “At Dream11, we actually log off the ‘Dreamster’ who is unplugged, off from every possible Stadium communication platform, be it Slack, emails and even WhatsApp groups. We do this to ensure absolutely no one from the Dreamster’s work ecosystem can contact them while they are on their well-deserved break.”
Policy has Been Effective So Far
While it is not clear as to how much time would an employee need to have spent in the company, or what profile they must be to come under the policy, company executive Harsh Jain said that the policy has been effective.
Company CEO Gives More Insight
Harsh Jain, the Culture Enforcement Officer (CEO), in a recent interview shared more about the ‘Unplug Policy’. “Once a year, for one week, you’re kicked out of the [company] system … you don’t have Slack, emails and calls. Because it helps you greatly to have that one week of uninterrupted time and it helps the business to know whether we’re dependent on anyone,” Harsh told CNBC.
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Employees Remain Satisfied with Policy
A Business Today report quoted a Dream 11 employee sounding quite satisfied with the policy. “I, for one, do not feel guilty about not having a sufficient network. It’s the most distinctive form of unplugging. This disconnected time also helps one rejuvenate, relax and come back feeling fresh, happy, and renewed energy to give one’s best performance,” the employee said.
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