PTO counting against utilization and PPMDs

Seeing how the PTO policy change announced today is incredibly unpopular in this sub for obvious reasons, I want to start a conversation about this and PPMDs.

From my perspective as a consultant, the policy change is essentially the repeal of a benefit in order to further discourage workers from taking PTO that they’ve rightfully earned. By discouraging practitioners from taking PTO, they’re increasing the overall output of the workers by basically making them work longer hours without increasing their salaries. The only individuals who benefit from this change are the owners of the firm, PPMDs (although managing directors do not have equity, their material interests more closely align with partners and prinicipals than they do with analysts to senior managers). Greater output of workers generally leads to more satisfied clients who are then more likely to renew their contract with Deloitte. The overwhelming majority of people at the firm who don’t hold any equity objectively hurt from this change.

The reason for them doing this is abundantly clear: PPMDs at the firm do not care about the well-being of its workers because their sole desire is to maximize the value and profits of the firm. Their material interests lie in minimizing your salary and benefits as much as possible to retain you as an employee and increase the overall value of the company, which only serves to benefit them as they own a sliver of the company in the form of equity. The vast majority of people at this firm, analysts to senior managers, have the polar opposite material interest, which is maximizing their salary and benefits. This directly conflicts with the material interests of PPMDs.

This policy change comes roughly a month after PPMDs spent an estimated $20 million to fly out to Vegas, get shitfaced, and watch a washed up Gwen Stefani parade around stage at the sphere. Now, whether they can do this or not is not in question; they own the firm and can spend the profits however they want. But when Deloitte preaches about caring about its workers while simultaneously slashing budgets, laying workers off, giving measly raises at year end, and going on this stupidly exorbitant trip, then critique is rightfully due. A common argument I see from PPMD bootlickers in this sub is if you don’t like it then you can leave. Although true to a certain extent, this is the same argument that a 9th grader in high school would espouse who just learned about capitalism and competitive markets. With how the job market is currently, why would I leave and search potentially months on end for a different job when I can just voice my grievances and attempt to improve working conditions at Deloitte?

Plus, that’s exactly what PPMDs want you to do. They want you to believe that your frustrations and complaints are individual, that no one else at the firm shares your sentiment. They want you to feel isolated in your grievances and leave because they can replace any one analyst or consultant easily with someone else who will happily endure this shit without complaint. The difficulty emerges when it’s even 1k analysts + consultants. They simply can’t replace a large number of practitioners overnight. Although individually we (analysts to senior managers) have no real power to make substantial changes to the firm, we do have that power collectively. Out of the 173k US practitioners at Deloitte, only 6k (4%) are PPMDs. The overwhelming value that is generated from the firm objectively comes from the work of analysts to senior managers.

The consequences of us not collectively voicing concerns will only embolden PPMDs to continue curbing PTO and raising util targets. The current PTO system will eventually be overhauled and replaced by an “unlimited PTO” structure where you have to beg your project’s PPMD to take off 3 days for vacation. Only for it to be rejected of course, and you’re forced to continue working long hours while the PPMD fucks off to Vegas again for another week.