Holidays: The algorithm helps distribute and manage them better

Vacation time has become a structural requirement for most organizations and a priority for managers, whose bonuses are often tied to it, given that the cost of unused vacation time is considered a budget item: a cost pertaining to the year in which the vacation time accrues. Reading many second-level company agreements, vacation time is generally considered a priority to promote employee rest and well-being. But, it must be said, it also serves to achieve financial objectives.

To help distribute vacation time and avoid overcrowding during certain periods, which could potentially cause disruption to organizations, Peoplelink has developed software that allows users to configure vacation plans on an annual or variable basis, define company closures, work by the hour, day, or half-day, and establish minimums, maximums, and percentages to schedule, with a highly customizable approach. Essentially, employees propose their vacation dates in consultation with colleagues, managers supervise and approve requests, and the human resources department verifies the consistency between planning and reality, to ensure operational continuity. Tiziano Bertolotti, CEO of Peoplelink, explains that "the goal is to help companies avoid concentrating vacation time in just a few weeks, minimize errors, and maximize productivity even during vacation periods. Planning vacation time in advance, better distributing absence periods, making the process transparent, and adapting it to the organization's actual needs are essential today, both for the well-being of employees and for the economic sustainability of businesses."

Thanks in part to globalization, August shutdowns have gradually decreased, and most companies are continuing to open their production facilities, also taking the opportunity to perform necessary maintenance. In recent years, Italians have gradually shifted their vacation habits, tending to spread them out more widely and concentrating less in August. As a recent Ipsos survey, part of the Future4Tourism study, found, nearly three-quarters of workers take vacation between July and September, a decrease of 4 percentage points compared to the previous year. However, those who avoid the busiest summer periods have practically doubled, from 12% to 24%.

The shift in summer travel preferences seen in 2024 continues in 2025: July and August are now tied in terms of Italians' preferences, each accounting for 37% of summer vacations, while September attracts the remaining 24%. Italians are trying to avoid August not only because of high costs and crowds, but also because of fears of excessively hot temperatures, despite June already causing surprises with particularly aggressive and prolonged heatwaves. Economic factors are also a factor in those who forgo summer vacations. Other factors influencing Italians' choices primarily concern family commitments that are incompatible with being away from home.