Why we stopped gatekeeping our personal development budget

Giant Swarm expanded its €1,000 annual personal development budget by removing the implicit requirement that spending be strictly work-relevant. The updated policy now covers therapy, fitness coaching, yoga, language courses, creative workshops, sports coaching, and more — anything learning or education-based qualifies. The book budget was also raised to €50/month and now includes audiobooks. The change was driven by the observation that the old unwritten rules caused most of the budget to go unspent, and that trusting remote employees to manage their own growth is consistent with the broader trust already placed in them to manage their own time and work.