Leak: Shopify clarifies its stance on employee side hustles in new internal guidance one day after CEO memo said Shopify requires ‘unshared attention’

• Shopify clarified its policies around employee side hustles.
• The additional guidance came after CEO Tobi Lütke posted a message about side gigs on Wednesday.
• Shopify is asking employees to disclose side hustles that might be problematic.

Shopify issued additional internal guidance on employee side hustles on Thursday, one day after CEO Tobi Lütke’s company-wide memo caused confusion among employees. The new guidelines outline potentially problematic side hustles and ask employees to disclose any projects that may not be appropriate.

“I recently learned that our offer letters and some Vault pages have been suggesting side gigs,” Lütke wrote on Wednesday on Shopify’s Workplace page. “This surprises me because it directly contradicts the countless times I’ve said Shopify is like a professional sports team that requires our unshared attention.”

“You should run a Shopify store to learn our product,” Lütke continued. If it grows, hire help or do what we love most: become a full-time entrepreneur. Any other commitments that drain and deplete your creative energy for work are not acceptable.”

He also stated that potential conflicts of interest are another reason why employees should exercise caution when pursuing side projects.

Many employees were taken aback by Wednesday’s message, which some claimed contradicted Shopify’s long-term policies. Shopify is frequently referred to as “the entrepreneurship company,” and company representatives have stated that the company actively promotes “a spirit of entrepreneurship internally and encourages our employees to pursue their passions and side projects.”

The company’s stance was clarified by Shopify’s guidance on Thursday.

“Shopify is an all-in company that requires your undivided focus on your craft,” according to the new internal guidance, which Insider obtained. “A lot of Shopifolk do side projects for learning, exploration, tinkering, and fun.” And we strongly encourage you to open a Shopify store. This type of work is closely related to our mission and is an excellent way to develop empathy with our merchants. We’re also delighted to support your contributions to non-Shopify open-source communities.”

“Side projects are great – they keep us unique and interesting as people and as a company,” it continued. Some, however, can be problematic or become so if the time or creative commitment exceeds our ability to fully focus on our mission.

Certain side hustles will not work for Shopify and must be approved in advance.”

A Shopify representative declined to elaborate on the new internal guidelines.

Teaching a yoga class once a week, working part-time at a coffee shop outside of core Shopify working hours, coaching a soccer team a couple days a week, fulfilling military service commitments, going to school part-time, volunteering for a non-profit “now and then,” sitting on a board of directors for a local non-profit “with a minimal time commitment,” or making open-source contributions are examples of side hustles that would not be considered problematic at Shopify.

“As long as these side hustle commitments (or those similar) don’t take over your time or creative energy, don’t put you in a situation where your interests could conflict with Shopify’s interests, and happen outside of your team’s core hours, it’s all good – no need to tell us about it, just do your thing,” the rules stated.

Employees have long been encouraged by the e-commerce company to open their own Shopify stores in order to stay familiar with the product, and Thursday’s guidance reinforced that. Employees of Shopify can use the company’s software to open their own stores for free.

“If you’re really good at it and your business grows, you’ll hit a decision point: find a way to pull back on your personal store commitment (hire help, for example) or do the thing we celebrate most: use that free Shopify alumni store and ascend to be a full-time entrepreneur,” the instructions stated.

It also listed the following criteria for potentially problematic side hustles: jobs that “interfere with your primary commitment (of time or creativity) to Shopify or our mission,” side hustles that compete with Shopify, and side jobs that “use your Shopify position or knowledge or Shopify’s resources for personal gain.” Employees were discouraged from developing apps or themes or selling services as a Shopify partner.

Employees should not use their Shopify laptops for side hustles and should otherwise protect confidential information, according to the guidance.

Employees were asked to disclose any projects that could pose a problem under these guidelines so that the company could “take a closer look.”

“Based on the facts and circumstances of each case, including local laws and requirements, and at its sole discretion, Shopify reserves the right to determine the consequences of violations of this policy,” it states. “Consequences can range from discipline to termination.” Furthermore, if you have caused Shopify harm, we reserve the right to file a claim against you to make it right.”

Employees said the new policies provided much-needed clarification on the subject.

“I think they’ve handled it correctly,” said one employee, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak with the press. “They have clarified a lot of the gaping holes that the original posting had.”