Ethical Savings

Rule of the game: save for your company on your entitlements or enjoy it ?

As we undergo restructuring and cost savings across the board in many companies, one would think that it is helpful and ethical to save for your company. The savings I'm talking about is the employee entitlements. This will be in monetary form whether its savings on hotels, trips, flight tickets, etc.

Unlike the actual cost savings you help the company with that shows up in the p/l or better known as reflection on the bottom line; these cost savings gets a different stand altogether. The actual cost savings can be done with more effective management, better reliability an yields. What are your opinions on this?

I've had many experiences throughout my time as a student, a society contributor, a budding entrepreneur-wannabe and most recently as an employee. The fact is, the few hours you put in to try find the extra option of equal quality - well within your entitlement of course, may not be worth it. After all, your job description and handbook does not asks for you to save in your entitlements, rather, it asks for you to enjoy your privilege.

A simple example could be that, you were entitled for X trip but you chose Y route because its more cost effective but Y route is not the norm. Learning through the hard facts of life had me taken steps of precaution whenever dealing with these. It's in my nature to save for my benefactors, but was it worth it? Did they see it as a positive effort from your side? On the contrary, I've faced many sceptic eyes, been known as bossy, been told to just do my job etc. It hasn't gone down well for me. Not only are you not recognized for your effort to save cost for the company, you are labelled as the guy who gives us more work, try to rework the process and more negative remarks. It sums up our Asian upbringing: keep quiet and do your job.

Hence, I've summed up a conclusion in my own opinion and experiences, to only save in the form of business for the company, and NOT/NEVER on your entitlements. After all, you are entitled and the contributions you put in is a tradeoff for this. What are your thoughts? Save only when it is reflected on your p/l or save altogether whenever you can?