So Many Opinions, Part 2

Dear Rabbi and Susan,

I saw a trending story that a woman booked her executive boss on a flight with a 4-hour layover because of a company policy that employees must take the cheapest flight available. Her boss was not amused.

It wasn’t clear if she was fired or not, but it sounds like as a result, their policy was changed to “a flight that makes sense, taking cost into account.”

What got my attention were the comments. They fluctuated between, “It’s high time someone stuck it to the execs who get big money for doing nothing” and “Sour grapes. Of course, different employees are treated differently. Work hard and you’ll get to be higher on the totem pole.”

Do you think that company policies should be the same for everyone?

Nettie P.

Dear Nettie,

After advising you last week to stop reading most comment sections, we are ready to address your main topic.

It’s fascinating how little many people understand about what executives or higher ups in business do. Imagine a hospital that reserves parking for transplant surgeons. Would anyone complain about that surgeon being able to get inside without circling a parking lot for fifteen minutes?

How about reserved teacher parking spaces? Or, to expand on the same idea, special dressing rooms set aside for the star of a movie being filmed? When was the last time you heard mass complaints about the salary paid to a pro football player or actor?

Yet, when it comes to business professionals, politicians (extremely highly paid ones), social activists, and pundits encourage jealousy, and even hatred. And foolish citizens buy into this manipulation.

Are there companies that are paying too much and giving too many perks to the people at the top? In that case, their shareholders ought to protest rather than uninvolved strangers. Do some undeserving individuals get tapped for senior positions? Certainly. And, unlike when the government wastes money or hires fools, those companies end up in trouble. They either reassess and change policy or face failure.

That doesn’t in the least take away from the valuable jobs that company execs do. While specific tasks vary, a unifying theme of being towards the top of the ladder is accepting responsibility. The higher one goes, the more fluid the hours are. You don’t get to sign out and not think about the job until the next morning. In well-functioning companies, the well-paid professional has also put in the time and effort to climb a ladder. Alternatively, they have risked their capital which was needed for the venture to get started or grow.

A CEO also puts his reputation and future career on the line as very often among the assets he brings to his employer are his connections and his credibility. One famous example, in 1991 the investment banking firm of Salomon Brothers was in such deep trouble that it was all but finished. In a final ditch effort they replaced their CEO, John Gutfreund with Warren Buffett and from the moment Buffett entered the office, the firm began to repair and today it is an important part of Citigroup.

The policy you describe to always book the cheapest flight is poorly thought out. It isn’t a good idea for the president of the company, and it may not be a good idea for the newest employee who might be low on the totem pole. That is because dollars are only one measure of expense. Time and wear are two more that need to be taken into account.

But for the policy to change as a result of anger and bitterness is also a poor idea. If you found anything compelling in the argument, “It’s high time someone stuck it to the execs who get big money for doing nothing” we encourage you to learn more about the fascinating world of business.

Aim for the top rather than for shooting down those who worked to get there,

Rabbi Daniel and Susan Lapin

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