life is but a game
There's a Vegas conference coming up in a couple weeks. The program manager doesn't sound too enthusiastic about it; he jokes every now and again about not going and asks if i want to go instead. Sounds fun. oh, and FYI i heard through a contact that vegas isn't going to be using the "what happens in vegas, stays in vegas" slogan for much longer. just a bit of trivia to make myself seem cool to y'all.
ooh it's also possible that i'll get to go to another rooftop cubs game in july or so.
there's been a lot of talk in the trade blogs (all two or three of 'em) about some of the outrageous bribery, er... rewards programs. One of the most amazing is a cash prize of $10K or the use of a 2005 Jaguar for a year for the top 10 planners that bring $50K or more of meeting revenue with in a certain time period. Reward and incentive programs are usually more subtle, like upgrades or free nights based on how much business you've brought the chain. Even some of the independent hotels are starting to collaborate on such programs.
As quite possibly the only person in my company besides the financial, clerical and graphics staff who doesn't recieve any kind of kickback on a conference, I can't say that I wouldn't mind a little 'shumtin, shumtin' back on the business I bring a hotel. Independent planners charge hotels a commission based on sleeping room revenue, and I'm seriously considering adding that to some of my contracts. Especially considering that I'm underpaid when compared to others in my field who have the same responsibilities and work in the same region. By more than I'd like to admit.
Some of that was needing this job when it came along. Some of that is I really haven't been in this field very long. The commission from the hotel would bring things back in line with the report that I read. All things considered, I'm doing pretty well. It's far better than if i was an hourly retail worker. Plus I have 'real' experience for my resume. I've got all my bills under control and should be able to start saving real money with the paycheck we receive today.
It's just that once you're part of a system, it's natural to try and figure out how to make it work for you. I had one professor who devoted a large chunk of a lecture to 'gaming the system.' When he worked at IBM in the late 60's they would change their purchasing system every three to five years because that's how long it would take employees and vendors to figure out the system and take advantage of it.
He even treated his class as a system for us to figure out and exploit. We were treated like independent contractors competing for the points we needed for a good grade. By the time my class came around a lot of the bugs had been worked out, and those holes patched up. But there were more than enough points to be had for all.
The biggest difference between that experience and this real life thing is the consequences. The worst that could happen was that you'd be failed out of class for cheating. The most likely cause of that had nothing to do with the 'game' that was our grade. Here, in the real world... if you cross a big line, there could be jail time. There are a lot of shades of gray between here and there.
Now don't get worried, I have no intention of even getting over in the dark and cloudy gray. I'm not sure there's much in my job function that could even approach illegal, but I bet there's a bunch I could do that would be grounds for termination. I already know there's a bunch of stuff that'll get me a stern talking to; most of the lectures so far have been just simple mistakes and misunderstandings.
Oddly enough, some of the same incentives that I could benefit from personally can really only be exploited if our company was performing at a much higher level. So in many ways, I'm protected from exposing myself to serious temptations.
What is the difference between taking advantage of your situation and unjustly enriching yourself?
ooh it's also possible that i'll get to go to another rooftop cubs game in july or so.
there's been a lot of talk in the trade blogs (all two or three of 'em) about some of the outrageous bribery, er... rewards programs. One of the most amazing is a cash prize of $10K or the use of a 2005 Jaguar for a year for the top 10 planners that bring $50K or more of meeting revenue with in a certain time period. Reward and incentive programs are usually more subtle, like upgrades or free nights based on how much business you've brought the chain. Even some of the independent hotels are starting to collaborate on such programs.
As quite possibly the only person in my company besides the financial, clerical and graphics staff who doesn't recieve any kind of kickback on a conference, I can't say that I wouldn't mind a little 'shumtin, shumtin' back on the business I bring a hotel. Independent planners charge hotels a commission based on sleeping room revenue, and I'm seriously considering adding that to some of my contracts. Especially considering that I'm underpaid when compared to others in my field who have the same responsibilities and work in the same region. By more than I'd like to admit.
Some of that was needing this job when it came along. Some of that is I really haven't been in this field very long. The commission from the hotel would bring things back in line with the report that I read. All things considered, I'm doing pretty well. It's far better than if i was an hourly retail worker. Plus I have 'real' experience for my resume. I've got all my bills under control and should be able to start saving real money with the paycheck we receive today.
It's just that once you're part of a system, it's natural to try and figure out how to make it work for you. I had one professor who devoted a large chunk of a lecture to 'gaming the system.' When he worked at IBM in the late 60's they would change their purchasing system every three to five years because that's how long it would take employees and vendors to figure out the system and take advantage of it.
He even treated his class as a system for us to figure out and exploit. We were treated like independent contractors competing for the points we needed for a good grade. By the time my class came around a lot of the bugs had been worked out, and those holes patched up. But there were more than enough points to be had for all.
The biggest difference between that experience and this real life thing is the consequences. The worst that could happen was that you'd be failed out of class for cheating. The most likely cause of that had nothing to do with the 'game' that was our grade. Here, in the real world... if you cross a big line, there could be jail time. There are a lot of shades of gray between here and there.
Now don't get worried, I have no intention of even getting over in the dark and cloudy gray. I'm not sure there's much in my job function that could even approach illegal, but I bet there's a bunch I could do that would be grounds for termination. I already know there's a bunch of stuff that'll get me a stern talking to; most of the lectures so far have been just simple mistakes and misunderstandings.
Oddly enough, some of the same incentives that I could benefit from personally can really only be exploited if our company was performing at a much higher level. So in many ways, I'm protected from exposing myself to serious temptations.
What is the difference between taking advantage of your situation and unjustly enriching yourself?
posted by BG at 14:17
1 Comments:
what's your phone number?
(632) 272 9266 doesn't work
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