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The lure of zero
We intuitively understand that, when we want to maximize something that is good for us, there are almost always trade-offs involved. But are we equally astute when we want to minimize something that is bad?
One of the employers I have had the pleasure to work for had a pretty developed system of benefits, that went by the rather apt name of Choices. The whole idea of offering benefits in addition to a salary is that the value to the employee is higher than the cost to the company — a true win-win. But while the cost to the employer is easy to calculate, a given benefit may not have the same value to every member of staff. Offering flexibility, and allowing every employee to choose from a menu those benefits that fit their current needs and lifestyle the best made great sense.
Striving for an optimum
One of the more intriguing elements of Choices was the option to increase the number of days’ vacation from the standard allowance of 25 days per year. By sacrificing the equivalent of one day’s pay, we could ‘buy’ an additional day off. Almost everyone either stuck with the status quo, or went for the maximum of five days extra, which confirms offering the choice had been a clever idea.
