An employee is responsible to visit clients in a large rural area. He visits individual homes each week, checks in daily, submits his reports electronically and arrives in the office for Team meetings every other Tuesday. His work is positive, reports accurately and is well respected by his clients. He lives on an acreage outside a small town a short distance from the city where his head office is located.
His employment package, confirms he gets a company vehicle for all his work related travelling. He has a company credit card for gas, maintenance and repairs. It just didn’t seem reasonable to expect the employee to allocate an hour every day to come into the office to pick up and return the company vehicle. So, he is allowed to keep the vehicle at home. However, he cannot use it for personal business.
The challenge arrives when the employee is discovered, using the company vehicle to drive his daughter to specialty music lessons to a neighbouring town. This hour long trip has used the company gas and vehicle every weekend for the previous three years.
This example may seem too obvious. Is it? The point is, how is your record for honest use of company resources? You may not be borrowing/stealing the company car, gas, wear and tear. However, do you arrive late and leave early? Are your lunch and coffee breaks getting longer? Do company pens, pads of paper, computers and laptops find their way to your home and personal life? Speaking of personal life, are you representing your employer in a positive manner on your off hours? How much time do you spend on personal phone calls, email and internet use?
Check Romans 12:11 in the Living Bible, “Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically.”
In Executive Influence, Crane and Hamel confirm that, “Christians are held to a different standard, no matter what their titles.”
Leadership is living a life that is beyond question setting an exemplary standard.
Are you are being totally honest in all your decisions related to company resources?
Yours in Service,
Laurie D. Kennedy
Leadership Coach