Money doesn’t merely slip through the cracks at work. Instead, it pours out in ways that nobody’s really watching, usually through forgotten settings & bills that keep renewing in the background. We spoke to some financial experts, and here are twelve ways they said that workplaces waste money every day. Which of these have you seen at your job?
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Auto-renewed SaaS seats for ex-employees
Someone leaves the company, but their software account sticks around, including CRMs & design apps. Even their project boards still get billed because the office never deactivated their account. It takes months for finance to notice. Really, though, it’d just take a quick glance at the login history to find those ghost accounts & remove them.
Zombie cloud resources left running
Cloud platforms usually charge for stuff that businesses forget to turn off. That test server from last year is still running, while those extra storage disks not tied to anything are also billed every month. Something as simple as unused IP addresses could also rack up charges. Unfortunately, nobody sees them until the monthly invoice arrives.
Color-by-default print settings and duplex off
Printing gets pricey when the default settings are wrong, such as being stuck on color or printing single-sided pages automatically. This costs a lot more than anyone realizes. Once you add in big slide decks or logo-heavy headers, the ink burns out a lot faster. Who knew changing a setting could save so much money?
After-hours HVAC on empty floors
Heating and cooling systems run regardless of whether anybody’s there. It doesn’t matter that cleaning crews are the only ones in the building, as the thermostat’s still set for a full floor of workers. It’s the same on weekends & even holidays. Eventually, the utility bill keeps climbing with no one around to feel it.
Sales tax paid when an exemption applies
Even though nonprofits & schools don’t have to pay sales tax on certain purchases, they don’t always take advantage of this. You have to upload the right exemption forms, or else vendors just tack the tax on automatically. And those extra dollars aren’t small change. It’s money out the door.
Paying for unused parking spaces
The majority of parking spots are locked into long leases. And that’s even after headcount drops. The result is that a company gets billed for dozens of empty spaces, although nobody notices because the invoice looks the same quarter after quarter. Is it worth paying for all that empty space? Probably not.
Paying for redundant insurance policies
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Sure, insurance paperwork is messy. That’s why it’s not unusual for a company to end up with coverage that overlaps, such as liability insurance that already includes a type of protection. But someone signed up for a separate policy anyway. Unfortunately, your workplace probably won’t question it until someone finally compares plans side by side.
Stocking too many office supplies
Whenever you open a supply closet, you’ll probably start wondering who ordered twelve cases of highlighters. It usually happens when reorders run on autopilot. Paper & markers, even binders & sticky notes, pile up faster than they get used, with half of them often going missing. The rest sits untouched.
Paying for unclaimed employee perks
Most employee perks look good in the handbook. After all, who wouldn’t say no to free gym passes or a museum membership or two? Yet the problem is that a large number of people never sign up & nobody checks. But the company still has to pay for everyone on the roster.
Over-lighting empty areas
Hallways & entire floors are usually lit up even when they’re empty. Many offices simply don’t bother with sensors or timers, meaning that the lights stay on all day & all night. No one’s thinking about the electric bill when they walk out. Yet the cost increases with every unused hour of brightness that gets wasted in the office.
Paying overtime because of poor scheduling
Bad scheduling almost always ends the same way. And that’s with overtime. Rather than spreading work during normal hours, managers call people in late & pay them time-and-a-half. The job could’ve been handled earlier, but it simply wasn’t assigned right. Payroll takes the hit. Unfortunately, nobody really connects the dots on what that mistake costs.
Running too many small meetings with catering
Most of the time, bagels & coffee get ordered on autopilot for weekly meetings that come around. But they’ve forgotten that the team’s remote. Nobody cancels the order because it’s “just what we do,” so half the food goes in the trash. The bill’s paid without a second thought.
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