12.3) Spending Money Guidelines

We are blessed as a group that we do have resources available. To ensure we use these resources responsibly, included are some guidelines on spending WEG money.

• Spend money on what you need.
  - For example, if you need a computer that has more performance capabilities than the base option, request one from Dr. Webber, including the reasons for the purchase. With Dr. Webber's approval, Sarah will help you acquire the new computer.
• Do not spend money on what you do not need.
  - We have almost unlimited high performance computing available to you, so you do not need everything in a laptop.
  - Double-up on hotels. Look for those with free breakfast (for example, Embassy Suites), but take a few minutes to optimize rate, food, and distance.
  - Take the cheaper fights. They might be an inconvenient option, but the lower cost allows more of us to go other places.
  - Take advantage of early-bird or student rates. Volunteer at the conference if your rate will be free, but not if you will no longer gain anything from attending the conference.
• Be ready to spend large sums of money.
  - Interestingly, sometimes we have a lot of money that needs to be spent quickly. Examples include:
  
  * Use-it or lose-it money from grants,
  * Money that other people cannot or do not have time to spend given to us to spend. This happens more often than you might think.
  
  - You should have a ready "wish list" of things you would like to get if possible. 
  
  * If someone asked you to spend $5-10k by tomorrow, you should be able to do so.
  * The items are UT property, not take-home items.
  * The items should further the mission of WEG and UT. Examples include:
  
  
  • Computing resources, software, or hardware that we do not have,
  • Outreach materials, including energy toys, or
  • Solar radiation measurement equipment for the rooftop lab.