There are two unwritten assumptions in this post: 1 - The company focuses on people as appreciable assets, as opposed to costs to be minimized. 2 - There is n

There are two unwritten assumptions in this post: 1 - The company focuses on people as appreciable assets, as opposed to costs to be minimized. 2 - There is not diminishing returns for chasing the best. Where this is true and recognized, companies don't nickel and dime employees. It is usually true in the best recruiter of each talent focused industry. Like them or not, this is in part why Goldman Sachs and McKinsey succeed, as well as top software firms. Once you view people as costs to be minimized (think the auto industry) or there is diminishing returns on individual excellence (think Wal-mart) then this system breaks down.