Wise Startup Blog

How can my company cut costs, but still retain our top talent? We don’t want to cut too deep and not be prepared when the economy starts to come back around.

Entrepreneurs have to make some tough decisions this Holiday season, amid the worst recession we’ve probably ever seen. If we cut back too far, we’re going to lose valuable employees, and when the economy comes back around, it may take us an extended period of time to ramp back up.

However, if we don’t cut-back, the company could suffer, and there may not be any business at all.

So what is an entrepreneur to do? How can we cut costs, effectively?

7 Easy Cost Cutting Measures

The President-elect has told us we need to be prepared to living lives of efficiency. Recycling, reusing, and re-inventing ourselves is the motto of the 21st century.

Instead of layoffs, employers are looking for ways to keep the company intact, employees happy, and business expanding. Hopefully these examples below will help you in your business.

4 Day Workweeks
This can be a real blessing for parents struggling with daycare. Plus, who wouldn’t like to work less than they do now. This shaves 52 days off your payroll, and can make your employees happy as well.

Extended Holiday Vacation
At the end of the year, not much work gets done on the 24th of December and on New Years Day. If you don’t already, give your employees these days off as an un-paid vacation.

Spring Break
Unpaid vacation sounds really menacing until you get to take off for 1 week in the middle of May. Finding creative ways to give your employees time off can help assuage the negative thoughts surrounding unpaid vacation. These breaks will have your staff rested, and ready to come back to work.

Voluntary Salary Reductions
If you have every employee volunteer a 1% reduction in salary, it can save the company a large amount of money, and won’t cause a huge material affect on overall morale.

401k Matching Hiatus
Yes, retirement planning is important, but keeping employees paid is also a priority. Create a deal with your employees. Suspend 401k matching for 1 year, with a promise to restore payments at the end of the year.

Turn Off Your Computers
This is perhaps one of the most overlooked. Simply turning off computers and monitors everyday can save huge amounts on your electric bill. Configure the power settings to power-down all monitors, and PCs so you can have the process be automatic.

Eliminate Overtime
Paying 1 1/2 times salary for overtime work is typically an example of efficiency that can be improved. Eliminate overtime, let employees go home early, and you’ll get more productive employees that work 2x better when they’re not overworked.