Dear Calcy: Stuck Between ROI and Retention

Dear Calcy,

We’re under pressure to cut costs and prove the ROI of our incentives, which puts every nuance of our comp plans under the microscope. Our CFO wants to trim spend, but sales leadership is (understandably) worried about morale. How can finance and RevOps teams identify smart places to reduce comp costs without putting performance at risk?

Stuck Between ROI and Retention

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Dear Stuck Between ROI and Retention,

First off, know you’re not alone! This is one of the most common — and high-stakes — questions comp leaders face. 

Incentives are both one of your biggest levers for growth and one of your biggest line items. The key isn’t just cutting costs; it’s finding efficiencies that keep motivation strong while eliminating waste.

Here are a few smart places to start:

1. Audit for Payout Errors

Errors are a silent drain on budgets. Overpayments, missed clawbacks, or misapplied rules don’t just cost money — they damage trust. Tightening QA processes, cleaning up data inputs, and centralizing calculations into one system can uncover hidden savings without touching plan design.

2. Cut the Costs of Manual Admin Work

If your team is buried in spreadsheets or reliant on IT for every adjustment, you’re already overspending. Modern comp tools with self-service admin features reduce headcount strain, consultant dependency, and opportunity costs — freeing finance and RevOps to focus on growth instead of grunt work.

3. Spot and Eliminate Wasteful Incentives

Not every spiff, kicker, or bonus drives the right behavior. Take a hard look at which programs are producing measurable ROI. If reps don’t understand or engage with an incentive, it’s likely wasted spend. Redirect those dollars toward simpler, visible levers that move the needle.

4. Prioritize Flexibility

Inflexible systems are a hidden cost. If you can’t pivot comp plans quickly when markets shift, you’ll burn money on outdated behaviors — or spend heavily on consultants just to make basic changes. Flexible infrastructure means you can adapt spend to strategy faster, with less waste.

5. Avoid Overpaying for Tech & Services

Vendor lock-in and heavily customized code can saddle teams with ongoing costs they didn’t budget for. Evaluate whether your current setup empowers admins to manage plans independently. If every small change requires outside support, you’re likely overspending.

The bottom line: Efficiency doesn’t have to mean slashing payouts or demotivating reps. The savings are often hiding in how programs are executed — not what they’re designed to do. Clean data, streamlined processes, and flexible systems help you trim costs while protecting the trust and motivation that make incentives work in the first place.

Onward to efficient growth,
–Calcy