Balancing Employee Satisfaction and Profit: How Should HR Allocate Resources in Software Sales?

Dear Partners,

I have a situation involving a conflict of views between two HR groups at the workplace. One group believes we should focus our HR services on enhancing employee satisfaction, so employees feel good about the company and its ideologies, thereby putting in better efforts to achieve the company's goals. The other group argues that employee loyalty based solely on satisfaction is not guaranteed. Given our limited HR resources, they suggest focusing on the stages of the work process that deliver maximum monetary profit and equipping employees to perform better in these areas. This does not mean neglecting the rest of the process stages for providing HR support. Since my employer is in software sales and development, primarily thinking from a revenue perspective, this approach may require consideration. Could you please share your views on how to focus HR resources accordingly on the work front?

It pays to invest in your people. In fact, it happens to be the right thing to do.

Employee Satisfaction Results in Business Success

From productivity to culture, to retention, to customer satisfaction, employees who are happy overall perform better.

Some Facts

Happiness Fuels Productivity

According to a recent study by economists at the University of Warwick, "human happiness has large and positive causal effects on productivity." The study also found that happiness led to a 12% spike in employee productivity, while unhappy workers were 10% less productive. On the note of productivity, the average human sits for 12 hours per day. Something as simple as a program that encourages employees to get up and walk around every hour, or an investment in ergonomic office furniture, can make a strong difference to ensure employees are happy, healthy, and engaged.

Happy Employees Make Happy Customers

A happy and positive employee makes a big difference for customer loyalty, sales, and retention. According to "The State of the American Workplace" report by Gallup, employees who are engaged are more likely to improve customer relationships, with a resulting 20% increase in sales.

So now that you are convinced, please invest some time and money into ensuring employees are happy. How?

Some of the Ways

- Trust in leadership: Employees crave a good relationship with their leadership team and want to work for a company they trust and believe in.
- Health: Physical and mental health are integral for cultivating happy employees. By offering health benefits, packages, healthy snacks, and standing desks, you can increase employee satisfaction and retention.
- Recognition/Growth: It feels nice to be acknowledged for a job well done both verbally, financially, and at a promotion level. Employees want to have a clear vision of their growth trajectory and what it takes to get there.
- Culture: We often spend more time at work than at home. Employees want to enjoy the atmosphere of their workplace. Successful businesses encourage employees to connect with one another and cultivate programs that inspire good company culture.

From Team – WeInfinityPlus

The Challenge of Balancing HR Focus

I agree this would be a good approach, but it is not clear why, in the real world, companies do not follow this. If customer service is critical, it is not clear why many companies outsource their customer care service to third-party agencies. If employee satisfaction were guaranteed to bring profits, it is not clear why there is such reluctance to invest in HR software, stating that it does not fetch revenue. In the name of cost-cutting, reduction in employee benefits is one of the first things we see as having been executed in a slowdown.

A Focused Approach for HR Solutions

In a scenario where we have a limited budget and no guarantees of revenue generation from the HR process, could we have a more focused approach for a solution?