How HR can help cut costs and beat the company budget

Executive overview

HR professionals at small to mid-sized businesses have more budget influence than they realise. Payroll is typically the largest company expense, and HR already touches the three areas with the most savings potential.

Audit monthly subscriptions, supplies, and recruitment costs — then redirect the savings to things that matter.

HR-led recruitment can eliminate entire cost categories, not just reduce them.

Monthly recurring expenses

• Review all software subscriptions and cancel tools no longer in use
• Audit per-user-per-month tools (HRIS, software platforms) for inactive accounts
• Removing a terminated employee from a flexible system like BerniePortal stops billing immediately
• Avoid contracts that lock you into a fixed user count regardless of team size

Supplies and equipment

• Slow ordering on supplies that sit unused
• Buy popular supplies in bulk to reduce unit cost
• Old computers have resale value — use buyback vendors (e.g. Phobio, Diamond Assets) instead of discarding
• Check with your tech vendor; they often have an existing buyback relationship

Recruitment costs

• RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) can cost $10,000+ per hire for specialised roles
• Taking recruiting in-house and using an ATS to cross-post on Indeed can reduce cost to $0
• Running first-round screening calls in-house filters candidates before they reach the hiring manager
• Savings at this level can match or exceed an employee's salary annually

Using the savings strategically

• Write a proposal showing how much was saved and where the freed-up budget is best allocated
• Suggestions can range from a new HRIS system to fixing everyday office pain points
• Present budget savings as context when asking for a raise or additional professional development support
• Taking on extra responsibilities like recruitment should be reflected in compensation