Ahhhhh, budgeting season! (Said no one, ever.)
With 2026 on the horizon, the spreadsheets are open, priorities are being debated, numbers are being crunched.
There’s usually a line item for equipment, marketing, and technology. But when it comes to investing in the humans driving your results? Culture and development often end up as afterthoughts.
If your people are your biggest asset, why aren’t they your biggest investment?
To be clear: we’re not suggesting you blow your budget on pizza parties or team outings — though we won’t judge if that’s part of the plan.
We’re simply suggesting it’s time to shift how we think about ROI beyond financial returns. Because investing in your people is one of the best financial decisions you can make for your business.
Why?
People Strategy Is Business Strategy
Strong businesses are built on strong teams.
When your people are engaged, supported, and equipped to succeed, everything else — performance, reputation, profitability — follows. Your people strategy is how you build organizational resilience, attract top talent, and retain it.
And the numbers back it! Research consistently shows that organizations with strong, intentional cultures outperform their peers in productivity, profitability, and retention.
Because when people feel valued, they deliver value.
So, investing in culture isn’t a cost centre. It’s actually a performance strategy. It’s how you future-proof your organization through change, attract the right people, and keep them engaged once they’re here.
The ROI of Investing in Your People
Culture has a tangible return. Here’s what it looks like when you invest in people:
- Retention ROI: Lower turnover means less time and money spent rehiring, and more team members who know your business inside and out.
- Performance ROI: Engaged teams are more productive, innovative, and accountable.
- Reputation ROI: A workplace where people love to work attracts great talent and keeps your reputation strong with both employees and customers.
In fact, organizations with engaged employees see 23% higher profitability and 78% lower absenteeism than those that don’t.
That’s not a coincidence; that’s culture doing its job.
The Cost of Ignoring Your People
Not investing in your people doesn’t save money. It just shifts the cost.
When engagement drops, so does productivity and service.
When leadership is inconsistent and not properly trained, turnover rises.
When recognition and growth take a back seat, motivation fades.
Doing nothing still has a price tag. It just shows up later, in ways that are harder to fix.
How High-Performing Companies Budget for Their People
Organizations that perform (and stay around) invest in their people like they invest in any other growth strategy.
They fund initiatives that directly impact performance and retention, like:
- Leadership development and coaching to strengthen decision-making and accountability.
- Manager training focused on feedback, performance conversations, and engagement.
- Workforce planning and career pathways to build internal mobility and retain talent.
- DEI and accessibility programs that improve equity, innovation, and belonging.
- Recognition and rewards systems that reinforce high performance and loyalty.
And they track outcomes the same way they do financial metrics: by measuring engagement, retention, productivity, and growth.
At Envol, we’ve seen this approach transform businesses of all sizes – from small trades teams to large enterprises. When companies align their people strategy with their business strategy, performance follows.
A New Way to Think About ROI
Budgets tell a story — not just about where your money goes, but about what you believe drives results.
When you invest in tools, you expect performance.
When you invest in people, you build the capacity that makes every other investment work.
Because people are the strategy. They’re the reason goals are met, clients stay, and growth keeps happening long after the budget cycle ends.
So, as you plan for 2026, look beyond the numbers. Does your budget reflect where you want your business to go, and the people it will take to get there?
If you’re ready to align the two, we can help you make it real.
Book your free People Strategy Session with our team today – let’s drive your business growth through your people!