There is very little left of 2025. Leaders are now either in full throttle completing projects, spending budgets, or closing their final few customers… or winding down, re-strategizing, and setting goals for next year. Or maybe a mix of both.
The truth is that a big question hangs somewhere in the back of all our minds: “Am I spending money on the right things?”
One of the most frustrating parts of that question, at least for me, is how often leaders look at it purely from the financial standpoint, squeezing the last drop from every dollar. In doing so, I’ve seen organizations of every size dilute their essence. They cut small things that look like “costs” on a spreadsheet, not realizing they’re knocking over a tower of dominoes that ends with people feeling less engaged, customers walking away, or brand trust quietly eroding.
Sure, maybe you saved a dollar.
But often, you lost a person, or a customer, or a piece of momentum that was far more valuable.
So in this piece, I want to shed some light on qualitative ROI: what it is, how other organizations measure it, where leaders usually get it wrong, and how you can approach your own budget strategy without sacrificing the long game.
Don’t Just Cut: Measure First
During budget reviews, messy numbers inevitably surface. Some line items don’t seem to tell a clear story, and yes, no leader can be on top of everything happening across the org. That ambiguity creates a very tempting shortcut:
“This number is too high and I don’t see the value. Let’s cut it.”
That shortcut is dangerous.
And not because questioning the spend is wrong, you absolutely should.
The problem is cutting without understanding.
If you’re struggling to get a clear answer for why something exists, and there’s no KPI connected to it, don’t slash first.
Run a pilot. Set a metric. Ask for expected outcomes.
Give that initiative a fair chance to show real impact.
Here are a few ways to do that effectively:
1. Translate the intangible into measurable proxies
You don’t need perfect measurement; you need consistent measurement.
Ask: What is the closest real-world indicator of the thing we’re trying to improve?
Examples:
- Internal NPS or engagement → a proxy for culture health
- Reputation sentiment or share-of-voice → a proxy for trust
- Time-to-productivity → a proxy for training and leadership quality
- Repeat purchase rate → a proxy for customer confidence
You’re not measuring the abstract; you’re measuring the outcomes it tends to influence.
2. Use a simple causal chain
Good companies don’t just collect numbers; they connect them.
For example:
Better onboarding → faster ramp time → higher productivity → better margins.
Or:
Higher internal NPS → lower turnover → reduced hiring cost → better EBITDA.
This is exactly how organizations like Google and Microsoft tackle qualitative ROI: they make the causal logic explicit, then measure the changes on both ends of that chain.
3. Run pilots instead of org-wide changes
Leaders often underestimate how powerful it is to say:
“Let’s test this with one team for 60 days and compare.”
This is how Google evaluated manager behaviors in Project Oxygen.
It’s how Microsoft evaluates collaboration patterns before rolling out culture initiatives.
A small pilot gives you the data (and the confidence) to make a smarter decision.
4. Don’t forget reputational ROI
This is the most misunderstood area.
Reputation is hard to measure… until you have to.
A reputational hit affects:
- Customer trust
- Talent attraction
- Pricing power
- Partnership friendliness
- Even regulatory perception
Companies like Unilever quantify this through brand equity and sentiment. Others use reputation scoring models that estimate the financial risk of losing trust.
Reputation is not soft. It’s insurance, and high-performing organizations treat it as such.
So… How Do Other Organizations Do It?
Here are a few reference points worth learning from (regardless of industry):
Uses people analytics to quantify the impact of manager quality on retention and performance. Their entire Project Oxygen initiative was born from connecting survey data, behavioral signals, and business metrics.
Microsoft
Pairs sentiment (surveys, eNPS) with behavioral analytics (meeting load, collaboration patterns). This lets them tie “soft” outcomes (like focus time or leadership clarity) to operational KPIs and shipping velocity.
Unilever
They track sustainability and purpose-driven investments not just through impact stories but through brand performance. Their “sustainable living brands” consistently outperform others, they measure revenue impacts tied to reputation and trust.
These are ROI-focused companies.
They just understand that not everything valuable is immediately financial.
A Simple Framework You Can Use Tomorrow
Here’s the practical 4-step approach I personally like:
1. Clarify the outcome:
What change are you actually trying to create? (Retention, trust, productivity, customer loyalty…)
2. Pick 2–3 proxies that indicate progress
Make them measurable and trackable. Avoid overcomplication.
3. Link proxies to financial impact using a causal model
You don’t need perfect accuracy, you need clarity and consistency.
4. Score confidence, not just ROI
Say it openly:
“Modeled ROI: high impact, medium confidence. Metrics improving: yes.”
This builds trust and transparency.
Budget Strategy: Zoom Out Before You Cut Deep
When you only look at the spreadsheet, the spreadsheet lies.
It can’t tell you:
- Which initiatives are preventing turnover
- Which programs are protecting your reputation
- Which teams feel seen and supported
- Which “small costs” are actually maintaining momentum
But you can measure these things with discipline, proxies, and experiments.
Most importantly, qualitative ROI isn’t about being soft. It’s about acknowledging that the things that drive human behavior: trust, satisfaction, clarity, belonging, meaning,eventually drive numbers too.
Cutting without understanding is easy.
Measuring qualitative ROI is harder.
But it’s also a far better way to make sure you’re actually spending money on the right things.
If you want to build a smarter 2026 strategy, one that protects culture, trust, and long-term ROI, Oceans can help you get there.
Let’s talk about how to strengthen your team and operations.
