How one firm turned a $133,800 problem into a $305,175 gain.
Here’s a real-life (and not uncommon) story: a financial advice firm went to market to hire a new Client Services Officer (CSO). They had budgeted $70k plus super ($78,050), only to quickly learn that market rates had shifted. CSOs in their area were now commanding $80k to $85k plus super.
They revised their offer to $85k plus super ($94,775). But that’s when the real problem became clear. The issue wasn’t just about hiring one new team member. Their entire CSO team was being paid below market rates.
As they looked deeper, they realised the gap between current and market pay wasn’t just a budgeting issue. It was a cultural risk. With current IR laws allowing staff to discuss compensation, they feared long-standing team members would soon discover that a new hire was earning more than them on day one.
This firm considered themselves strong in People and Culture. They ran annual surveys, delivered CPI-based salary increases, hosted team offsites, and encouraged feedback. But they had no formal structure to explain or justify salary differences within the same job title. No role progression framework. No clarity.
They weren’t alone. This is common across the industry. It’s normal for people with the same title to earn differently, but without a transparent system, it can look arbitrary or unfair. That’s when culture starts to crack.
This issue had been a niggle they didn’t know how to solve for some time. The realisation that their whole team was paid under market, and their uncertainty on how to resolve it without further impacting their already-thin bottom line, was enough to motivate them to seek outside help. That’s where our VBP Consulting team came in.
Here’s how the firm’s compensation compared to market benchmarks:
The cost to bring everyone up to market?
All this while the firm was already under pressure. Their EBIT was sitting at 28% against their target of 35%, and whilst they had no shortage of new client opportunities, their team was all under the pump and working to their full capacity. Turnaround times were blowing out, tasks were backing up, which was what prompted the decision to employ another CSO to support the workload.
We acknowledge that salary is just one part of the Employee Value Proposition. This firm has a great culture and offers benefits like free leave between Christmas and New Year, monthly lunches, free onsite parking, and flexible work-from-home options. They revisited their overall EVP to articulate it better, but ultimately, they still wanted to pay their team well compared to the market to reduce the risk of them being headhunted or feeling undervalued.
In just one year:
In addition to their extra profit, their team are galvanised and motivated in a way they haven’t experienced before.
What started as a $133,800 cost problem turned into a $305,175 EBIT gain. More importantly, the firm laid the foundation for long-term, sustainable growth.
The true risk wasn’t just underpaying the team. It was leaving them in the dark, relying on goodwill and culture alone. When the firm tackled pay transparency, role clarity, and pricing strategy head-on, the entire business shifted.
As the owners put it, “working with VBP is the gift that keeps on giving.”
If you’ve got a problem in your business that you haven’t been able to solve, reach out and chat to one of our consultants.
Note: This story combines elements from two client case studies, with both clients consenting to share their experiences anonymously. The cost and uplift figures are averages from both firms.