Cut Costs Without Cutting Corners: How to Use Data to Solve Shortfalls

When budgets tighten, the knee-jerk reaction is often to reduce headcount, freeze hiring, or delay projects. But for public sector leaders, the real challenge isn’t just cutting costs—it’s doing so responsibly, without compromising the services people rely on every day. 

At TrueComp, we believe there’s a better way. 

Solving budget shortfalls doesn’t have to mean slashing. With the right labor data, public agencies can make smart, ethical, and efficient decisions that preserve service levels and align resources where they’re needed most. You don’t need to cut corners—you just need to be confident in where and how you spend. 

Here’s how to use data the right way to meet your shortfall head-on—and lead with integrity. 

Put People at the Center of Smarter Budgeting  

For most local governments, labor is the largest line item on the budget—often 70% or more. It’s also where the most opportunity exists for meaningful, targeted action. But too often, agencies lack a full, real-time view of their labor spending across departments, funding sources, and roles. 

They might know how many FTEs are budgeted. They may even have a payroll report. But what they don’t have is clarity: Which roles are essential? What is the true cost of overtime? Where are benefits outpacing inflation? What’s duplicative? 

That’s where TrueComp comes in. 

Our platform helps agencies quickly pull together fragmented data—payroll, benefits, schedules, union agreements, vacancy rates—into one standardized system that gives you real insights. Not just numbers. Not just spreadsheets. But visibility into the full cost of your workforce and the ability to model scenarios before acting. 

Don’t Just Analyze—Simulate 

Analysis is great. But during a budget shortfall, you don’t just need to understand the problem—you need to model your options and test your decisions before they hit real people. 

With TrueComp’s labor costing tools, public agencies can simulate workforce scenarios in just a few clicks. Want to see the impact of a hiring freeze? Or compare the savings of adjusting step increases versus holding open vacant roles? You can model those options—and see the real budget impact—without spending weeks building complex Excel models. 

More importantly, you can run these models in a way that’s aligned with your agency’s values: 

• Equitably: Understand how changes affect different job classes and departments 

• Strategically: Prioritize high-need roles and service-critical functions 

• Transparently: Show your community and stakeholders how and why decisions were made 

Make Ethical Cuts by Asking the Right Questions 

Data allows you to ask—and answer—the questions that keep your decision-making honest and grounded in mission. 

Some of the most effective questions we see agencies asking include: 

• Are we over-resourced in any areas due to legacy staffing models? 
  Many org charts were built for the needs of 10 years ago. What’s changed? 

• What would it cost to delay new hires or retirements for 6 months? 
  Sometimes, timing changes alone can buy valuable runway without reducing headcount. 

• Are there classification or pay structures that are misaligned with market norms? 
  Use compensation benchmarks to identify where adjustments make sense—up or down. 

• What can we save by optimizing overtime or limiting backfill hours? 
  Controlling high-cost practices can lead to significant gains without any layoffs. 

The goal isn’t to cut for the sake of cutting. It’s to realign resources with what your agency actually needs—and to do so in a way that’s fair and defensible. 

Stop Chasing One-Time Savings 

When you’re under pressure to close a gap, it’s tempting to look for one-time savings: a hiring freeze, a travel ban, a deferred capital project. 

But these don’t solve structural problems. They delay them. 

TrueComp helps agencies shift from reactive to proactive. With our scenario planning tools, you can forecast costs 1, 3, even 5 years out. You can spot unsustainable benefit growth early. You can see the impact of salary changes before you negotiate. And you can understand what short-term savings will cost you in the long run—like when deferred hiring today leads to a talent drain tomorrow. 

Real cost control isn’t about one-and-done decisions. It’s about building a culture of data-informed, forward-looking financial planning that helps you maintain service levels and community trust over time. 

Be Transparent—Because Trust Is a Budget Tool Too 

When you use data well, you’re not just making better choices. You’re building confidence. 

One of the most powerful things we see our customers do is use labor data to communicate clearly—with council members, union reps, department heads, and the public. That means: 

• Showing the assumptions behind each scenario 

• Explaining the real tradeoffs and costs of doing nothing 

• Demonstrating alignment between budget choices and community priorities 

You can’t build that kind of trust with broad-stroke budget cuts or vague explanations. But you can build it with accurate, clear, and timely data—especially when it’s presented visually and tied directly to outcomes. 

TrueComp makes it easy to tell your story. Our tools help you show what you’re solving for, not just what you’re cutting. 

What Real Agencies Are Doing Right Now 

Across the country, agencies are using TrueComp to cut costs without cutting corners: 

• A mid-sized city in the Southwest used TrueComp to identify that 18% of their open roles had been vacant for over a year—and were being automatically backfilled in budget cycles. By removing or reclassifying those positions, they saved over $2 million without reducing active staff. 

• A county HR team in California used the platform to propose smarter COLA structures tied to real inflation data and market benchmarks, gaining union buy-in and preventing an across-the-board raise they couldn’t afford. 

• A regional transit authority avoided a 7% cut in frontline services by modeling early retirement incentives and redistributing workloads in admin functions. 

These aren’t hypothetical savings. They’re real decisions made faster, backed by better data. 

Conclusion: Leadership Means Acting Responsibly, Not Just Quickly 

Budget shortfalls are never easy. And in government, every dollar has a face, a name, and a community impact. 

That’s why the TrueComp approach is different. We help public agencies solve financial challenges in a way that honors their mission, protects their workforce, and keeps services strong. It’s changing the narrative from cutting for optics to leading with ethics, clarity, and urgency. 

The right labor data doesn’t just help you find savings; it gives you the confidence to make informed decisions and stand behind the outcomes. Because leadership means making tough calls—knowing they’re the right ones, for the right reasons, at the right time.