Many founders view hiring strictly through the lens of immediate ROI, prioritising roles that bring in direct revenue. However, a CEO is challenging this mindset by revealing that he spends ₹8 lakhs every month on employees who don't bring in a single rupee. By shifting his perspective on "support roles," he argues that the real cost isn't the salary paid, but the founder's time lost to administrative clutter.
Chandigarh-based founder and CEO Pratham Jindal wrote, “I pay ₹8 lakhs every month to people who don't bring in a single rupee for Praper. Before you think I've lost my mind, hear me out. There are two types of hires you'll make as a founder: 1. Revenue roles. 2. Support roles.”
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In the rest of the LinkedIn post, he explained his reasoning. “Revenue roles include editors, designers, salespeople - they directly make the business money, so every founder prioritises them. The ROI is visible. But when it comes to support roles like HR, admin, IT, founder’s office, content and office operations - most founders hesitate. Nobody looks at them and says: ‘This person made us ₹20 lakhs this quarter.’ So founders keep delaying those hires. And I've been guilty of that too.”
