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📈 10 Headcount Metrics to Run a Lean, Happy Org

📈 10 Headcount Metrics to Run a Lean, Happy Org

(Dashboards, formulas, benchmarks & real examples you can steal today)

Aleksandar Stojanovic
September 06, 2025 • Read Time: 9 minutes

WELCOME TO ISSUE NO #059

Consulting | Shop | Website | Newsletter | Speaking

📆 Today’s Rundown

Hey 👋, hope you had a great week! I bet you missed me, but I was off cooking some models and templates. And I completely revamped my website.

In the last issue, we discussed why tracking Fully Burdened Labor Rate matters, and now we are moving with the next topic from Headcount content.

Let’s talk about ⬇️

Headcount Metrics

Reality check: in SaaS, ~70% of OpEx = people. If you don’t track headcount with the same rigor as revenue, you’re piloting a jet on vibes. Let’s fix that with a practical, founder-friendly playbook you can put to work this week. 😉

Why headcount metrics matter (more than you think)

Headcount data is the bridge between hiring plans, cash runway, and growth. It keeps you compliant (≥ 50 FTE = healthcare; ≥ 100 FTE = EEOC reporting), prevents accidental org bloat, and lets HR + Finance co-own decisions with facts—not feelings.

Pro move: tie every new req to an ARR milestone or product milestone. If the milestone slips, the req auto-pauses. Clean. Boring. Effective.

TL;DR

1️⃣ The 10 metrics your dashboard needs (with formulas, benchmarks & examples)

2️⃣ Ratios & guardrails I like (steal these)

3️⃣ Dashboard design that actually works

4️⃣ Two mini case studies

5️⃣ Cadence that keeps you honest

6️⃣ Common mistakes (and quick fixes)

🎁 BONUS (FREE Headcount Model)

1️⃣ Total Headcount

Snapshot of FTE + contractors (separate them!).

Quick win: Add tenure bands (≤6m, 6–18m, 18–36m, 36m+).

Early churn = onboarding/culture smoke.

Example: 84 FTE (12 ≤6m). If 9 of those 12 sit in Support, fix onboarding, not headcount.

2️⃣ Headcount Composition

Percent of people by function, level, and location.

Benchmarks (typical B2B SaaS, $2–$20M ARR):

R&D (Eng+Prod+Design): 35–55%
Go-to-Market (S&M+CS): 30–45%
G&A: 8–15%

Red flag: G&A >18% before $10M ARR. Investigate.

3️⃣ Headcount Changes (Adds/Exits)

Track start vs end each month; show Plan vs Actual.

Target: Within ±10% of hiring plan to keep payroll aligned with runway.

Example: Plan +8 hires, actual +14 = +75% variance → freeze non-critical reqs for 30 days.

4️⃣ Start & End Lists (Granular)

The truth table: name, role, department, manager, type (FTE/contract), location.

Use it to audit quality of hire, onboarding time, and regrettable attrition by team.

5️⃣ Employee Retention Rate

Formula: (Employees still employed ÷ Employees at start) × 100.

Good: ≥ 85–90% annualized (higher for small teams).

Segment by leader—manager quality shows up here.

Example: Company-wide 90%, but Sales Ops 72% → scope/leadership problem, not comp.

6️⃣ Length of Employment (Tenure)

Average months by team/level.

Signals:

Low tenure in Eng → roadmap churn, tech debt, or career ladders missing.
Low tenure in Sales → ICP confusion or comp plan friction.

7️⃣ Turnover Rate (Voluntary & Involuntary)

Formula: (Exits ÷ Avg headcount) × 100 (monthly/quarterly/annual).

Healthy: 10–18% annual in knowledge work; >25% = culture/process fire.

Tip: Track regrettable turnover (top performers only). That’s the one that hurts.

i dont care anymore if i get hurt the office GIF

8️⃣ Revenue per Employee (RPE)

Formula: TTM Revenue ÷ Avg FTE.

Ranges:

Early (<$5M ARR): $120k–$180k
Scaling ($5–$25M ARR): $180k–$280k
Efficient growth: $280k–$400k+

Example: $8M TTM, 80 FTE → $100k RPE (low). Actions: delay non-critical hiring, raise prices 5–8%, tighten CAC payback to <12 months.

9️⃣ Employee Satisfaction / eNPS

Quarterly pulse (by org/manager).

Use it to: Prioritize fixes (career ladders, tooling, meeting load). Tie action items to score moves. If it doesn’t change, it didn’t happen.

🔟 Absenteeism Rate (Unplanned)

Formula: (Unplanned absence days ÷ Scheduled work days) × 100.

Healthy: ~1.5–3% in SaaS.

Why it matters: Hidden productivity/cost sink; often correlates with burnout.

Ratios & guardrails I like (steal these)

AE:SDR: 1:1–1:1.5 (mid-market).
CSM ARR coverage: $1.5–$2.5M per CSM (complexity dependent).
Manager span: 6–8 direct reports.
Eng:PM:Design: ~6:1:1 (range 5–8:1:1 by product maturity).
HRBP coverage: 1 HR pro per 75–100 employees.

Set alerts when you breach these—don’t debate “feelings” in exec meetings.

Presidential Debate Dont GIF by Election 2016

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Dashboard design that actually works

Top tiles: Total FTE, Plan vs Actual, RPE, Turnover %, Open Reqs, Runway (months).
Trends: 12-month headcount & payroll trend; RPE trend; turnover trend by org.
Composition: Stacked bars by function/level; map contractors vs FTE.
Tables: Start/End lists; open reqs with age; critical roles at risk (backfills).
Threshold flags: 50/100 FTE compliance badges with forecasted dates.

Data pipeline (keep it simple): HRIS/Payroll → Finance ERP → ATS. Reconcile people IDs nightly. One source of truth.

Two mini case studies

Case #1 (CS coverage)

CSMs at $3.2M ARR each; NRR dips from 112% → 103%. We added 2 CSMs, reset coverage to $2.2M, NRR rebounded to 109% in 2 quarters. Total cost ↑ $360k; churn avoided worth $1.1M. Net positive.

Case #2 (G&A creep)

G&A rises from 11% → 19% in 3 quarters at $12M ARR. Dashboard flagged it. We paused 4 non-critical hires, consolidated software, moved finance/AP to automation. G&A normalized to 13% in 2 quarters; runway +4.5 months.

Cadence that keeps you honest

Weekly: Hiring plan vs actuals; open reqs; offers out; start/end list review.
Monthly: Full KPI review + budget vs actuals; reset alerts/guardrails.
Quarterly: Org design review (ratios), compensation audit, compliance thresholds.