Zalaris PeopleHub

Cost & Productivity Analytics

Financial intelligence for workforce optimization

Last updated: 2 hours ago

Executive Financial Summary

Total Labor Cost

Q3 2024

$487.3M

Salaries:$342.1M (70%)
Benefits:$87.2M (18%)
Bonuses:$43.9M (9%)
Contractors:$14.1M (3%)
vs Q2:+3.0%
vs Prior Year: +8.7%

Q4 Forecast: $502.8M

Cost Per Employee

per employee per quarter

$26,743

Annual: $106,972

Benchmark: $24,200Target: $25,000

Current: $26,743

vs Target:+7%
:
Growing: 5.2% annually

⚠️ 7% above target

Revenue Per Employee

annual

$347,000

Alert: <$320KWarning: $320K-$380KTarget: >$380K
vs Target:-9%

Labor cost as % of revenue: 30.8% (target: 28%)

Productivity improvements needed

Span of Control

Organizational Efficiency

6.8

avg direct reports per manager

<5 reports: 29
5-10 reports: 156
>10 reports: 18
:

47 managers outside optimal range

$1.8M annual savings

Restructure to improve efficiency

Labor Cost Breakdown & Trends

Cost Waterfall Analysis

How costs changed from Q2 to Q3 2024

Net change: +$14.2M (+3.0%)

IncreaseDecrease

Cost by Department Trend

Quarterly trend (last 4 quarters)

Department Cost Details

Q3 2024 breakdown

Department Q3 Cost % of Total$/EmployeeHeadcountvs BudgetYoY ChangeTrend
Engineering
$156.2M32%$38,4004,067+5.2%+12%
Sales
$98.7M20%$44,2002,232+2.1%+6%
Operations
$87.4M18%$21,3004,103-1.2%+3%
Product
$54.8M11%$41,7001,314+4.8%+15%
Marketing
$43.2M9%$32,1001,346+1.8%+8%
G&A
$47.0M10%$28,9001,626-0.5%+2%

Compensation Analysis

Market Competitiveness

Comp ratio vs market benchmarks

Overall Company:

25th percentile: 89% of our pay

50th percentile (median): 104% of our pay ⚠️

75th percentile: 118% of our pay

We pay 4% above market median

By Department:

Engineering:108% (above market)
Data Science:96% (at risk - below market)
Sales:106%
Product:110%
Operations:98%

Alert: Data Science 4% below market - attrition risk for 67 roles

Internal Equity Analysis:

Gender pay gap: -2.1% (women paid 2.1% less for similar roles) ⚠️

13 cases requiring adjustment - estimated cost $287K

Compensation Cost Drivers

Where compensation dollars go

Cost Escalation Analysis (3-year CAGR):

⚠️ Compensation growing faster than revenue

Upcoming Commitments:

Annual merit cycle (Jan 2025):$12.4M
Promotion cycle (Q4):$8.9M
Retention bonuses:$2.1M
Equity refresh grants:$15.6M
Total upcoming:$39.0M

Productivity Metrics & Benchmarking

Revenue Productivity

$347K

Revenue per employee (annual)

Top quartile (Sales):$512K
Bottom quartile (G&A):$187K
Gross margin per employee:$178K
Operating income per employee:$34K

⚠️ Trend: Flat year-over-year

Operational Efficiency

2.3

Projects per engineer annually

Benchmark: 2.8 (⚠️ 18% below)

87 days

Sales cycle length

Target: 75 days (⚠️ 16% longer)

34/day

Support tickets per agent

Benchmark: 38/day (✓ Efficient)

Utilization Rates

67%

Billable utilization (consulting roles)

Target: 75% (⚠️ 8 points below)

Revenue opportunity: $4.2M if at target

Meeting Load (hours/week):

Executives:27.3 hrs (⚠️ High)
Managers:16.8 hrs
ICs:12.1 hrs
Focus time:14.2 hrs/week

(down from 16.8 last year)

Productivity by Department

Benchmark comparison

DepartmentHeadcountOutput MetricOutput/PersonIndustry BenchmarkGapOpportunity
Engineering4,067Features shipped2.3/year2.8/year-18%+$12M revenue
Sales2,232Quota attainment87%92%-5%+$23M revenue
Customer Success567Accounts managed47 each52 each-10%98 fewer headcount
Marketing1,346Leads generated1,234/person1,450/person-15%+$8M pipeline
Product1,314Products managed1.8 each2.1 each-14%Faster roadmap

Productivity gaps represent $43M+ revenue opportunity

FTE vs Contractor Analysis

Workforce Mix

Current blended workforce

FTE:42,389 (92.5%)
Contractors:2,876 (6.3%)
Interns:567 (1.2%)

Cost Comparison:

Avg FTE cost (all-in):$107K annually
Avg contractor cost:$145K annually
Break-even point:9 months

(contractor cheaper if duration < 9 months)

Contractor Concentration by Function:

FunctionContractor %Risk Level
Engineering12.3%🟡 Medium
IT/Infrastructure23.4%🔴 High - knowledge risk
Marketing8.7%🟢 Low
Finance4.2%🟢 Low

Optimization Opportunities

Cost savings and flexibility analysis

Conversion Candidates

234 contractors

beyond 12 months duration

Current annual spend:$11.8M
If converted to FTE:$8.6M
Annual savings:$3.2M (27%)

Recommended: Convert to FTE, save 27%

Short-term Cost Flexibility Analysis:

If revenue drops 15%:

Contractor reduction:$4.2M savings (immediate)
FTE reduction:$18M savings

(but 4-month severance + morale cost)

💡 Maintain 8-10% contractor buffer for flexibility

Budget Variance Analysis

Q3 2024 Budget vs Actuals

Variance waterfall breakdown

+$15.1M

over budget (3.2%)

Planned Budget:
$472.2M
Volume Variance (more headcount):
+$8.7M
Rate Variance (higher salaries):
+$6.4M
Mix Variance (senior hires):
+$3.2M
Attrition Savings:
$-2.8M
Timing Delays:
$-0.4M
Actual:
$487.3M

Variance by Department

Q3 2024 detailed breakdown

DepartmentBudgetActualVarianceVariance %Primary Driver
Engineering$148.3M$156.2M+$7.9M+5.3% 🔴Higher salaries for scarce roles
Sales$96.6M$98.7M+$2.1M+2.2% 🟡Commission overperformance
Product$52.3M$54.8M+$2.5M+4.8% 🔴Unplanned senior hires
Operations$88.4M$87.4M-$1.0M-1.1% 🟢Delayed backfill
Marketing$42.4M$43.2M+$0.8M+1.9% 🟢On track
G&A$47.2M$47.0M-$0.2M-0.4% 🟢On track

Forecast & Scenario Modeling

Q4 2024 Projection

Based on current assumptions

$502.8M

Projected Q4 labor cost

Assumptions:

  • • Hiring plan: 234 new hires (avg start: mid-November)
  • • Attrition: 3.1% quarterly rate (142 exits)
  • • Merit cycle: None (scheduled for January)
  • • Bonus accruals: $18.2M (annual payouts)
Confidence interval:$498M - $508M
vs Budget:+$12.4M (2.5% over)

Scenario Modeling Tool

Model what-if scenarios for labor costs

Hiring Volume:100% of plan
Attrition Rate:3.1% quarterly
Avg Salary Increase:4.2%
Contractor Mix:6.3%

Scenario Output:

$502.8M

Projected Q4 cost with your adjustments

Pre-built Scenarios:

Cost Optimization Opportunities

$26.2M

Total annual potential (5.4% of labor costs)

1

Span of Control Optimization

Current state: 47 managers with sub-optimal spans

Action:Consolidate 12 positions, adjust 89 reporting lines
Savings:$1.8M annually
Timeline:6 months
2

Contractor Conversion

Current state: 234 contractors beyond 12 months

Action:Convert to FTE
Savings:$3.2M annually (27% reduction)
Timeline:3 months
3

Productivity Improvement

Current state: 18% below industry benchmark (engineering)

Action:Process improvements, tool investments
Savings:$12M revenue opportunity annually
Timeline:12 months
4

Market Alignment

Current state: Paying 4% above median in some roles

Action:Adjust compensation bands for new hires
Savings:$2.4M annually (future hires)
Timeline:Immediate (next hire cycle)
5

Location Strategy

Current state: High-cost locations (SF, NY, London) = 45% workforce

Action:Shift 15% of new hires to lower-cost locations
Savings:$6.8M annually
Timeline:18 months
💰

Cost Intelligence Recommendations

Labor costs growing 4.7% vs revenue 3.8% - unsustainable trajectory

Engineering cost per employee 21% above company avg - review bands

234 contractors beyond 12 months - convert to save $3.2M

Productivity gap vs industry = $43M revenue opportunity

Q4 forecast $12.4M over budget - hiring freeze for non-critical roles?