14 HR Metrics Examples

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Erik van Vulpen

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 This blog provides 14 important HR metrics examples. HR metrics are indicators that enable HR

to track and measure performance on different aspects and ultimately predict the future.

However, not all HR metrics are created equal. In this blog, we will provide some of the most

valuable HR metrics examples.

Even though this list provides some essential HR metrics, you might come up with a great number
15! You are welcome to suggest additional HR metrics in the comments below.

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 HR metrics examples in recruitment
1. Time to hire (time in days)

An important metric for recruitment is the ‘time to hire’. This is the number of days between a

position opening up and a candidate signing the job contract. It’s an excellent way to measure the

e ciency of the recruitment process and provides insight into the di culty of lling a certain job
position.

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 There’s also the time to ll metric. This metric takes the same starting point but takes the date the
candidate starts working as the end point.

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2. Cost per hire (total cost of hiring/the number of new hires)

Like the time to hire, the ‘cost per hire’ metric shows how much it costs the company to hire new

employees. This also serves as an indicator of the e ciency of the recruitment process.

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 3. Early turnover (percentage of recruits leaving in the rst year)

This is arguably the most important metric to determine hiring success in a company.

This early leaver metric indicates whether there is a mismatch between the person and the company

or between the person and his/her position. Early turnover is also very expensive. It usually takes 6

to 12 months before employees have fully learned the ropes and reach their ‘Optimum Productivity

Level’. According to a 2014 Oxford Economics report, the lost output cost over this period averages

£30,000 ($43,700) for new hires.

4. Time since last promotion (avg time in months since last internal promotion)

This rather straightforward metric is useful in explaining why your high potentials leave.

HR metrics examples related to revenue

5. Revenue per employee (revenue/total number of employees)

This metric shows the e ciency of the organization as a whole. The ‘revenue per employee’ metric is

an indicator of the quality of hired employees. Check this Business Insider article to view how the top
12 tech companies in the world score on this metric.

6. Performance and potential (the 9-box grid)

The 9-box grid appears when measuring and mapping both an individual’s performance and

potential in three levels. This model shows which employees are underperformers, valued

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 specialists, emerging potentials or top talents. This metrics is great for differentiating between, for

example, wanted and unwanted turnover.

In another article, we wrote about the qualitative and quantitative ways to measure employee

performance. Metrics include Net Promoter Score, management by objectives, number of errors,

360-degree feedback, forced ranking, etc.

7. Billable hours per employee

This is the most concrete example of a performance measure, and it is especially relevant in
professional service rms (e.g. law and consultancy rms). Relating this kind of performance to

employee engagement or other input metrics makes for an interesting analysis. Benchmarking this

metrics between different departments and managers/partners can also provide valuable insights.

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8. Engagement rating

An engaged workforce is a productive workforce. Engagement might be the most important ‘soft’ HR

outcome. People who like their job and who are proud of their company are generally more engaged,

even if the work environment is stressful and pressure is high. Engaged employees perform better

and are more likely to perceive stress as an exciting challenge, not as a burden. Additionally, team

engagement is an important metric for a team manager’s success.

Other HR metrics examples

9. Cost of HR per employee (e.g. $ 600)

This metric shows the cost e ciency of HR expressed in dollars.

10. Ratio of HR professionals to employees (e.g. 1:60)

Another measure that shows HR’s cost e ciency. An organization with fully developed analytical

capabilities should be able to have a smaller number of HR professionals do more.

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 11. Ratio of HR business partners per employee (e.g. 1:80)

A similar metric to the previous one. Again, a set of highly developed analytics capabilities will

enable HR to measure and predict the impact of HR policies. This will enable HR to be more e cient
and reduce the number of business partners.

12. Turnover (number of leavers/total population in the organization)

This metric shows how many workers leave the company in a given year. When combined with, for

instance, a performance metric, the ‘turnover’ metric can track the difference in attrition in high and

low performers. Preferably you would like to see low performers leave and high performers stay.

This metric also provides HR business partners with a great amount of information about the

departments and functions in which employees feel at home, and where in the organization they do

not want to work. Additionally, attrition could be a key metric in measuring a manager’s success.

13. Effectiveness of HR software

This is a more complex metric. Effectiveness of, for instance, learning and development software are

measured in the number of active users, average time on the platform, session length, total time on
platform per user per month, screen ow, and software retention. These metrics enable HR to

determine what works for the employees and what does not.

14. Absenteeism (absence percentage)

Like turnover, absenteeism is also a strong indicator of dissatisfaction and a predictor of turnover.

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 This metric can give information to prevent this kind of leave, as long-term absence can be very
costly. Again, differences between individual managers and departments are very interesting

indicators of (potential) problems and bottlenecks.

As you can see there are a lot of different examples of HR metrics. While some metrics are easier to

implement than others, all of them provide insights into the workforce and HR. Combining these
insights will prove vital for making substantiated decisions with proven impact. In a recent blog, we

wrote about HR metrics related to employee retention, absenteeism, and learning & development
effectiveness.

Because of the interest in this topic, we decided to create a course on strategic HR metrics. Check
it out! 

So, what are HR metrics exactly?

Before you start to work with HR metrics, it’s important to make sure you understand how metrics
can work for you. What are HR metrics?

Human Resource metrics are measurements that help you to track key areas in HR data. The most
important areas are listed below. In this list of HR metrics, we included the key HR metrics examples
associated with those areas.

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 1. Organizational performance

Turnover percentages
% of regretted loss
Statistics on why personnel is leaving

Absence percentages and behavior

Recruitment (time to ll, number of applicants, recruitment cost)

2. HR operations
HR e ciency (e.g. time to resolving HR self-service tickets)

HR effectiveness (e.g. perception of HR service quality)

3. Process optimization

Process optimization helps to analyze how we do what we do in Human Resource

Management. The HR metrics and analytics in this area focus on changes in HR e ciency

and effectiveness over time. These HR metrics and analytics are then used to re-engineer
and reinvent what is happening in HR. This helps to optimize the Human Resource delivery
process. Process optimization metrics are next-level. They are still very rare in modern

organizations as they require a very high level of both data maturity and analytics maturity.

To learn more about HR metrics and how to implement them in your organization, check out our

strategic HR metrics course.

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 by Erik van Vulpen

Erik van Vulpen is founder of Analytics in HR (AIHR). He is writer, speaker and

trainer on people analytics. Erik is instructor for the HR Analytics Academy and
has extensive experience in the application HR analytics. Contact Erik at

erik@analyticsinhr.com or connect with him on LinkedIn.

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Crystal • a year ago

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 Crystal • a year ago
I would agree with the comments below regarding the "how to" best simplify and present this
material in a format which is both useful, practical and pliable for various situations. Does your
class teach skills in presenting the information to facilitate better decision making? Or, are you
required to have an in depth knowledge of data analytics or data science?
5△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Crystal • 10 months ago

Dear Crystal,
In general, it's easy to use metrics, but it's hard to use metrics right. We integrate this in our
classes, which you can find in the HR Analytics Academy: https://www.hranalyticsacad....

For more in-depth reading, I will recommend you four articles that help you to incorporate
this knowledge. The first two are specialized on specific types of metrics, recruitment
metrics: https://www.analyticsinhr.c...
and performance metrics: https://www.analyticsinhr.c...

Metrics differ from KPIs. KPIs are the measures you use for decision making. I write about
this extensively here: https://www.analyticsinhr.c...

This knowledge is then often integrated into the HR dashboard or report, which you can
read more about here: https://www.analyticsinhr.c....

As I said, in our classes we integrate this knowledge. We talk more about how to get the
data, how to manage the analytics process, and how to report and visualize data to improve
decision making. You can get the data by working together with data experts, or do this
yourself. This really depends on your role, organization, and your own ambition.

Long story short: check out the previous articles I mentioned to integrate the separate
metrics I mention in this article into a strategic overview. If you want to integrate all the
information, please check out the HR analytics lead course, or the Strategic HR metrics
course in the HR Analytics Academy: https://www.hranalyticsacad....

Hope this helps! Erik

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 5△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Munaf Ali • a year ago

Thanks Erik! I'm doing my Master thesis and this is very helpful.
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Munaf Ali • 10 months ago

Very glad it helped, Munaf!
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Paulette • a year ago

Hi there, just wanted to tell you, I loved this article.
It was inspiring. Keep on posting!
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Lt Col Amit Karulkar (Retd) • a year ago

Erik, you have simplified a complex subject, which can be now easily assimilated by both HR
Managers and Business Heads.
Thank you and keep up the good work.
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Lt Col Amit Karulkar (Retd) • 10 months ago
Thank you, Amit, I appreciate it!
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Anjali • a year ago

Thanks for interesting mat rices...but if could put more of Learning and development and
engagement .....it would be a great help
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Anjali • 10 months ago

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 Oh, those are great suggestions, Anjali. We have a great article on learning effectiveness,
which you can find here: https://www.analyticsinhr.c.... We also have a few articles on
engagement. The two articles that I'd recommend are on linking engagement to business
performance: https://www.analyticsinhr.c...

And a second, more high-level and technical one on engagement analytics:

https://www.analyticsinhr.c...

Happy reading!
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Neeraj Mohan Puri • a year ago

Wonderful work, it needs recommendation and efforts must be lauded.
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

sale calvin klein • 2 years ago

Thanks for finally writing about 14 HR Metrics Examples - Analytics in HR! Liked it!
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Keith Goode • 2 years ago

Some valuable measures, but the real challenge isn't in the calculation or even acquiring the data,
but rather delivering the results to the field in an easily understandable presentation that facilitates
better decision making.
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Elizabeth Good > Keith Goode • a year ago

Keith - I couldn't agree more!!! As an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist, I find it
extremely difficult to determine how best to deliver/present the results as what is 2nd nature
to me is hardly such to a layperson. Great name, btw. ;)
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Elizabeth Good • 10 months ago

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 Keith and Elizabeth, great points and I couldn't agree more!

In my reply to Crystal I share multiple articles that integrate how you work with
metrics and integrate them using KPIs and strategic dashboards. I think article will
answer a lot of your questions: https://www.analyticsinhr.c....

Also, check out my comment to Crystal for the other links. They explain how to
integrate metrics into a strategic overview.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Katharina Brigges • 2 years ago

Very good written information. It will be supportive to anybody who utilizes it, as well as yours truly
:). Keep up the good work - can'r wait to read more posts.
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Gerald Chekata • 2 years ago

This is very informative and timely indeed. No more second guessing or groping in the dark for HR
practioner.
Thanks and keep up the good work.
1△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Gerald Chekata • 10 months ago

Thanks Gerald, I appreciate it!
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Insaniyat • a month ago

There are two main aspects I found directly affect employees.
Engagement that relates to attitude towards work.
Absenteeism that relates to productivity.
I like to know how to solve both issues analytically.
Your Observation
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 Sajita Nair • 2 months ago
The list of HR metrics is very useful. How do I find more information about a certain metric. For
example - In the Turnover Rate metric - when you mention Headcount - Is it Average Headcount or
Headcount at the beginning of the Quarter, etc. Would be good for me to understand how to best
identify the data to be used to derive the metric
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Sajita Nair • 2 months ago

That's a good question, Sajita. In case of headcount, you could go for the headcount on the
first of the month that you look into, or report it for a day if you want to use that data in a
dashboard (and use an average over the full month).

To me, the way you do this is less interesting than the structure behind it. Using a document
like a data glossary, you can define how you measure a metric and then track it consistently.
This ensures that you will measure it the same way every time.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

piyush jhamb • 4 months ago

Hello, I'm working on a HR case where I have to convert people's education, years of experience
and certification obtained to some numbers for analysis of their growth in current department. How
can we do that? is there algorithm build for that.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > piyush jhamb • 2 months ago

Hi Piyush, this is a relevant but hard-to-answer question. If you want to create an employee
development index, you should take relevant factors into account. These will differ per
function and job type. Functions with mandatory development points (e.g. accountants,
lawyers) will have to be accounted for differently than functions that don't have these kinds
of systems. You will have to create a formula/ index that fits your target group.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

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 Ricci • 6 months ago
I think it would be fantastic to have an article on international assignments - measuring success,
employee satisfaction/experience - as it's a growing field of interest for most companies! :) looking
forward
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Ricci • 2 months ago

Hi Ricci, that's indeed an interesting topic. Check out this article by Paul van der Laken:
https://www.analyticsinhr.c...
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Prithvi • 7 months ago

What are the disadvantages of using these matrices if there are any ? How to use them in small
organization.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Tnfletch • 8 months ago

One healthcare organization is pursuing a business strategy of differentiating its service product
through providing excellent customer service. What HR metrics do you recommend to reinforce the
business strategy? Why?
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Kirti • a year ago

very informative.
my request if you can write something on ROI ( Return on investment) for training and REI
(recruitment effectiveness Index) also, can't wait to read more posts
Thanks
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Erik van Vulpen Mod > Kirti • 10 months ago

Dear Kirti,

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 Thank you for your comment. I just realized that we don't have articles exclusively on ROI.
An article that covers it for a large part, though, is about HR costing. You need to analyze
both cost and returns to calculate an ROI. You can find the full article here:
https://www.analyticsinhr.c....

We also have an article dedicated to recruitment metrics. Funnel effectiveness is also

mentioned in this article. You can find this here: https://www.analyticsinhr.c....
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

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