Human Resources Budgets, Staffing, and Process Metrics

How much are organizations budgeting for their human resources (HR) function, and how many HR professionals do they require? What is the allocation of HR resources by job function and types, and what is the split between internal and external personnel (outsourced or in shared services centers)? How is the HR budget allocated? What are the key performance metrics for the HR function? To answer these questions, and others, we provide our HR Budgets, Staffing, and Process Metrics study. For a full description, read more below.

PURCHASE/DOWNLOAD BY INDUSTRY OR ORGANIZATION SIZE

Clients: Download from the chapter links below.
Not a client? Purchase from the chapter links below.
Want to see more first? Download Chapter 1, free.

Chapter 1: Executive Summary (Free Download)
Chapter 2: Composite Metrics
Chapter 3A: Metrics by Organization Size: Mid-Large Organizations
Chapter 3B: Metrics by Organization Size: Very Large Organizations
Chapter 4: Banking and Finance
Chapter 5: Energy and Utilities
Chapter 6: Healthcare Payors
Chapter 7: Healthcare Provider
Chapter 8: Life Sciences
Chapter 9: Discrete Manufacturing
Chapter 10: Process Manufacturing

INTENDED AUDIENCE

For Chief HR Officers and HR professionals, this study provides key metrics and unbiased data for benchmarking your organization’s HR function, with a focus on HR budgets and staffing levels and key performance metrics. This study will allow you to achieve the following outcomes:

• Benchmark your HR budget levels. Compare them with those of organizations in your industry sector.
• Manage your HR staffing levels, including internal staffing as well as external staff—those within business process outsourcing (BPO) providers or in shared services units. A variety of staff productivity metrics are provided (see below)
• Evaluate your HR key performance indicators (KPIs). These allow you to compare the performance of your HR organization against your industry peers.

For business process outsourcing (BPO) providers, this study provides valuable insights into current HR budget and staffing metrics, giving up-to-date insights into the market landscape. It also provides insights into the current use of external HR personnel for various job positions.

KEY METRICS DESCRIPTIONS

Section 1: Demographics

We provide a description of the demographics of the survey sample for the chapter. These include organization-size demographics, including organization revenue, SG&A spending levels, number of employees, and revenue per employee. We continue with HR demographics, including total HR staff head count, employee growth rate per year, attrition rate for past fiscal year, and contingency workers as a percentage of the total HR staff head count.

Section 2: HR Staffing Metrics

This section provides typical staffing levels for the HR function. This includes internal staff, which includes contingency workers, and external staff, which includes HR personnel in global capability centers (GCCs) or shared services centers, outsourcing service provider personnel serving the HR function, or residing in other departments.

• Number of Employees per HR Staff Member
• Percentage of HR Staff by Function: Recruitment & Onboarding, Payroll, Time, & Attendance, Employee Administration and Mobility/Relocation, HR Strategy, Compensation and Benefits, Learning and Development, Performance Management, and Reporting and Compliance
• HR Outsourcing Strategy by Region: US and Canada, Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa

Section 3: HR Function Budget Benchmarks

This section looks at the annual budget for the HR function. In other words, we examine how much organizations spend to operate their HR operations.

• HR Function Budget as Percentage of Revenue
• HR Function Budget as Percentage of SG&A
• HR Budget by Line Item: Internal and External Personnel; Technology; Outside Services; Other

Section 4: HR Organization Performance

In this section, we provide a comprehensive set of benchmarks to assess the performance and intensity of the HR function.

• Off-cycle Payrolls
• Payroll Processing Time
• Benefits Change Requests per Benefits Staff Member per Year
• Recruitment Cycle Time
• HR Response Time

Section 5: HR Technology Trends

In this section, we provide an overview of HR technology implemented to support HR processes of the organization.

• Top 10 Recruitment and Onboarding Systems
• Top 10 Employee Administration Systems
• Top 10 Payroll, Time, and Attendance Systems
• Top 10 Compensation and Benefits Systems
• Top 10 Performance Management Systems
• Top 10 Learning and Development Systems

APPENDIX

The Appendix includes common terms and definitions used in our annual survey and in this study. It also includes a detailed definition for all HR spending categories and staffing categories. The Appendix concludes with a brief discussion on the statistics used in this study.

• Common Terms and Definitions
• HR Process Definitions
• Statistical Notes

CHAPTER DESCRIPTIONS

Chapter 1: Executive Summary (Free Download)

This chapter provides an overview of the key findings from the full study and describes the contents of the subsequent chapters. It also includes information on the study participants and the survey methodology.

• Introduction
• Key Findings
• Overview of the Study Contents

Chapter 2: Composite Metrics

This chapter provides composite metrics for all survey respondents across all sectors and organization sizes. The sample includes 149 organizations and is stratified by size and sector as described in the section on survey methodology. Respondents must have at least $500 million in annual revenue. There is no upper limit on the revenue of survey respondents.

Chapter 3A and 3B: Benchmarks by Organization Size

In these chapters, we provide a complete set of benchmarks for organizations within the specified size classification. Benchmarks for midsize and large organizations are in Chapter 3A and for very large organizations in Chapter 3B. There are 73 respondents in the midsize and large organization sample and 76 in the very large organizations sample. We define the size categories as follows:

• Midsize and large organizations have annual revenue of more than $500 million up to $5 billion.
• Very large organizations have annual revenue of $5 billion and above.

Chapter 4: Banking and Finance Sector Benchmarks

Chapter 4 provides comprehensive HR process metrics benchmarks within the banking and financial services sector. This sector encompasses a wide array of organizations, including commercial banks, investment banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders, consumer finance lenders, and other financial services providers. The 24 respondents from this sector vary significantly in size, ranging from companies with annual revenue of over $950 million to those under $41 billion.

Chapter 5: Energy and Utilities

Chapter 5 provides comprehensive HR process metrics benchmarks within the energy and utilities sector. This sector encompasses a wide array of organizations, including energy producers, utility companies, and other related service providers. The 25 respondents from this sector vary significantly in size, ranging from companies with annual revenue of over $2.5 billion to those under $12 billion.

Chapter 6: Healthcare Payors

Chapter 6 provides comprehensive benchmarks for HR process metrics within the healthcare payor sector. The category includes manufacturers of consumer products, athletic equipment, industrial equipment, telecommunications equipment, aerospace products, furniture, auto parts, electrical parts, medical devices, and electronic devices, among other products. The 25 respondents in this sample range in size from a minimum of over $900 million to under $28 billion in annual revenue.

Chapter 7: Healthcare Providers

Chapter 7 provides comprehensive HR process metrics benchmarks within the healthcare provider sector. This sector encompasses a wide array of organizations, including hospitals, clinics, and other related service providers. The 25 respondents from this sector vary significantly in size, ranging from companies with annual revenue of over $1.5 billion to those under $10.8 billion.

Chapter 8: Life Sciences

Chapter 8 provides comprehensive benchmarks for HR process metrics within the life sciences sector. This category includes companies involved in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical devices, and healthcare services, among other areas. The 24 respondents in this sample range in size from a minimum of over $500 million to under $28 billion in annual revenue.

Chapter 9: Discrete Manufacturing

Chapter 9 provides comprehensive HR process metrics benchmarks within the discrete manufacturing sector. This sector encompasses a wide array of organizations, including manufacturers of discrete products and related service providers. The 12 respondents from this sector vary significantly in size, ranging from companies with annual revenue of over $1.2 billion to those under $8.5 billion.

Chapter 10: Process Manufacturing

Chapter 10 provides comprehensive benchmarks for HR process metrics within the process manufacturing sector. Process manufacturers are defined as those that add value to the production process by mixing, separating, forming, or performing chemical reactions. The sector includes manufacturers of chemicals, petrochemicals, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements, food and beverage products, cosmetics, building materials, packaging materials, steel, glass, paper products, and other process-manufactured goods. The 14 respondents in the sample range in size from a minimum of over $650 million to a maximum of under $30 billion in annual revenue.

HR BENCHMARKING

Avasant Research not only publishes business process metrics. We also provide custom benchmarking services for clients.

Looking for expert assistance in evaluating your HR budgets, staffing, and key performance metrics? Our custom benchmarking consulting service provides an in-depth assessment of your HR key metrics against our database of peer organizations.

Contact us for pricing and a free sample of the benchmarking deliverable.