Understanding ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue) per FTE (Full-Time Equivalent)
In the landscape of business metrics and key performance indicators, ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue) stands out as a crucial measure for understanding a company's financial health and growth potential in the subscription-based business model. Combining this with the concept of FTE (Full-Time Equivalent), a measure of employee workload or the number of full-time employees needed, can provide insightful perspectives on efficiency, scalability, and revenue generation.
Openview Partners surveyed 3,000 Software As A Service (SaaS) companies and published the benchmarks in the above graph. Click here for the
full report.
What is ARR?
ARR, or Annual Recurring Revenue, is a vital metric primarily used by subscription-based businesses to calculate the total yearly revenue that a company expects from its subscriptions. It accounts for the recurring portion of the revenue stream derived from subscription services or products over a defined period, usually a year.
The calculation of ARR involves multiplying the recurring revenue generated from subscriptions (monthly, quarterly, or annually) by the number of subscription periods within a year. For instance, if a company has 1,000 customers paying $100 per month for its subscription service, the ARR would be $1,200,000 ($100 x 12 months x 1,000 customers).
ARR is pivotal in assessing a company's financial stability, predicting future revenue streams, and demonstrating growth potential to investors and stakeholders.
Understanding FTE
FTE, or Full-Time Equivalent, is a unit of measurement to evaluate an employee's workload or the number of full-time employees required to complete a set amount of work. It's a standard method used to quantify a part-time employee's contribution concerning a full-time employee.
For example, if a company has 4 employees working 20 hours per week each, they would collectively represent 2 FTEs (4 employees x 20 hours ÷ 40 hours in a full-time workweek).
FTE helps businesses comprehend the workforce's overall capacity, efficiency, and resource allocation. It is commonly used for budgeting, staffing decisions, and assessing productivity.
ARR per FTE
Integrating ARR with FTE provides a unique perspective on a company's revenue generation efficiency concerning its workforce. It measures the revenue a company generates per full-time equivalent employee, showcasing the revenue-generating capability of each resource invested in the business.
The formula to calculate ARR per FTE is straightforward:
ARR per FTE=Annual Recurring Revenue/ Number of Full-Time Equivalent Employees
This metric helps understand how effectively a company utilizes its workforce to generate revenue. A higher ARR per FTE implies greater efficiency in revenue generation per employee, highlighting the company's ability to scale revenue without necessarily increasing headcount.
Significance and Applications
Efficiency Assessment: ARR per FTE aids in evaluating the efficiency of a company's workforce in revenue generation. It allows comparisons between different departments or time periods to identify areas for improvement.
Scalability and Growth: Monitoring changes in ARR per FTE over time can indicate the company's scalability. Consistent or increasing figures signify the ability to grow revenue without significantly expanding the workforce.
Resource Allocation: Companies can use this metric to optimize resource allocation by identifying departments or teams that might be more efficient in generating revenue per employee and directing resources accordingly.
Investor Confidence: Demonstrating a high ARR per FTE can instill confidence in investors, showcasing the company's ability to effectively utilize its human resources to drive revenue.
Take Action to Improve Your ARR per FTE
The best way to improve this metric is to track and set goals for the teams and employees that can influence the creation of new revenue. Sales quotas and commissions drive this behavior, but do your marketing and product teams have goals around how their activities drive more revenue for the company? You can also audit all the potential and existing
growth drivers
to identify opportunities for testing and scaling. Contact us if you would like some advice or help in this area