How much of the team's time is spent on paid work?
Utilisation affects profitability more than many studio leaders realise. If utilisation is too low, salary cost erodes profit. If it is too high for too long, quality, morale and delivery begin to suffer.
Get a finance reviewWhether the team can carry the work it has taken on, and what it costs when the plan and the reality drift apart.
See all KPIs →Billable hours ÷ Available hours × 100
Often 75% to 85% for project staff, 50% to 65% for associates and team leaders, and lower for directors.
The proportion of available working time spent on billable client work. It is measured per person and for the studio as a whole, using time records, and compared with a target set for each role.
Salary is the largest cost in most practices, so time that is not recovered through fees goes straight to the bottom line. If utilisation is too low, profit erodes. If it is too high for too long, quality, morale and delivery begin to suffer, and there is no time left for training, business development or design review.
Set targets by role: a director who wins work and runs the practice should not be measured against the same target as a project architect. Base the calculation on available hours after holiday and leave, not contracted hours. Watch the trend by team and by month, since a slow decline often comes before a revenue shortfall. Pair utilisation with realisation, the share of billable time actually recovered in fees, because time recorded is not the same as time paid for.
Most owner-managed businesses don't, or they work it out in a way that flatters the result. We'll calculate it from your own numbers and show you what it's telling you.
Get a finance review
Strategic finance advisors for businesses that have outgrown bookkeeping and their accountants.
Copyright © 2026 Upscale Consultants Ltd.