Accounting firm KPI tracker
Replace everything in [square brackets].
What's in the workbook
Three sheets after the read me: what each KPI means, a 12-month input sheet, and the KPIs worked out from it.
| Sheet | What it does |
|---|---|
| Read me | What the workbook is for, how to use it, and where it came from. |
| Definitions | Says what each KPI measures, how the workbook works it out and where to find the numbers, so everyone in the firm reads them the same way. |
| Monthly inputs | Twelve rows, one per month. Fill in a row at each month end from your ledger, payroll and practice management system. |
| KPIs | Calculates the six KPIs for every month you have filled in, the year so far, and a row for the targets you set yourself. |
Shaded cells are yours to fill in. Everything else calculates from them. Nothing is filled in for you: no benchmark, rate, salary or fee is typed in as a default, so every result is built from your own numbers.
Sheet 1: Definitions
Says what each KPI measures, how the workbook works it out and where to find the numbers, so everyone in the firm reads them the same way.
| KPI | What it tells you | How the workbook works it out | Where the numbers come from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue per FTE | How much fee income each full-time person brings in. | Revenue billed in the month x 12 / FTE in the month. The bottom row uses revenue so far / average FTE, annualised. | Revenue from your profit and loss; FTE from payroll, counting part-timers as their share of a full week. |
| WIP days | How long finished work sits before it is billed. | Closing WIP / revenue billed in the month x days in the month. | The WIP or unbilled time report in your practice management system (for example Xero Practice Manager, FYI or Kloud Connect). |
| Debtor days | How long clients take to pay once they are billed. | Closing debtors / revenue billed in the month x days in the month. | Aged receivables from your ledger at month end. |
| Lockup days | The days between doing the work and getting the cash: WIP days plus debtor days. | WIP days + debtor days. | Calculated from the two above. |
| Write-off % | The share of the work you recorded that you never billed. | Value written off / value of time and work recorded. | The write-off or recovery report in your practice management system. |
| Utilisation | The share of available hours that went on client work. | Hours charged / hours available. | Timesheets. If you run fixed fees without time, use your best estimate and say so. |
| Column | Type | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| KPI | Set for you | The measure. |
| What it tells you | Set for you | What the number means. |
| How the workbook works it out | Set for you | The formula, in words. |
| Where the numbers come from | Set for you | Where to look each month. |
Sheet 2: Monthly inputs
Twelve rows, one per month. Fill in a row at each month end from your ledger, payroll and practice management system.
| Column | Type | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Month | You fill in | Type the first day of the month, such as 1 July. Days in the month follow from it. |
| Revenue billed | You fill in | Fees invoiced in the month. |
| FTE | You fill in | Full-time equivalent people, including owners who do client work. |
| Closing WIP | You fill in | Unbilled work at month end, at the value you would bill it. |
| Closing debtors | You fill in | Invoices issued and not yet paid at month end. |
| Value written off | You fill in | Time or fees written off in the month. |
| Value of time and work recorded | You fill in | The full value of what was recorded in the month, before write-offs. |
| Hours available | You fill in | Total hours the team was at work in the month. |
| Hours charged | You fill in | Hours recorded against client work. |
| Days in month | Calculated | Worked out from the month. |
- Days in month: Worked out from the month.
Sheet 3: KPIs
Calculates the six KPIs for every month you have filled in, the year so far, and a row for the targets you set yourself.
| Column | Type | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Month | Calculated | Copied from Monthly inputs. |
| Revenue per FTE (annualised) | Calculated | Revenue billed x 12 / FTE. |
| WIP days | Calculated | Closing WIP / revenue billed x days in the month. |
| Debtor days | Calculated | Closing debtors / revenue billed x days in the month. |
| Lockup days | Calculated | WIP days + debtor days. |
| Write-off % | Calculated | Value written off / value recorded. |
| Utilisation | Calculated | Hours charged / hours available. |
- Month: Copied from Monthly inputs.
- Revenue per FTE (annualised): Revenue billed x 12 / FTE.
- WIP days: Closing WIP / revenue billed x days in the month.
- Debtor days: Closing debtors / revenue billed x days in the month.
- Lockup days: WIP days + debtor days.
- Write-off %: Value written off / value recorded.
- Utilisation: Hours charged / hours available.
- Bottom rows (Year so far; Your target): totals and averages across the rows you have filled in.
Before you rely on it
WIP days and debtor days here use a one-month count: closing balance against that month’s billing. If your billing swings by season, read the Year so far row rather than any single month, and keep the same definition all year.
This workbook is a starting point, not financial, tax, employment or legal advice. It only knows the numbers you give it, so check them against your own records and take advice on anything you are unsure of.