What the number measures
A ratio of hours to hours. What it is evidence of, and the three things people read into it that it cannot support.
A Ratio of Hours to Hours
Utilisation is a quotient with two chosen ends. What the ratio literally is, what it is a measure of, and why the arithmetic is the easy part.
What It Is Evidence Of
Every measurement is evidence of something narrower than people assume. What a utilisation figure actually supports, and the three claims it cannot carry.
Three Things People Read Into It
Effort, value and merit are not in the data and are read out of it anyway. Where each reading comes from, and what it costs.
Where the Number Came From
Utilisation arrived with the billable hour and spread to firms that do not bill by time at all. What that history explains about how it behaves.
Why Firms Report It
Four reasons a firm publishes a utilisation figure, only two of which are about managing the firm. Naming the reason changes what should be reported.
The Figure That Travels Without Its Definition
A percentage detaches from its definition in about three handoffs. What arrives at the board is a number nobody can reconstruct.
What a Good Figure Would Mean
Before asking whether 78 per cent is good, ask what the answer would depend on. Four things, and none of them is the number.