The reserve is your scenario assumption; it is not a universal staffing recommendation.
Try this with your own numbersFormula and worked example
Deliverable units = floor(hours × (1 − buffer) / hours per unit)
| Input | Example |
|---|---|
| Available delivery hours | 640 |
| Hours reserved for disruption | 15 % |
| Hours per support ticket | 4 |
| Calculated result | 136 units |
Choose reliable inputs
Include software licences, delivery time, revisions and ongoing support when costing a project. For this it support calculation, use project time logs, licence invoices and retainer scopes and a consistent definition of one support ticket.
- Technician time: include the portion belonging to this support ticket or reporting period, and record where the value came from.
- Software: include the portion belonging to this support ticket or reporting period, and record where the value came from.
- Escalation work: include the portion belonging to this support ticket or reporting period, and record where the value came from.
Use the same currency for every money input. Do not mix weekly costs with monthly revenue, or count the same expense in both an itemised cost and allocated overhead.
Should every available hour be sold?
The reserve is your scenario assumption; it is not a universal staffing recommendation.
What if this input changes?
If available delivery hours rises by 10%, this example changes by 13 units. This shows the effect of one change; it does not predict what will happen.
Open the calculator, save your baseline, then change the input supported by the least reliable estimate in your records. Compare both scenarios before committing to a price or capacity promise.