📐 HR FORMULAS REFERENCE

All formulas you need to know cold — categorized by topic

How to use: Each formula has a card with formula, meaning, healthy range, your actual number, and how to
use it in interview. Read once tonight, scan tomorrow morning. The 'Your number' column is your evidence.

1️⃣📐 COMPENSATION & PAY EQUITY

These are the most likely formulas to be tested if asked 'walk me through compa-ratio' or 'how do you benchmark
salaries.'

Compa-Ratio
Formula: Employee CTC ÷ Market Median (P50)
What it means: How an employee's pay compares to the external market median for the same role, experience, and
location.
Healthy range: 1.0 = at market | 0.95-1.05 = aligned | <0.9 = underpaid risk | >1.15 = overpaid
Your number: Tarento Bangalore avg = 1.52 (52% above market median); 70% paid above market
Interview use: If asked 'what's a healthy compa-ratio,' answer 1.0-1.1 to match market, 1.1-1.2 to lead. Tarento at 1.52 is
intentionally high (retention strategy) but masks distribution issues.

Range Spread
Formula: (Max Salary − Min Salary) ÷ Min Salary × 100
What it means: Width of a salary band. Tells you how much room exists for pay growth within the same level before
promotion is needed.
Healthy range: Entry (CL1-2): 30-40% | Mid (CL3): 40-50% | Senior (CL4): 50-60% | Leadership (CL5-6): 60-70%
Your number: Backed your range design with Hay accountability model + Milkovich & Newman framework
Interview use: If asked why senior bands need wider spreads: 'Leaders stay longer in the band; impact variation is huge;
rare promotions.'

Midpoint
Formula: (Min Salary + Max Salary) ÷ 2
What it means: The middle of a salary band — used as the target/reference point for the role.
Healthy range: Should align closely with market P50 for the role
Your number: Used in your benchmarking framework for 180+ role-experience combinations
Interview use: If a role's midpoint sits above market P50, your band is generous; below means you risk underpaying.
Percentile Position
Formula: L = (n−1) × p + 1, then interpolate
What it means: Position of a salary value within a sorted distribution. n = number of data points, p = decimal percentile
(e.g., 0.5 for P50).
Healthy range: Common percentiles: P25 (lower quartile), P50 (median), P75 (upper quartile), P90 (top 10%)
Your number: Used to map all 419 Bangalore employees against external market percentiles
Interview use: If 'how do you decide what to target,' say P50 to match market, P75 to lead. Tarento has 76% of
employees between P50-P90.

Pay Equity Gap

Formula: (Higher Group Avg − Lower Group Avg) ÷ Higher Group Avg × 100
What it means: Percentage gap between two cohorts (gender, fresher vs lateral, etc.).
Healthy range: <5% = healthy | 5-10% = watch | >10% = action needed
Your number: Loyalty penalty: 54% freshers below par vs 8% laterals = 46pp gap (huge)
Interview use: This is the killer finding. Use it for: 'Most important comp finding?'

Variance from Median

Formula: (Employee CTC − Market Median) ÷ Market Median × 100
What it means: How far above or below market median an individual employee sits, in percentage terms.
Healthy range: Within ±10% = aligned | Above +20% = retention bonus risk | Below −15% = attrition risk
Your number: Below-par cohort: 18% Bangalore, 17% Delhi, 90% Indore
Interview use: Use to flag high-attrition risk individuals before they get a counter-offer.

2️⃣📐 ATTRITION & RETENTION

Monthly Attrition Rate
Formula: (Exits in Month ÷ Opening HC) × 100
What it means: Standard monthly tracking metric reported in MIS.
Healthy range: <1.5% monthly = excellent | 1.5-2.5% = healthy IT services | >3% = warning
Your number: CY25 monthly avg = 2.3% (28.8% annualized); CY26 H1 avg = 1.3%
Interview use: If 'how do you track attrition,' explain monthly cadence + bi-weekly CEO MIS.

Annualized Attrition (mid-year)

Formula: (YTD Exits ÷ Months Elapsed) × 12 ÷ Avg HC × 100
What it means: Annualizes partial-year attrition for forecasting full-year run-rate.
Healthy range: Compare to industry: Mid-tier IT 20-28% | Top-tier 12-17% | NBFC field sales 40-60%
 Your number: CY26 H1 annualized = 15.3% (approaching top-tier IT range)
Interview use: Use to project full-year attrition mid-cycle — anticipates problems before year-end.

Voluntary Attrition Rate

Formula: (Voluntary Exits ÷ Avg HC) × 100
What it means: Resignations only — excludes terminations, layoffs, end-of-contract.
Healthy range: <10% = excellent | 10-15% = healthy | 15-20% = mid-tier IT | >20% = problem
Your number: CY24: 19.2% → CY25: 17.1% → CY26 H1: 11.5% (improving)
Interview use: This is the number that matters for retention. Involuntary going up isn't bad — it means you're managing
performance.

Cost of Attrition
Formula: Number of Exits × (1.5 to 2.0) × Avg Annual CTC
What it means: Total replacement cost of exits including recruitment, onboarding, productivity loss, knowledge gap.
Healthy range: Industry standard multiplier: 1.5x for junior, 2.0x for senior
Your number: CY25 voluntary cost: 94 exits × ₹15L avg × 1.75x ≈ ₹2.5 crores
Interview use: This is your CFO argument. Frames retention investments in revenue terms.

Early Attrition (0-90 days)

Formula: (Exits within 90 days ÷ Total hires in same period) × 100
What it means: Measures hiring quality + onboarding effectiveness.
Healthy range: <5% = excellent | 5-10% = watch | >10% = hiring or onboarding broken
Your number: Tarento: 21 pre-confirmation exits = 10% of total exits (probation period failures)
Interview use: If asked about onboarding quality, lead with this number. Day 1 satisfaction 3.9→4.6 is downstream of
this.

First-Year Attrition
Formula: (Exits within 12 months ÷ Total hires in same period) × 100
What it means: Catches the post-honeymoon, pre-progression dropout zone.
Healthy range: <15% = healthy | 15-25% = warning | >25% = systemic issue
Your number: Your data: 36.7% of exits happen within first year — major flag
Interview use: Connect this to VOTE 1-2 yr tenure dip (4.18→3.87). Same cohort, two surveys.

Retention Rate
Formula: ((Closing HC − New Hires) ÷ Opening HC) × 100
What it means: Inverse of attrition — measures how many people stayed.
Healthy range: 85-90% = healthy mid-tier IT | >90% = excellent | <80% = problem
Your number: Tarento CY25 retention ≈ 71% (28.8% attrition)
Interview use: Don't confuse with attrition rate — retention is who stayed; attrition is who left.
3️⃣📐 PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT & PROMOTIONS
Forced Distribution Check
Formula: Count(Rating) ÷ Total × 100, by rating tier
What it means: Validates that the rating distribution follows expected bell curve or company target.
Healthy range: Typical IT services: OS 5-10% | EE 30-40% | ME 45-55% | PM+NI 5-10%
Your number: FY26 EY: OS 10.8% | EE 41.9% | ME 44.9% | PM+NI 2.4% (PM+NI dropped from 4.3%)
Interview use: If asked 'is 2.4% PM+NI too low?' — defense: 11 mid-year PIPs already exited underperformers.

Promotion Rate
Formula: (Total Promotions ÷ Eligible Pool) × 100
What it means: Percentage of eligible employees promoted in a cycle.
Healthy range: 8-15% = typical | <5% = stagnation risk | >20% = title inflation
Your number: FY26: 106 promoted ÷ 481 eligible = 22% (within healthy range for IT services with multi-level career
architecture)
Interview use: If asked 'rejection rate' — say 63% didn't pass all 5 gates; tightest gate was tenure at 35%.

Calibration Movement Rate

Formula: (Ratings Changed ÷ Total Ratings Reviewed) × 100
What it means: Measures how much the calibration process actually adjusts manager-submitted ratings.
Healthy range: 20-40% = healthy (calibration is doing work) | <10% = rubber-stamp | >50% = managers are off-base
Your number: 126 of 329 prior-rated employees shifted = 38%
Interview use: Proves your calibration isn't theatre. 60 moved down 1 level — calibration corrects manager generosity.

PIP Recovery Rate

Formula: (Successful PIPs ÷ Total Completed PIPs) × 100
What it means: Measures whether PIPs are recovery tools or exit pathways.
Healthy range: 10-20% = industry standard | <10% = exit-heavy (not always bad) | >30% = PIPs may be soft
Your number: Tarento: 1 of 11 = 9% (industry-aligned, slight exit lean)
Interview use: Don't apologize for low number. Pivot: 'PIPs are exit pathways more than recovery tools at most
companies.'

Time-in-Role Before Promotion

Formula: Average years in current role for promoted cohort
What it means: How long it takes to advance — too short signals title inflation, too long signals stagnation.
Healthy range: JB1-2: 1-2 years | JB3-4: 2-3 years | JB5+: 3-4 years
Your number: Your 9-cell rating-weighted matrix: OS-OS at JB5 = 2 yrs, ME-ME = 3 yrs
 Interview use: If asked why role tenure varies by rating: 'Performance accelerates promotion timelines. Sustained OS
proves readiness in shorter window.'

Rating Distribution Drift

Formula: Compare YoY: Δ in OS+EE % and Δ in PM+NI %
What it means: Detects rating inflation or compression year-over-year.
Healthy range: ± 2-3pp YoY = normal | >5pp shift = methodology change or systemic issue
Your number: FY24→FY25→FY26: OS+EE 54.6%→51.7%→52.6%; PM+NI 2.8%→4.3%→2.4%
Interview use: PM+NI drop from 4.3% to 2.4% — not generosity. Mid-year PIPs already removed underperformers.

4️⃣📐 SURVEYS & ENGAGEMENT

GPTW Trust Index
Formula: (Positive Responses ÷ Total Responses) × 100
What it means: Percentage of agreement across all Trust Index statements. The headline GPTW number.
Healthy range: Top-tier IT (India Best): 86%+ | Mid-tier: 70-85% | <70% = concern
Your number: Tarento: 80.4% → 84% (+3.6pp YoY); 6pp below India Best IT benchmark
Interview use: Don't say '5-point scale' — GPTW is in percentages.

Participation Rate
Formula: (Respondents ÷ Eligible Population) × 100
What it means: Survey participation. Low participation = self-selection bias risk.
Healthy range: >75% = excellent | 60-75% = healthy | <50% = unrepresentative
Your number: VOTE 69% (368/534), GPTW 57.4% (327/570)
Interview use: Be ready for 'why did GPTW drop' — survey fatigue + headcount changes + Digital BL low at 46.58%.

eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score)

Formula: % Promoters (9-10) − % Detractors (0-6)
What it means: Net advocacy score — how many would recommend you as an employer minus those who wouldn't.
Healthy range: >30 = excellent | 10-30 = healthy | 0-10 = needs work | <0 = serious
Your number: Built cross-survey correlation between eNPS and GPTW for CEO review
Interview use: If asked, eNPS scoring: 9-10 promoters, 7-8 passives (excluded), 0-6 detractors.

Cross-Survey Convergence
Formula: Themes flagged in both surveys / Total themes flagged
What it means: Higher convergence = higher confidence the issue is real, not survey-methodology artifact.
 Healthy range: 5 themes converge in your VOTE × GPTW synthesis (high confidence)
Your number: WLB, recognition inequity, L&D gaps, strategic clarity, total rewards
Interview use: This is your unique IP. Use it for 'most actionable analytical work.'

Tenure Cohort Score Drift

Formula: Avg score by tenure bucket (0-1y, 1-2y, 2-5y, 5-10y, 10+y)
What it means: Identifies which tenure cohort has the lowest engagement — the flight-risk zone.
Healthy range: Healthy: monotonic or U-shape. Problem: dip in 1-3 year band.
Your number: Your VOTE finding: 4.18 (new) → 3.87 (1-2y) → 4.45 (8-12y)
Interview use: 1-2 yr dip is your sharpest insight. Connects to first-year attrition (36.7%).
5️⃣📐 HIRING & ONBOARDING
Time-to-Fill
Formula: Days from job opening posted to offer accepted
What it means: Speed of recruitment.
Healthy range: Tech roles: 30-60 days | Niche tech (AI/ML): 60-90 days | Volume hires: 15-30 days
Your number: Tarento data: not personally tracked
Interview use: If asked an HR metric you'd kill: time-to-fill — easily gameable, low business signal.

Offer Acceptance Rate

Formula: (Offers Accepted ÷ Offers Made) × 100
What it means: Measures employer brand strength + offer competitiveness.
Healthy range: >80% = strong | 70-80% = healthy | <70% = comp or brand issue
Your number: Not personally tracked at Tarento
Interview use: Drop in this number = market sees you as paying below or culture concerns.

Cost per Hire

Formula: Total Recruitment Spend ÷ Number of Hires
What it means: Includes job board fees, recruiter costs, referral bonuses, assessment tools, recruiter salary allocation.
Healthy range: Tech mid-level: ₹50K-1.5L | Senior tech: ₹1L-3L | Executive: ₹3L+
Your number: Not personally tracked
Interview use: Used to evaluate ROI on recruitment channels (referral vs job boards vs agency).

Quality of Hire (at 6 months)

Formula: (Avg performance rating × retention flag) of cohort
What it means: Best single metric for hiring effectiveness — combines performance and retention.
Healthy range: >3.5 (on 5-pt) and <10% attrition at 6 months = strong hire batch
Your number: Onboarding: Day 1 satisfaction 3.9→4.6, 91% on-time probation confirmation
Interview use: If asked one metric to ADD: 'Quality of hire at 6 months — combines perf rating + retention.'

Probation Confirmation Rate

Formula: (Confirmed on time ÷ Total probationers) × 100
What it means: Measures hiring quality + onboarding completion.
Healthy range: >85% = strong | 70-85% = average | <70% = hiring or onboarding broken
Your number: Tarento: 91% on-time post-automation
Interview use: Connects directly to early attrition (10% pre-confirmation exits).
6️⃣📐 BUSINESS METRICS (IT SERVICES CONTEXT)
Cost-to-Employee (CE) Ratio
Formula: Total Employee Cost ÷ Total Revenue × 100
What it means: What share of revenue goes to people costs.
Healthy range: Top-tier IT: 55-60% | Mid-tier IT: 65-72% | >75% = squeezed margin
Your number: Tarento: not publicly disclosed; you tracked CE bands by role
Interview use: If asked 'healthy CE ratio,' answer 65-72% for mid-tier IT services.

Revenue per Employee

Formula: Total Revenue ÷ Total HC
What it means: Productivity proxy — varies wildly by industry.
Healthy range: IT services mid-tier: ₹15-25L | Top-tier: ₹25-40L | NBFC like KreditBee: ~₹1.5cr (₹682cr revenue ÷ 445
employees)
Your number: Tarento: estimate ₹15-20L per employee (typical mid-tier)
Interview use: Useful comparator if interviewer asks about scaling or productivity benchmarking.

Bench Percentage
Formula: (Employees Not Billed ÷ Total Billable HC) × 100
What it means: How many billable employees aren't currently on a project — direct revenue loss.
Healthy range: Healthy: 8-12% | <5% = no slack for ramp | >15% = problem
Your number: Tarento: not personally tracked but discussed in MIS
Interview use: Daily bench cost for mid-level engineer ≈ ₹15-20K. 30 days = ₹4.5-6L lost.

Utilization Rate
Formula: (Billable Hours ÷ Available Hours) × 100
What it means: Inverse of bench — how much of available capacity is generating revenue.
Healthy range: Healthy: 75-85% | <70% = bench problem | >90% = burnout risk
Your number: Tarento: not personally tracked
Interview use: Direct link to WLB findings — high utilization correlates with WLB complaints in your VOTE/connect data.

Pyramid Health Ratio

Formula: Junior (CL1-2) % : Mid (CL3-4) % : Senior (CL5+) %
What it means: Distribution of employees by career level. Bottom-heavy = healthy for IT services.
Healthy range: Healthy IT services: 60% junior / 30% mid / 10% senior | Top-heavy = expensive
Your number: Tarento: junior bands CL1A-CL1C = 52% of attrition (suggests bottom-heavy + junior flight risk)
Interview use: If asked 'healthy pyramid,' say bottom-heavy. Top-heavy means high billing rates but low utilization.
Manager Span of Control
Formula: Total Reportees ÷ Total People Managers
What it means: How many direct reports per manager on average.
Healthy range: Healthy IT services: 6-10 | <5 = over-management | >12 = neglect risk
Your number: Tarento: 130 RMs identified; top RM Ashish Kumar = 17 reportees, Arjun Singh = 12
Interview use: Use to flag manager burnout and identify coaching priorities.
7️⃣📐 BFSI / NBFC METRICS (KreditBee context)
Yield on AUM
Formula: Interest Income ÷ Average AUM × 100
What it means: Profitability measure for lending businesses.
Healthy range: Personal loans (NBFC): 18-25% | LAP: 12-15% | Business loans: 14-18%
Your number: KreditBee AUM ~$1.5B (₹12,500cr); revenue ₹682cr ≈ 5.5% yield (mixed book)
Interview use: If asked 'do you understand lending business' — show you know yield differs by product.

NPA % (Non-Performing Assets)

Formula: NPAs ÷ Total Loan Book × 100
What it means: Loans where borrower has missed payments for 90+ days. Measure of lending quality.
Healthy range: Healthy NBFC: <3% | Stressed: 3-6% | Crisis: >6%
Your number: KreditBee specific number not public; ask in interview as a question
Interview use: From HR view: high NPA = pressure on collections team = HR risk in those cohorts.

Collection Efficiency
Formula: Amount Collected ÷ Amount Due × 100
What it means: How much of the due amount is actually being collected.
Healthy range: >95% = strong | 90-95% = healthy | <85% = warning
Your number: Direct HR linkage: collections team performance, incentive design
Interview use: This is the team you'd HRBP for in BFSI. Their attrition + comp directly impacts the number.

Cost of Acquisition (CAC)

Formula: Sales + Marketing Spend ÷ New Customers Acquired
What it means: How much is spent to acquire one customer.
Healthy range: Personal loans: ₹500-2,000 | LAP: ₹3,000-8,000 (longer cycle, higher quality)
Your number: HR linkage: field sales productivity directly impacts this number
Interview use: Sales attrition spike = CAC goes up. This is the link between HR and unit economics.

Productivity per Sales Officer

Formula: Total Disbursement ÷ Active Sales Officers
What it means: Measures field sales team output — primary KPI for sales HR.
Healthy range: LAP varies widely by city + experience tier
Your number: Direct connection: hiring quality, ramp-up time, attrition all impact this
Interview use: Position yourself: 'I'd want HR initiatives that move this number — better screening, structured 30-60-90,
retention bonuses for productive officers.'
8️⃣📐 ATTRITION ANALYSIS DEEP DIVE (your unique IP)
These are the formulas embedded in your 5-sheet 210-exit workbook. Know these — they're proof of analytical
depth.

Tenure at Exit
Formula: (Exit Date − Joining Date) ÷ 365.25
What it means: Years employed when employee left.
Healthy range: Avg 2-4 years = healthy | Avg <2 = early exit problem
Your number: Your data: avg tenure at exit = 2.29 years; 36.7% left within first year
Interview use: Use to argue: 'We have a first-year retention problem, not a long-tenure burnout problem.'

Days to Confirmation
Formula: Confirmation Date − Joining Date (in days)
What it means: Time from joining to probation completion. Below threshold means not yet confirmed.
Healthy range: Standard probation: 90-180 days | Confirmation triggers benefits eligibility
Your number: Your finding: 21 employees exited BEFORE confirmation = 10% of total exits
Interview use: This is your hiring quality flag. Use to argue for stronger pre-hire screening.

Pre-Confirmation Exit Rate

Formula: (Pre-Conf Exits ÷ Total Exits) × 100
What it means: Share of exits happening during probation.
Healthy range: <5% = healthy | 5-10% = watch | >10% = hiring or onboarding broken
Your number: Your number: 10% (21 of 210)
Interview use: If asked 'what's your worst hiring concern,' lead with this. Then connect to onboarding (Day 1 satisfaction).

Tenure Bucket Distribution

Formula: Count(Exits) per tenure band (0-1y, 1-2y, 2-5y, 5-10y, 10+y)
What it means: Identifies which tenure cohort is most flight-prone.
Healthy range: Healthy: increasing then dropping | Problem: spike at 1-2 yrs
Your number: Your finding: 36.7% within first year = the dropout zone
Interview use: Cross-reference with VOTE 1-2 yr dip (4.18→3.87). Same cohort, two data sources.

Reason Distribution
Formula: Count(Exits) by reason category, sorted descending
 What it means: Identifies dominant attrition drivers.
Healthy range: Healthy mix: career growth top, comp second, personal third | Problem: performance #1
Your number: Your data: Performance (61), Personal (61), Professional Growth (43)
Interview use: Performance + Personal tied at #1 — Performance is involuntary (good); Personal is hidden voluntary
(investigate).

BL Concentration of Exits
Formula: Exits per BL ÷ Total Exits × 100
What it means: Where exits are concentrated. Caveat: count alone is misleading without headcount denominator.
Healthy range: Compare against BL headcount share to find true rate
Your number: Your data: Build 60% (126), Buy 29% (62) = 89% of exits
Interview use: Always pair count with: 'But headcount denominators matter — Build is also our biggest BL.'

Top Manager Exit Concentration

Formula: Identify managers with 3+ exits in period
What it means: Flags potentially toxic managers or burnout-prone teams.
Healthy range: Healthy: no manager has >3 exits in a year
Your number: Your data: top managers with 3+ exits flagged in pivot sheet
Interview use: This is the seed for manager coaching or replacement decisions. Use as proof of analytical depth.

⚡ FINAL CHEAT — RAPID FORMULA RECALL

Memorize the rows. Cover the right column. Test yourself.

Metric Formula
Compa-Ratio Employee CTC ÷ Market Median (P50)

Range Spread (Max − Min) ÷ Min × 100

Annualized Attrition (YTD Exits ÷ Months) × 12 ÷ Avg HC × 100

Voluntary Attrition Voluntary Exits ÷ Avg HC × 100

Cost of Attrition Exits × 1.75 × Avg CTC

Early Attrition (90d) Exits ≤90 days ÷ Hires × 100

First-Year Attrition Exits ≤365 days ÷ Hires × 100

Promotion Rate Promotions ÷ Eligible Pool × 100

PIP Recovery Rate Successful PIPs ÷ Total PIPs × 100

Calibration Movement Ratings Changed ÷ Total Reviewed × 100

eNPS % Promoters (9-10) − % Detractors (0-6)

Trust Index Positive Responses ÷ Total Responses × 100

CE Ratio Total Employee Cost ÷ Revenue × 100

Bench % Non-Billed ÷ Billable HC × 100

Utilization Billable Hours ÷ Available Hours × 100

Span of Control Reportees ÷ People Managers

Yield on AUM (BFSI) Interest Income ÷ Avg AUM × 100

NPA % NPAs ÷ Total Loan Book × 100

Collection Efficiency Amount Collected ÷ Amount Due × 100