Employee headcount evolution
Employee headcount evolution is a key indicator for analysing a company’s growth and hiring strategy. It is expressed as a year-on-year percentage change, allowing you to identify whether a company is expanding, remaining stable, or reducing its workforce.
What is it?
The HeadcountEvolution field represents the percentage change in a company’s Headcount (number of employees) compared to the previous year. It is calculated using the following formula:
[ \text{HeadcountEvolution} = \frac{\text{Headcount}{\text{current year}} - \text{Headcount}{\text{previous year}}}{\text{Headcount}_{\text{previous year}}} \times 100 ]
A positive value indicates workforce growth, while a negative value reflects a reduction in staff.
What is it for?
For data and B2B sales teams, HeadcountEvolution is a key indicator because:
- Companies with growing workforces are usually more open to new investments in technology, training, consulting, or infrastructure.
- It helps identify companies in an expansion phase, suggesting greater hiring capacity and spending power.
- It supports prioritisation of commercial strategies, focusing on companies with sustained growth.
- It helps assess company stability, as continuous workforce reductions may indicate crisis or restructuring.
However, sector context is important. Some industries tend to increase headcount seasonally (tourism, agriculture), while others may reduce staff while maintaining or increasing revenue through automation or outsourcing.
Data interpretation
HeadcountEvolution values can be classified as follows:
| Variation (%) | Interpretation |
|---|---|
| +20% or more | Accelerated growth, strong expansion |
| +5% to +20% | Stable and sustained growth |
| 0% to +5% | Moderate growth or stability |
| 0% to -5% | Slight reduction, possible internal adjustment |
| -5% to -20% | Significant workforce reduction, possible crisis or restructuring |
| -20% or more | Drastic reduction, high financial risk or business closure |
Companies with growing headcount are typically in an expansion phase and more open to adopting new solutions and services.