FTE (Full-Time Equivalent)
A unit of measurement for workload. 1.0 FTE = one full-time employee's working capacity (~160h/month). Automation ROI is often expressed as FTEs freed e.g., "2.1 FTEs freed" means automation handles the equivalent of two full-time roles' manual work.
Expert insight
Freeing 2 FTEs doesn't mean firing 2 people it means those people do higher-value work instead.
In a real workflow
An automation that saves 20 hours a week of data entry frees about half an FTE, time that can go to client work.
Common mistakes
- Counting FTE savings without checking whether the time is actually reused.
- Ignoring the time needed to maintain the automation.
Complexity level
Anyone can understand this no technical background needed.
Related terms
See it in action
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