CPM Workforce Analytics & FTE Planning 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A manager must present an FTE justification to finance. Which combination of data points best strengthens the business case for adding two FTEs?
- Employee satisfaction scores and office space availability
- Workload volume trends, current overtime costs, and projected revenue impact of the new hires (Correct answer)
- Competitor headcount benchmarks and HR budget surplus
- Manager preference and team morale ratings
Correct answer: Workload volume trends, current overtime costs, and projected revenue impact of the new hires
A strong FTE business case links capacity gaps to measurable operational and financial outcomes, making the ROI explicit for finance stakeholders.
Question 2: Which formula correctly calculates the cost-per-hire metric?
- Annual salary of new hire ÷ number of interviews conducted
- (Internal recruiting costs + External recruiting costs) ÷ Number of hires in the period (Correct answer)
- Total HR department budget ÷ Total headcount
- Recruiter salary × Time-to-fill in days
Correct answer: (Internal recruiting costs + External recruiting costs) ÷ Number of hires in the period
Cost-per-hire sums all internal and external recruiting expenditures and divides by the number of hires, giving a standardized efficiency metric.
Question 3: When a workforce analytics dashboard shows a sudden spike in absenteeism in one department, what should a manager do before concluding there is a culture problem?
- Immediately discipline the manager of that department
- Cross-reference the absenteeism data with seasonal patterns, illness outbreaks, or scheduling changes (Correct answer)
- Remove the metric from the dashboard to avoid alarm
- Issue a policy memo warning the entire company
Correct answer: Cross-reference the absenteeism data with seasonal patterns, illness outbreaks, or scheduling changes
Anomalies in workforce data often have benign explanations; cross-referencing with contextual factors prevents misdiagnosis and misplaced interventions.
Question 4: An organization uses 'eNPS' (Employee Net Promoter Score) as part of its workforce analytics. What does a score of -20 indicate?
- 20% of employees are promoters of the organization as an employer
- Detractors significantly outnumber promoters, signaling low employee advocacy (Correct answer)
- The survey response rate was 20% below target
- 20 employees gave neutral responses
Correct answer: Detractors significantly outnumber promoters, signaling low employee advocacy
eNPS ranges from -100 to +100; a negative score means more employees would discourage others from joining than would recommend the organization.
Question 5: A manager reviews a 'nine-box grid' output. An employee lands in the 'high performance / low potential' box. What workforce action is most aligned with this placement?
- Fast-track the employee for senior leadership development
- Retain and reward the employee in their current role without a promotion push (Correct answer)
- Place the employee on a performance improvement plan
- Immediately transition the employee to a different department
Correct answer: Retain and reward the employee in their current role without a promotion push
High performers with low growth potential are valuable contributors best kept engaged and rewarded in their current lane rather than forced into advancement tracks.
Question 6: In workforce planning, what does 'internal supply analysis' involve?
- Reviewing external labor market data to forecast candidate availability
- Assessing the current workforce's skills, readiness, and projected availability through promotions, transfers, and attrition (Correct answer)
- Auditing the HR technology stack for capacity constraints
- Calculating the cost of external staffing agencies
Correct answer: Assessing the current workforce's skills, readiness, and projected availability through promotions, transfers, and attrition
Internal supply analysis evaluates existing talent to determine how much of future demand can be met through development, mobility, or retention of current employees.
Question 7: A manager notices the time-to-productivity metric for new hires in a technical role is 6 months but the industry average is 3 months. Which intervention is most directly indicated?
- Reduce hiring volume until the metric improves
- Review and strengthen the onboarding and structured training program for technical roles (Correct answer)
- Switch to hiring only candidates with 10+ years of experience
- Eliminate the time-to-productivity metric as unreliable
Correct answer: Review and strengthen the onboarding and structured training program for technical roles
A prolonged time-to-productivity points to gaps in onboarding or ramp-up support, and restructuring the training program directly addresses the root cause.
CPM Workforce Analytics & FTE Planning 3
A manager must present an FTE justification to finance.
Which combination of data points best strengthens the business case for adding two FTEs?