Capacity planning
also known as resource planning
Matching the team's available billable hours to the work in the pipeline, to avoid both overload and idle time.
For example, before signing a big new retainer, an agency checks that its designers have, say, 60 free hours a week over the next two months. If the pipeline already fills them, it either hires, pushes the start date, or staggers the work rather than over-promising.
Why it matters to your firm: capacity planning is how you protect both margin and your team's wellbeing. Plan it well and you dodge the twin killers of idle, unpaid time and overloaded, burnt-out staff - and you know exactly when growth means it is time to hire.
booked 76%
free 24%
aim for ~70-85% booked - enough margin without burnout
Common mistakes
- Signing new work without checking the team has the free hours to deliver it.
- Planning on headcount instead of real, available billable hours.
- Ignoring the pipeline until the work has already landed on the team.