Who is this dashboard designed for?
HR leaders, CHROs, business-unit heads, HR business partners, people-analytics teams, PMOs and Chiefs of Staff who need a consistent view of attrition and a way to follow through on retention actions.
How is attrition calculated?
Total exits ÷ average headcount, annualized for partial periods (× 12 ÷ number of complete months with data). Rates are recalculated from aggregated exits and headcount, never averaged across teams.
What is the correct headcount denominator?
Average headcount: for each month (opening + closing) ÷ 2; across several months, the average of the monthly averages. Monthly snapshots are never summed.
What is the difference between voluntary and total attrition?
Voluntary attrition counts only exits the employee chose (resignations, retirements). Total attrition adds involuntary exits such as terminations, layoffs and contract ends.
What is regrettable attrition?
Voluntary exits of people the organisation would have wanted to keep, divided by average headcount (annualized). The 'regrettable' flag is entered per exit record.
Can I change the 12-month early-tenure definition?
Yes. Change 'Early-tenure threshold (months)' in Settings (Excel, HTML app and Power BI Settings sheet).
Can I use only monthly aggregate data?
Yes for headcount and the overall, voluntary and involuntary rates, which come from the Workforce Snapshot. Reason, tenure, regrettable, critical-talent and cost views need exit-level records.
Can I upload Excel into the HTML app?
Yes. It accepts the blank template, the dashboard workbook itself (it reads the Workforce_Input sheet) or one CSV per table, and shows a validated preview before importing.
Is only one Excel sheet used for data entry?
Yes. Workforce_Input holds all recurring input: Settings, Reference lists and three Excel Tables. The other three sheets are formula-driven or instructional.
Can the dashboard handle multiple locations and business units?
Yes. Reference lists hold up to 50 values each. Excel filters accept up to 10 business units, 10 locations, 12 job families, 8 levels and 30 managers; detail tables cover up to 8 business units, 8 locations, 10 job families and 25 managers; Dashboard charts show the first 5 business units, 8 job families and 6 locations (chart ranges can be extended). The HTML app and Power BI have no fixed category limits.
Are macros required?
No. The workbook is a macro-free .xlsx with no PivotTables or external links.
Which Excel versions were tested?
Formulas were verified by full recalculation in LibreOffice and reconciled against an independent reference engine. The workbook targets Excel 2021 and Microsoft 365; Excel 2016/2019 are expected to work but were not tested. Please confirm in your version.
Is Power BI Desktop required?
Only for the Power BI files. Power BI Desktop is a free download for Windows. The Excel, HTML and PowerPoint products do not need it.
Can I customize the branding?
Yes. Replace the logo, organization name and colours; the PowerPoint uses theme colours and Arial; the Power BI theme JSON is included.
Does the template contain real employee data?
No. All data is fictional (Northstar Digital Services) and pseudonymous. Any resemblance to real people or organizations is coincidental.
How should sensitive HR data be handled?
Use pseudonymous IDs, avoid sensitive personal attributes, restrict access, keep small-population suppression and follow your local privacy, employment and anti-discrimination requirements. The HTML app keeps data in the browser and does not upload it.
Can the product predict who will resign?
No. It summarises historical exits and shows patterns and associations, not causes or individual predictions. Do not make decisions about individuals from dashboard scores alone.
Does the product include support documentation?
Yes: an 11-page PDF user guide, a Start_Here sheet in the workbook, presenter notes in every content slide and a Power BI setup guide with DAX catalog.