Capacity gap

A capacity gap is the simplest possible read on whether the staffing roster matches the project pipeline. For a single trade in a single time period, take the demand from confirmed and tentative projects then subtract the capacity not yet allocated. The difference is the gap. A positive gap means the studio needs more of that trade than it currently has available. A negative gap means there is more bench than the pipeline calls for. Either side is information leadership can act on.

The value of tracking gaps as a first-class number is that they compose. The capacity gap on a single project rolls up to a gap by trade across the studio, which rolls up further to a gap at the department or executive level. That is what makes the executive horizon scannable: a leader can read down a column of gaps and immediately know which trades and which weeks need attention, then drill back into the underlying projects and people only where the number warrants it.

Related: executive horizon, demand forecasting, bench time.