Capacity before ROI: An honest process model

A planning model, not an ROI promise

The first economic effect of an automated workflow is often released capacity. That does not automatically mean lower payroll cost or higher revenue. The capacity calculator keeps the layers separate: time, capacity value, running cost and modelled monthly net.

In the calculator, every input is an assumption to replace with real process data over time. The tool remains a capacity planning proxy rather than a claim about cash savings or revenue.

The four layers

1. Volume: How many cases run each month?
2. Time: How many manual minutes are removed, and how many review minutes remain?
3. Value: What internal value does an hour carry? This is a planning value, not guaranteed savings.
4. Cost: What monthly operating cost is involved? The calculator subtracts it from capacity value; it does not model direct cash savings.

The tool calculates released hours from volume, manual time, review time and coverage. Capacity value multiplies those hours by the loaded hourly cost you enter. Modelled monthly net subtracts monthly operating cost. One-off investment stays separate and is used for break-even.

How to use the tool

Start with a real week, not a target. Enter actual volume, estimate manual time only when you have not measured it yet, and record that uncertainty. Then change one input at a time. Export the inputs as CSV so assumptions and versions remain traceable.

The tool runs locally in the browser. It sends and stores no inputs. Example values are for orientation only and are not an Arthova project result.

What the Leopardo case shows

At Leopardo Negro, four core administrative processes are documented. The release of approximately six hours per week is a modelled time value based on the owner's estimate. That implies approximately 312 hours per year and, at CHF 60 per hour, approximately CHF 18,720 of opportunity value. This is not measured revenue impact. The separation is exactly what the model is designed to enforce.

Before an investment decision

Ask three questions:

• Which input is measured and which is estimated?
• What happens if released time does not convert into revenue or lower cost?
• Which metric will be measured after go-live, and over what period?

If the third answer is missing, the calculator is a prioritisation aid, not yet a business case.