Talent SummonerRecruiting Seat Utilization Audit Template
Copy this audit template to reconcile paid recruiting seats, attributable activity, exceptions and the next access decision.
A recruiting-seat utilisation audit reconciles paid access with the work that access supports. It is not a performance score and it does not prove candidate quality or hiring success. Use one product, one billing period and one written activity definition.
For all-in cost comparison use recruiting software TCO. For a decision about the contract, use the renewal checklist. This template deals only with paid-access evidence and a retain, reassign, reduce or pause decision.
Define the evidence
An active seat might mean a named user who completed an approved search, review or documented hand-off during the period. A login alone can be too weak. Apply one definition to every seat and keep missing evidence as unknown, not inactive.
| Record | Capture | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice and order form | Paid seats, billing dates, tax, discount, add-ons and renewal terms | Finance |
| Seat register | Identifier, person, permission, start date and current state | System owner |
| Activity report | Product events, report date and the agreed activity definition | System owner |
| Workload | Roles, searches or reviews each seat supported | Recruiting owner |
| Exceptions | Leave, future approved role, shared access or data constraint | Decision owner |
Seat utilisation = seats meeting the agreed activity definition / paid seats
Cost per active seat = supplier spend for the same period / seats meeting the activity definition
Report both measures as N/A when their denominator is zero. State whether spend includes tax, refunds, credits and usage charges. Role- or credit-based products should remain separate from a seat ratio.
Copyable audit table
Copy this table into a spreadsheet and add one row for every paid seat.
| Seat | Person or team | Permission | Paid full period? | Qualifying activity and date | Active? | Work supported | Evidence and capture date | Exception | Decision | Owner and due date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yes / no / partial | yes / no / unknown | retain / reassign / reduce / pause / verify |
Review partial-period seats, credits and refunds before calculating. Do not infer individual activity from a shared account. A temporarily inactive seat can be justified by a dated approved role; record that reason and next review date.
Make the decision
| Finding | Possible action | Do not act until |
|---|---|---|
| Named owner and qualifying work | Retain | The next review trigger is recorded |
| Inactive with future approved work | Retain temporarily or reassign | Need and notice terms are checked |
| Inactive with no owner | Reduce or pause | Export, reassignment and contract effects are known |
| Activity cannot be attributed | Verify | The product report or access model is understood |
Talent Summoner uses a different commercial unit: a Role is one hiring search, rather than a paid recruiting seat. Use pricing for current terms before putting a Role purchase in a finance record.
Run the audit with finance, recruiting and the system owner. Record the evidence, exception, action, effective date and next audit trigger in the same decision record.
Handle partial periods with seat-months
When seats start, end or change type during the period, use paid seat-months instead of pretending every seat was present for the full period. Count each chargeable seat-month once, and count an active seat-month when that month's evidence contains at least one qualifying event.
| Measure | Formula | Guard |
|---|---|---|
Paid seat-months (PM) | Sum chargeable seat-month units | Split the period when the plan or seat type changes |
Active seat-months (AM) | Sum seat-months with a qualifying event | Missing monthly coverage remains unknown |
| Seat-month utilisation | AM / PM | Use only when PM > 0 and coverage is complete |
| Spend per active seat | Supplier spend / active seats | Use only when active-seat count is greater than zero |
For a synthetic three-month example, two seats are billed in month one, three in month two and two in month three: PM = 7. If one, two and one seat-months meet the same event rule, AM = 4 and utilisation is 4 / 7 = 57.1%. If month two is missing from the activity report, keep AM and the ratio unknown until the report is recovered or the period is split. This arithmetic is a control example, not a utilisation target.
What is a recruiting-seat utilisation audit?
It is a dated reconciliation of paid access, attributed activity, workload and contract terms that supports an access decision.
Should an inactive seat be cancelled immediately?
No. Check future approved work, reassignment, notice, export and the agreement before changing access.
What if activity data is missing?
Mark it unknown, name an owner and pause a material reduction until the evidence is resolved.
