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The Cost of an Empty Seat
A vacant leadership role saves a salary and costs far more. Estimate what an open seat is costing your organization each month, using your own numbers.
Estimated cost of the vacancy
$0$0 per month · $0 per week
| Slower results in the area the role leads | |
|---|---|
| Direct reports' lost productivity | |
| Interim or acting coverage | |
| Less: salary not paid while the seat is open | |
| Net cost |
How to read this
Why an empty seat costs more than it saves
When a senior role is open, the salary savings are visible and the costs are not. Decisions wait, initiatives stall and the leader's team absorbs work they were not hired to do. This estimate puts those costs next to each other so the trade-off is easier to see.
The model is intentionally simple and conservative. It is a way to frame a conversation about timeline and urgency with your board, committee or leadership team, not a financial forecast.
What this estimate leaves out
- Team members who leave because the leadership gap lasts too long
- Opportunities that are never pursued: new contracts, programs, partners or donors
- The cost of a rushed hire made to end the vacancy, which is usually the largest of all
- Time the hiring executive and committee spend running the process
A faster search only helps if it is also a better one. Before you set a timeline, our readiness self-check shows where searches most often lose time.
Reffett Insights
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