What is the relationship between an association’s revenue and the number of employees? The number I had heard in the past was $150,000 per employee, so if you knew one value, you could guesstimate at the other. Let’s see how close that is with the data we have at AssocIntell.
Looking at 2019 990 data (pre-pandemic), and focusing on associations under $50M in revenue and 1-300 staff (n=5355), we can see a relationship of $250,000 per employee.
You will notice that many associations are under 100 employees and $10M in revenue. Focusing on this range (n=3007) we get $200,000 per employee.
Finally, looking at those under 40 employees and $4M in revenue (n=1342), we also see $200,000 per employee.
Obviously, the average employee at an association isn’t making $200,000 per year. It relates to the salary, benefits, infrastructure, support, and other expenses an average employee requires. Plus, although associations are non-profits, that doesn’t mean their expenses must match revenue and they can’t make a profit, many do.
So if you are trying to guestimate revenue or employees at an association, you can use $200K/person to get a rough value. If you want to hire a person for your association, you now have a rough guess at what it costs (but very rough). And if you need something to talk about at your next industry happy hour… there you go.
AssocIntell, LLC 