More spread from the team you already have
You pay workers Friday but don't collect from clients for 45-75 days, and good recruiters are hard to find and keep. Level is the operating layer that makes scarce recruiter time produce more gross profit: it connects your ATS, payroll, billing, and books, then surfaces the weekly actions that protect spread, manage the pay-bill cash gap, and pull down DSO.
The Staffing Problem
Most staffing owners know their revenue. Few know their gross profit per recruiter or real cost of capital.
The cash float problem is existential. A staffing agency with $50K in weekly payroll and 45-day DSO needs $300K in working capital just to keep the lights on — and that scales linearly with growth. Add a new $200K client and you need another $130K in float before you collect a dollar. We've seen agencies grow themselves into bankruptcy because nobody modeled the cash gap before signing the contract.
Gross margin looks healthy at 21-25% average across temp staffing, but the full range is 14-41% depending on segment. IT staffing runs 23-26%, healthcare staffing higher. The problem is that most agencies track margin at the book level, not the placement level. One staffing agency we analyzed had 40% of placements running below their cost of capital after accounting for payroll taxes, workers comp, and benefits — their 'profitable' book was subsidizing money-losing accounts.
DSO in staffing runs 35-75 days, but the spread tells the story. Agencies at 35 days operate fundamentally differently than those at 75 — the difference at $5M annual revenue is $548K in additional working capital tied up in receivables. Every 10 days you shave off DSO reduces your financing costs and frees cash for growth. The best agencies escalate collections at 30 days, negotiate net-15 terms with new clients, and maintain credit policies that would surprise most operators.
Analyzed with the CLEAR Framework
Cash · Labor · Earnings · Accounts · Risk — the five pillars we evaluate for every agency.
Staffing Industry Benchmarks
How do the best staffing agencies perform? Data from our analysis of 2,200+ contractors.
Gross Margin
21-25%
Industry avg for temp. IT: 23-26%. Healthcare: higher. Range: 14-41%.
Net Profit Margin
2-10%
Tight after payroll, benefits, WC, and overhead. EBITDA ~10%.
DSO
35-75 days
Healthcare staffing avg. Every 10 days = significant cash impact.
Fill Rate
~40%
Professional temp avg. Light industrial 48hr fill: 61% of firms.
Markup Rate
25-75%
General temp: 25-40%. Specialized: up to 75-100%. Min viable: 40%.
Revenue per Recruiter
$200K-400K
Varies by segment. Top firms track this as primary productivity metric.
What Level Does for Staffing Agencies
Cash Flow & Working Capital Modeling
We model your cash conversion cycle — payroll timing, collection patterns, and the exact working capital needed at every revenue level. You'll know before you sign a new client whether you can fund the float, and what financing options make sense.
Bill-Pay Spread Analysis
We track margin at the placement level, not just the book level. You'll see exactly which clients, roles, and recruiters generate real profit after accounting for payroll tax, workers comp, benefits, and overhead allocation.
DSO Reduction Strategy
We audit your invoicing and collection process, identify the clients driving your DSO up, and model the cash impact of term renegotiations. We've helped agencies cut DSO by 15-20 days — at $5M revenue, that frees $200K+ in cash.
Recruiter Productivity Tracking
Revenue per recruiter is the unit economics of staffing. We track fill rates, time-to-fill, gross profit per placement, and recruiter capacity utilization. You'll see who's producing and where to invest in training, tools, or headcount.
Client Profitability & Concentration Risk
We rank every client by true profitability (not just revenue) and flag concentration risk. If your top 3 clients represent 40%+ of revenue, you need a contingency model — we build it before you need it.
Growth & Financing Strategy
Staffing growth requires capital — factoring, lines of credit, or retained earnings. We model each option's true cost, help you negotiate better terms with lenders, and build the financial story that unlocks growth capital at the best rates.
Bookkeeper, your CPA — vs. Level
| Capability | Bookkeeper | CPA | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Record transactions | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| File taxes | — | ✓ | — |
| Cash flow & working capital modeling | — | — | ✓ |
| Workers comp cost tracking | — | — | ✓ |
| Benchmark against industry | — | — | ✓ |
| Monthly strategy calls | — | — | ✓ |
| Bill-pay spread by placement | — | — | ✓ |
| DSO reduction strategy | — | — | ✓ |
| Growth & financing modeling | — | — | ✓ |
| Understands staffing operations | Rarely | Rarely | ✓ |
Your bookkeeper records the past. Your CPA files taxes. Level is the operating layer in between — it connects the work to the money and shows you how to make more from the people you already have.
We connect to the tools you already use
15-minute setup. Read-only access. Your data stays secure.
From clients
What staffing operators say after working with us.
“Healthcare staffing — RN placements at $90/hr bill, $62/hr pay. Sounds like good margin, but Sam ran the fully-loaded math (ACA contributions, workers comp, GLI, T&E reimbursement, recruiter commissions) and we were really at $4–6/hr per placement. Repriced two contracts that fund-raised by 9% and walked from one. Margin tripled.”
“Light industrial staffing, weekly pay to workers, biweekly+ collection from clients. The float was eating us. Sam built a customer-by-customer DSO report — three clients owed us 90% of our overdue. Got two on weekly ACH, terminated one. DSO from 47 days to 28 in three months. Cash position transformed.”
“Tech contract staffing and we were billing milestones but recognizing revenue all wrong — overstated revenue, surprise tax bills, frustrated CPA. Sam fixed our rev-rec process and rebuilt the financials. Year-end was clean for the first time. Also caught about $140K of unbilled hours that were aging in our timesheet system.”
Simple pricing
Three tiers, one ladder.
From $99/mo
Simple Audit
Clean data plus a monthly read on margin per hour and trapped cash. Same flat rate for catch-up.
From $1,500/mo
Scale
The full operating layer — AI agents, weekly actions, and benchmarks to grow margin per hour.
Custom
Platform / Multi-Office
Multi-branch benchmarking and scorecards for PE-backed and multi-location groups.
Book a call
Book a free 15-min Staffing audit.
We'll review your staffing numbers, benchmark them, and tell you what to fix first. No commitment.
Or have us reach out instead.
Drop your info and Level will review your staffing numbers within a few hours. Free audit included.
No commitment. Real numbers, not generic advice.