What is Process costs?
Process costs are the costs of a recurring task, calculated as hours actually worked times labour cost per hour, plus the directly attributable material and software costs. The unit is always one instance of the task: one invoice checked, one first enquiry answered, one quotation produced.
Two mistakes make almost every estimate useless. First, the wrong hourly measure: labour costs per hour actually worked sit well above gross salary per hour paid, because non-wage costs are added and because annual leave and public holidays are paid but not worked. Second, a duration that is estimated rather than measured - one week with a stopwatch beats any debate about what it usually takes.
The value of the figure lies in comparability. Only once a task has a price can you say whether a piece of software, an outsourcing arrangement or a changed sequence is worth it. And only then does the same unit appear on both sides of an automation calculation.
Why does Process costs matter?
An hour actually worked costs roughly a third more in Austria than the wage it pays out, according to Eurostat: EUR 46.30 in labour costs against EUR 33.80 in wages and salaries in 2025. Calculate with gross salary and you understate every task systematically - in both directions of the decision, because the time saved is undervalued too.
Process costs in practice
- 01An incoming invoice is measured at eleven minutes to check and post - at EUR 54.90 labour cost per hour that is roughly EUR 10 per invoice.
- 02A first enquiry costs an average of 25 minutes until the reply goes out, which makes plain what an unqualified enquiry is really worth.
- 03Two routes to the same outcome become comparable as soon as both are stated in euro per instance rather than in the feeling that one of them is more awkward.
