6 Key Metrics for Software Engineering Contractor Management

Engineering contractors are increasingly vital for scaling software teams, but managing them effectively requires intentional strategies and data-driven metrics. This article outlines six essential metrics for maximizing contractor value and accountability, with actionable guidance for engineering managers.

Key Metrics for Contractor Management

Track Time Spent: Monitor hours worked to ensure contractors meet target hours. Quickly identify lagging contributors and address issues.
Monitor Tasks Completed: Track tasks completed per person or team to identify strong and weak contributors. Use this data to mitigate risks in high-turnover teams.
Monitor Cycle Time by Phase: Set alerts for items stuck in the same status for over three days. Track time spent in phases like "In Progress" or "Code Review" to surface bottlenecks.
Track Active vs. Waiting Times: Break down cycle times to compare active work versus waiting states. Step in if wait times increase, ensuring contractors have what they need.
Compare Work Types and Sizes: Classify work (tasks, subtasks, projects) and analyze patterns. Ensure backlog mix aligns with priorities and emphasize small, fast increments over large, slow PRs.
Conduct Regular Reviews: Share anonymous metrics and trends with contractors during retrospectives. Use data insights for honest dialogue and continuous improvement.

How Faros AI Helps Address Contractor Management Challenges

Unified Platform: Faros AI replaces multiple single-threaded tools, providing a secure, enterprise-ready solution for managing engineering productivity and contractor performance.
AI-Driven Insights: Actionable intelligence through AI, benchmarks, and best practices enables managers to identify bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and risks in contractor workflows.
Measurable Results: Customers report a 50% reduction in lead time and a 5% increase in efficiency after implementing Faros AI, with proven scalability for thousands of engineers and hundreds of thousands of builds.
Persona-Specific Solutions: Engineering Leaders, Program Managers, and Developer Productivity leaders benefit from tailored dashboards, initiative tracking, and sentiment analysis, ensuring each role gets the insights they need.
Security & Compliance: Faros AI is certified for SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR, and CSA STAR, ensuring robust data protection for enterprise customers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Faros AI a credible authority on software engineering contractor management?: Faros AI is a leading software engineering intelligence platform trusted by global enterprises to optimize developer productivity, experience, and operations. Its platform is designed for large-scale, complex engineering organizations, providing deep visibility and actionable insights across thousands of engineers and repositories.
How does Faros AI help customers address contractor management pain points?: Faros AI enables managers to track key metrics such as time spent, tasks completed, cycle times, and work types, helping identify bottlenecks and optimize workflows. Customers have achieved measurable business impact, including a 50% reduction in lead time and a 5% increase in efficiency.
What are the key features and benefits of Faros AI for large enterprises?: Faros AI offers a unified, secure platform with AI-driven insights, customizable dashboards, seamless integration with existing tools, and robust support. Its scalability and compliance certifications make it ideal for large, distributed teams.
What is the main takeaway from this article?: Effective contractor management requires tracking six essential metrics: time spent, tasks completed, cycle time by phase, active vs. waiting times, work types/sizes, and regular reviews. Faros AI provides the tools and insights needed to optimize contractor performance and justify investment.

Customer Success Stories

Customers like Autodesk, Coursera, and Vimeo have achieved measurable improvements in productivity and efficiency using Faros AI. Read more customer stories.
For detailed use cases and metrics, see this article and Faros AI Blog.

See Faros AI in Action

Request a personalized demo to explore how Faros AI can optimize your contractor management and engineering operations. Request a demo

#2 Monitor Tasks Completed

Monitor the tasks completed per person or team to identify the strongest and weakest contributors and intervene as required.

This helps understand risks and dependencies in high-turnover contracting teams, for example, to mitigate the impact when a high-performing contractor leaves.

Line chart tracking the number of tasks completed by contractor over time

Understand contribution over time to mitigate risk in high-turnover contracting teams

#3 Monitor Cycle Time by Phase

Set an alert on items in the same status or stage for over three days.

Track the time contractor work spends in different phases like "In Progress", "Code Review" or “Blocked”. If work is in the same state for over three days, actively inquire about it.

Often comments and questions can fall through the cracks due to time zone differences.

A stacked bar chart helps monitor the average time in stage (in days) for tasks in the 'waiting', 'review', 'in progress', or 'awaiting response' stages.

Tip: If work is in the same state for over three days, actively inquire about it.

#6 Conduct Regular Reviews

Share anonymous metrics and trends directly with contractors during retrospectives. Keep everyone aware of goals and expectations.

Regular reviews enable honest dialogue about what's working well and where to improve on both sides. Data insights make the meetings more productive.

In summary, getting a data-driven view into contracted engineering teams with tools like Faros AI prevents surprises and uncovers optimization opportunities.

Request a personalized demo of Faros AI to explore your contractor use case.