5 KPI & Metrics for a Roofing Company: What Should You Track for Success?
Roofing Company
You're managing a roofing startup tracking cash toward Jan-27 and breakeven in Year 3; focus on five KPIs: claim approval lead time, approved claim value per job, gross margin on full replacements, drone assessment throughput, and cash runway vs Minimum Cash. Monitor cash runway to the $1,492,000 floor, tie margins and approved claims to Revenue 1Y $3,500,000 and Revenue 3Y $11,310,000, and watch EBITDA move from -$628,000 Year 1 to $887,000 Year 3.
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KPI Metric
Description
1
Claim Approval Lead Time
Median hours from submission to insurer response; measures insurer approval time reduction.
2
Approved Claim Value per Job
Insurer-approved payout per job; links to revenue and flags underpayment patterns monthly.
3
Gross Margin on Replacement Contracts
Revenue minus materials, labor, subcontractor costs; indicates profitability and pricing effectiveness.
4
Drone Assessment Throughput
Assessments per drone team per day; measures fleet utilization and revenue pipeline speed.
5
Cash Runway vs Minimum Cash
Days until cash reaches $1,492,000 threshold; early warning for financing or cost actions.
Key Takeaways
Measure claim approval time and target 24-hour insurer response
Track approved claim value per job monthly to flag underpayments
Monitor gross margin on replacements and aim for 40% materials
Watch cash runway daily and protect Minimum Cash $1,492,000
What Are The 5 Must-Track KPIs?
You're running a roofing company and need a tight set of metrics to steer operations and cash - read on for the five that matter. Track claim approval lead time reduction versus carrier baseline, approved claim value per job, gross margin on full roof replacement contracts, drone assessment throughput per operational day, and cash runway versus your Minimum Cash threshold. See also How Much Does a Roofing Company Business Owner Earn? for benchmarks and owner pay context. Use cash runway measured against $1,492,000 as the early warning line.
Give a header name
Claim approval lead time vs carrier baseline
Approved claim value per job after insurer submission
Gross margin on full roof replacement contracts
Drone assessment throughput per operational day
What Numbers Tell You If You're Actually Making Money?
You're checking whether the roofing company is profitable-track five concrete metrics to know for sure and act fast. Focus on monthly EBITDA trend, gross profit dollars retained after materials and direct labor, net cash change versus the Minimum Cash requirement, revenue growth year‑over‑year against forecasted milestones (Revenue 1Y $3,500,000; Revenue 3Y $11,310,000), and breakeven status noting Year 3 in the plan. These numbers show whether operations and insurer payouts are turning into real profit-see How to Write a Business Plan for a Roofing Company? for links to forecasts and targets.
Key profit metrics to watch
Monthly EBITDA trend - direction for latest 12 months
Gross profit dollars retained - after materials & direct labor
Net cash change vs Minimum Cash - track to $1,492,000 threshold
Revenue YoY growth - compare to forecasted milestones
Breakeven status - confirm Year 3 achievement in the plan
Which KPI Predicts Cash Flow Problems Early?
You're watching cash risk: the single clearest early warning is cash runway until the Minimum Cash month of Jan-27, so track it daily and act when days remaining shrink. Also monitor accounts receivable days outstanding from insurer collections, backlog conversion rate from signed contracts to jobs started, and monthly burn rate versus fixed and wages obligations to spot trouble fast. If you need a practical setup for these metrics, see How to Start a Roofing Company?
Early cash-flow KPIs
Cash runway until Minimum Cash of $1,492,000 (Jan-27)
Accounts receivable days outstanding (insurer collections)
Backlog conversion rate: signed contracts → jobs started
Monthly burn rate vs fixed costs and wage obligations
Which KPI Shows If Marketing Is Paying Off?
You're testing whether marketing converts into signed roof replacement contracts-focus on five metrics that link leads to cash and long-term homeowner value, and check operating cost context What Operating Costs Does a Roofing Company Incur?. Track cost per booked lead and lead-to-contract conversion to see channel ROI. Also measure referral revenue, Xactimate turnaround, and homeowner lifetime value to decide where to scale.
Marketing KPIs to track
Cost per booked lead - cost for leads that become signed contracts
Lead-to-contract conversion rate - digital claim campaigns conversion
Revenue from agent referrals - insurance partner channel income
Avg time to Xactimate report submission - speed from contact to insurer file
Homeowner lifetime value - including warranty revenue
What KPI Do Most New Owners Ignore Until It's Too Late?
You're overlooking the small operational faults that compound into big cash and reputation hits-watch insurer dispute rate, rework, warranty claims, fleet utilization and AI accuracy drift now, not later. These roofing company KPIs map directly to cash runway and claim acceptance, so act before disputes reopen claims and slow insurer claim turnaround time. Read related cash and owner pay context How Much Does a Roofing Company Business Owner Earn?. This roofing KPI checklist detail is short and practical-defintely worth a quick scan.
Critical overlooked KPI
Insurer dispute rate after Xactimate report submission
Frequency of rework or subcontractor punch-list items per job
Warranty claim incidence rate within first 24 months post-install
Fleet utilization % versus fleet lease fixed cost
AI model accuracy drift impacting report acceptance rates
What Are 5 Core KPIs Should Track?
KPI 1: Give a Name to the First KPI Should Track
Definition
Claim Approval Lead Time
Measures the median hours between Xactimate report submission and insurer response; it shows how quickly approvals arrive and how fast you can start jobs. Use it to prioritize high-impact claims and cut start delays.
Advantages
Reveals bottlenecks in insurer turnaround time
Drives faster job starts and shorter project cycle
Signals when to escalate to agent partners or carriers
Disadvantages
Can hide outliers if you only track mean instead of median
Depends on accurate timestamping of submissions and responses
Differs by carrier; comparing across carriers can mislead
Industry Benchmarks
Set an internal target of 24 hours from submission to insurer response, matching the business SLA for report delivery. Track each carrier vs their baseline and flag any carrier whose median exceeds the 24‑hour internal target.
How To Improve
Automate Xactimate submission and confirm timestamps
Prioritize claims by expected payout to speed high-value approvals
Escalate repeat slow carriers to agent partners for intervention
How To Calculate
Claim Approval Lead Time = Median hours from report submission to insurer response
Example of Calculation
Claim Approval Lead Time = 24 hours
Tips and Trics
Record submission and response timestamps automatically
Report medians by carrier weekly, not just overall
Use 24‑hour SLA misses to trigger carrier escalation
Combine with approved claim value to prioritize dispatch
KPI 2: Approved Claim Value per Job
Definition
Approved Claim Value per Job measures the insurer-approved payout amount after you submit an Xactimate (Xactimate report submission) estimate. It shows the revenue you can expect per full roof replacement contract and flags underpayments that compress margins and cash flow.
Advantages
Pins revenue per contract so pricing matches costs
Reveals insurer underpayment patterns by carrier
Triggers negotiation with agents or escalations quickly
Disadvantages
Varies by claim type; mixes small repairs with full replacements
Can mislead if backlog includes unverifiable scope changes
Depends on accurate Xactimate line-item coding and documentation
Industry Benchmarks
For roof replacement KPIs, approved claim averages commonly range widely by region and storm severity; a practical internal benchmark is to track month-over-month changes and compare by carrier. Use the Revenue 1Y $3,500,000 and Revenue 3Y $11,310,000 milestones to gauge whether average approved payouts align with targets needed to reach breakeven in Year 3.
How To Improve
Standardize Xactimate templates and line items
Track approvals by carrier; escalate repeat underpayers
Train adjuster-facing staff to document scope and photos
How To Calculate
Approved Claim Value per Job = Total insurer-approved payouts for period / Number of approved jobs in period
Example of Calculation
Approved Claim Value per Job = $350,000 / 10 = $35,000
Tips and Trics
Report by carrier monthly to spot underpayment trends
Segment replacements vs repairs to avoid mixing averages
Link this KPI to gross margin on replacement contracts for sanity checks
Use it to model cash flow vs the minimum cash threshold $1,492,000; defintely run scenarios
KPI 3: Give a Name to the Third KPI Should Track
Definition
Gross Margin on Replacement Contracts
Measures profitability after subtracting the direct costs: materials, direct labor, and subcontractor expenses from revenue on full roof replacement jobs. Use it to see whether pricing, supplier choices, and crew efficiency produce the margin needed to hit plan milestones like Revenue 1Y $3,500,000 and breakeven in Year 3.
Advantages
Shows per-job profitability to price correctly
Flags carriers or contracts that underpay vs. cost
Directs material purchasing and subcontractor selection
Can be distorted by unusual one-off jobs or warranty charges
Requires consistent cost coding to be comparable month-to-month
Industry Benchmarks
For roof replacement contracts, a practical materials target is 40% of contract revenue; skilled operators then aim for total COGS (materials + labor + subs) below 60%, yielding a gross margin above 40%. Benchmarks vary by region and job mix, so compare to similar contract sizes and insurance-driven work to avoid misleading conclusions.
How To Improve
Negotiate material bulk pricing to lower the 40% materials line
Standardize scope and labor bundles to reduce direct labor variance
Use carrier-approved scope templates to reduce subcontractor scope creep
How To Calculate
Gross Margin on Replacement Contracts = (Revenue - Materials - Direct Labor - Subcontractor Costs) / Revenue
Report margin by job and by carrier to spot underpayments fast
Reconcile material invoices weekly against purchase orders
Allocate a standard portion of warranty/rework to each job
Track gross margin trend monthly to support EBITDA moving from - $628,000 toward $887,000 in Year 3
KPI 4: Drone Assessment Throughput
Definition
Drone Assessment Throughput measures the number of roof assessments completed per drone team per operational day. It shows how quickly your drone fleet converts flights into billable reports and pipeline for replacement work.
Advantages
Directly scales pipeline: more assessments → faster bookable work
Improves fleet economics: ties sorties to drone consumable costs
Signals when to add a second drone fleet and related capex
Disadvantages
Can mask report quality if speed trumps completeness
Depends on assessor availability and insurer timing
Industry Benchmarks
Benchmarking varies by market and job complexity. Use internal historical medians and compare job types (complex vs simple). Track weeks-to-weeks and aim to improve throughput while holding report acceptance rates steady.
How To Improve
Standardize flight routes and preflight checklists
Batch nearby assessments to cut transit time
Automate report generation from drone footage
How To Calculate
Drone Assessment Throughput = Total assessments completed ÷ (Number of drone teams × Operational days)
Example of Calculation
Drone Assessment Throughput = 120 assessments ÷ (4 teams × 5 days) = 6 assessments per team/day
Tips and Trics
Record flights, assessments, and report handoffs in one system
Compare throughput with approved claim value per job
Adjust routes when insurer Xactimate submission windows tighten
Plan second fleet capex when throughput gain stalls vs demand
KPI 5: Cash Runway vs Minimum Cash
Definition
Cash Runway vs Minimum Cash measures how many days you have until cash hits the company's Minimum Cash threshold of $1,492,000. It shows whether you must raise funds, cut spend, or accelerate revenue before the Minimum Cash Month of Jan-27.
Advantages
Provides an early warning to avoid hitting $1,492,000
Connects burn rate to concrete financing or cost-cut actions
Depends on accurate monthly burn and cash forecasts
Ignores timing of large receivable inflows from insurers
Can trigger premature cuts if seasonal revenue not modeled
Industry Benchmarks
Construction KPI metrics commonly target a minimum runway of 6-12 months for growth-stage roofers; conservative contractors hold 9-12 months. Benchmarks matter because insurer collections and backlog convert slowly in storm seasons, so shorter runways increase insolvency risk.
How To Improve
Reduce monthly burn: freeze hires and nonessential capex
Accelerate collections: prioritize insurer claims with fast turnaround
Raise bridge financing tied to signed backlog conversion
Track claim approval lead time and gross margin as primary KPIs Also monitor approved claim value per job, drone assessment throughput, and cash runway relative to the Minimum Cash of $1,492,000 These five KPIs tie operational performance to the business plan that reaches breakeven in Year 3 and revenue milestones across Years 1 to 5
Review core KPIs weekly and cash metrics daily for high sensitivity Weekly reviews cover throughput, conversion, and margin trends while daily cash checks prevent hitting Minimum Cash in Jan-27 Quarterly deep reviews should align with revenue targets including Revenue 1Y $3,500,000 and Revenue 2Y $7,300,000
Set an internal target of insurer response within 24 hours after report submission That aligns with the business promise of report delivery within 24 hours and supports faster project starts that drive Revenue 1Y $3,500,000 and improvements toward Revenue 3Y $11,310,000
Yes, use cost per booked lead and lead-to-contract conversion rate as marketing KPIs Tie these to revenue from referral and digital channels and track contribution to Revenue 1Y $3,500,000 and Revenue 2Y $7,300,000 to evaluate return on the marketing monthly retainer
KPIs translate to cash through approved claim values, margin, and throughput which drive revenue and EBITDA progression Monitor them to reach breakeven in Year 3 and improve EBITDA from -$628,000 in Year 1 toward $887,000 in Year 3 while protecting Minimum Cash of $1,492,000
