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Finance for services firms that are busy, and want to know whether they are profitable

Utilisation, realisation and owner economics: the numbers that decide whether a busy company is actually profitable.

Book a Discovery Call How the Finance Diagnostic works

Where services finance usually breaks

In a people business, the cost is in the hours. The books record salaries, not where the hours went.

  • Revenue grows, margin does not

    More clients and more staff, but profit per person stays flat because utilisation and pricing were never measured.

  • Fixed-fee projects overrun silently

    Hours on a fixed-fee engagement exceed the estimate and nobody knows until the project closes or the invoice is disputed.

  • Owners draw cash as if it were profit

    Drawings or remuneration follow the bank balance, not distributable profit, and the business runs short when a large client pays late.

  • Work done, not yet billed

    Unbilled work and delayed milestones tie up cash that looks like revenue in the P&L.

What we put in place

Built around your timesheet or project data, alongside the ledger.

Utilisation

We measure billable hours against available hours by person and team, using the timesheet or project data you already capture.

What you get A monthly utilisation report by team, with the gap to target in rupees.

Project profitability

We cost each project on actual hours at a loaded cost rate, and compare it with the fee and the original estimate.

What you get Margin by project and client, and an early warning list of fixed-fee work running over.

Owner draws vs. profit

We separate what the business earns from what the owners take, and set a draw policy tied to profit and cash reserves.

What you get A monthly owner economics view and a draw policy you can hold to.

Billing and collections

We track unbilled work and milestones alongside debtors, so revenue turns into cash on time.

What you get An unbilled and overdue list reviewed each month.

What your monthly pack tracks

Agreed during the Finance Diagnostic. These are the usual measures for a services firm.

  • Billable utilisation By person, team and practice area
  • Realisation Billed value against standard rates
  • Project and client margin On actual hours at loaded cost
  • Revenue and margin per head Twelve-month trend
  • Unbilled work Work done, invoice pending
  • Debtor days With overdue ageing
  • Owner draws vs distributable profit Month and year to date
  • 13-week cash forecast Salaries are the first call on cash

Statutory points we watch

Specific to services businesses.

  • Tax deducted by your clients

    Most of your clients deduct tax at source on your invoices. Credit you cannot match to your tax credit statement is credit you may not get. We reconcile it monthly, not at return time.

    Reference: Income-tax Act, 2025 provisions on tax deducted at source and credit for tax deducted

  • GST on services and exports

    Place of supply, invoicing timelines for continuous services, and export of services under a letter of undertaking all affect cash, not just compliance.

    Reference: Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (place of supply); Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and Rules (invoicing and LUT)

This is general information, not tax or legal advice. Applicability depends on your entity, turnover and facts, and is confirmed during the Finance Diagnostic.

Is this a fit?

A good fit if

  • You run a services business where people's time is the main cost.
  • You capture time or project data somewhere, even in spreadsheets.
  • Headcount is growing faster than profit.

Probably not yet if

  • You do not track time or projects at all. Setting that up comes first; the Diagnostic will scope it.
  • You need statutory returns filed. That stays with your CA firm.
  • You want a one-off pricing review with no ongoing reporting. That is specialist project work .

How engagements usually run

Services firms usually start with the Diagnostic, then move to a retainer built around utilisation and project margin.

  1. Start

    Finance Diagnostic

    We review project data, margins, billing and cash and give you a prioritised action list.

  2. Monthly

    Fractional CFO Starter

    If your team can collate the data, we turn it into a monthly pack and a 30-minute CFO review.

  3. Monthly

    Fractional CFO Core

    We own the monthly rhythm: close review, project MIS, cash forecast and compliance oversight.

  4. One-off

    Specialist projects

    A pricing and rate-card review or a partner profit-sharing model, as a scoped project.

Common questions

We do not use a timesheet tool. Can you still measure utilisation?

Only roughly. Project-level estimates can give a first view, but reliable utilisation needs time captured against projects. We recommend the lightest workable way to start.

Does this work for firms with partners?

Yes. Owner economics applies equally to partners' drawings and directors' remuneration. Profit-sharing arrangements are reviewed in the Diagnostic.

Do you replace our accountant or CA firm?

No. Your team keeps booking entries and your CA firm keeps audit and return filing. We sit above both.

Other industries we work with

Manufacturing Costing, plant P&L, capex and working capital Trading & Distribution SKU margins, credit control and inventory turns High-Growth Startups Runway, investor MIS and diligence readiness

Find out whether being busy is making you money.

An intro call with a senior member of the team. We will tell you plainly what the Diagnostic would look at.

Book a Discovery Call