Projects are the foundation of service delivery. Being able to effectively deliver on those projects is the goal of every service organization. NetSuite OpenAir provides the tools not only to make planning projects easy and straightforward but also empowers something more important: project execution. By providing the tools you need to deliver projects more consistently, services-based businesses can improve on-time project delivery and project profitability.
However, your professional services automation solution (PSA) is only as good as the information you can get out of it. With this in mind, NetSuite OpenAir provides robust reporting and analytical tools that are integrated across all modules to deliver on-demand, real-time data. The following video shows how OpenAir provides services organizations with powerful analytics reporting and dashboards to track project metrics:
Once you understand HOW to create reports and dashboards in OpenAir, it’s just as important to discuss WHAT you should be reporting on. We recommend the following KPIs be implemented and closely monitored for all of our services clients:
Top 5 Services KPIs
Referenceable Customers
Maintaining positive customer references is critical to success for any consulting service company. Not only will this result in repeat business from satisfied customers, but these customers are also a great tool in prospecting new clients. Sharing genuine customer success stories from customer to customer enables brand building and validates your offering compared to your competitors. The larger your customer reference program is, the easier it is to find relevant success stories to share with your prospect.
Annual revenue per Billable Consultant
Annual revenue per billable consultant is a rough indicator of how much revenue your billable resources generate each year and the productivity of your consultant team. This number should be higher than the average fully-loaded cost of your consultants, meaning your consultants are generating more revenue than it costs to employ them. This number varies widely depending on the type of consultancy and services provided to clients. Architecture, engineering, and legal consulting firms tend to see a higher annual revenue per billable resource.
Utilization
As a consulting firm, your most valuable assets are your employees and their skillsets. Utilization rate indicates how much time your employees are spending on client project work compared to internal tasks. Increasing employee utilization optimizes your profits and allows your business to take on more projects, hire the best talent, and attract high-caliber clients. It’s important to set realistic utilization targets for your employees and compensate them for their achievements. A utilization target that is too high may result in consultant burn-out, while a target that is too low won’t incentivize employees to be more productive and reach their full potential. Having a clear view of your company’s utilization rate is critical to recognizing inefficiencies, improving staffing, identifying training opportunities, and increasing profitability.
Gross Margin
Percentage of revenue after Cost of Goods Sold. For a services company, gross profit is typically revenue minus professional services staffing costs. This metric signifies how efficiently your company uses its labor to deliver services profitably.
Days Sales Outstanding
How many days, on average, it takes your customers to pay invoices. Also called DSO or Days Receivable, it is a financial ratio that illustrates how your accounts receivable are being managed. The lower this number is, the better.
