The biggest thing I like about it is that people can pay us faster. We've reduced our administrative involvement probably 75%. My time's much less invested, because now everything's done upfront.
Invoices were taking up an undue amount of time.
2-3 business days, twice a month. Time spent adjusting billable rates, time entries and their descriptions by hand...
Getting approvals from every single team member…
Then scrapping and rebuilding invoices and line items when even small changes were made.
And all relying on customized project-by-project data embedded in spreadsheets and the minds of individual team members.
Bottlenecks To Sustainable Growth
While it should add up to cash flow, all this invoicing process seemed to do was add up to massive frustration.
There were too many manual calculations and project-level customization.
Too much back and forth coordination. Too much time between the work and the revenue collection.
When the office manager came back from an extended leave, their bookkeeper had even refused to sub in on the process ever again.
Just because this is a common issue in professional services firm doesn't mean this firm needed to let it be their bottleneck to sustainable growth.
Building Operations For Today & Tomorrow
The owner of Fox Forensic Accounting, Shawn Fox, recognized there must be a better way to get paid besides the limited functionality of QuickBooks Online, days of team member back-and-forth, and relying on the memory and availability of key employees.
What had worked when in early days of the business was no longer sufficient for the successful and scaling forensic accounting firm Shawn had built.
It was time for an upgrade.
As our practice has evolved, the biggest issue that we had was trying to upgrade our billing system. We wanted a little more sophistication. We wanted to upgrade it a more automated solution that's more seamless and [had] more robustness in terms of some of the bells and whistles compared to the data that we had in QuickBooks.
The asks for Upward Acceleration:
- Find a solution, likely a software, to fix the cycle, shorten it, make it easier.
- Bring them better options for getting paid that means money hits the wallet faster and easier for everyone involved.
- Give them trust that the invoices would be accurate the first time around, provide a clear and brand-appropriate view for client and...
- Ensure that they could all, office manager included, focus on their relationship-driven, revenue-generating client work.
What Happened Next
While our diagnostic process identified several categories of options, from QBO plug-ins to full replacement software, we landed on a Professional Services Automation tool (or PSA) that checked off the client’s main pain points.
(For lawyers reading this, think of a PSA as the non-lawyer equivalent of a Practice Management tool. For other industries, the term ERP might ring a bell.)
With the help of the new tool, and a migration of data, processes and people to that tool, we:
Invoices Out-The-Door In Minutes, Not Days
Previously, the invoicing process required several rounds of drafts and a time consuming approval process requiring input from every team member.
Now, using auto-generated, scheduled reports get distributed to managers without manual intervention before every invoice cycle. This transparency means the approval process happens before invoice drafts are generated.
The invoice build and final approval is now the work of minutes, not days, speeding up the work-to-wallet cash cycle.
More Than Just Invoicing
Invoicing has become a stable, predictable cycle for this firm.
It no longer depends on just a single person. In fact, that reluctant bookkeeper has now started taking over some of the work!
And leadership has regained their trust and confidence in the numbers being presented to them.
But the overall effect has further reach than just the invoices themselves. It’s set up the firm to scale.
At-A-Glance Profit Profitability
Before, leadership operated off the assumption that intelligently calculated margins would carry them through into profitability. And while that can work, a lack of transparency into individual projects created profitability concerns around accounts receivable, retainer application, and even on incentive calculations for team members.
Setting up at-a-glance dashboards and auto-delivered reporting have broadened the data toolset for leaders, putting them in a better position to improve cash flow, better communicate with clients, and make strategic investments for the firm like hiring additional support staff.
Having Help Means Progress, Not Distraction
No initiative is without its headaches but just as this migration fully kicked off, business ramped up for the firm.
The switch has basically involved analyzing the data, upgrading to the new stuff, and then, making a few modifications as the post-closing process of the project as we went live with it. Rachel's been instrumental, like the outsourced IT as it relates to this project. It keeps my time involvement to a minimum.
Having help from someone with the experience of understanding the software, applying it to their processes, and keeping the owner out of the mess was critical to keep progress moving forward.
100% Adoption = No Wasted Efforts or ROI
It’s pretty typical to hear a business owner say, “We brought on X tool or Y system but nobody’s using it. It’s been a waste of money.”
Knowing that’s so easily the case, a practical approach to change management was critical. We hosted live training and milestone calls with the team, including contractors who’d be using the tool, telegraphing in advance the changes coming.
In addition, Standard Operating Processes were built specifically for the team and their work processes. This covered management-led requirements like how to use the time entry functionality. But we also covered best practices including tool navigation and view customization. That way they got up to speed in how to make the tool work for them (not just the owner and the office manager!).
The resulting adoption was 100% within 2 weeks of onboarding to the tool.
A Move Worth Making Earlier
When looking back on the transition and the outcomes since, Shawn Fox considers this not only a move worth making but one that he wishes had happened even sooner.
I wish we would've done it sooner, two to three years earlier than what we did. I think it would've been better to have it had this sort of system in place.
If you’re considering an operational upgrade for your firm, or want to streamline your firm’s processes for greater effectiveness now and in the future, let’s connect. Schedule an initial consultation to explore solutions tailored to your business needs.