Who We Serve · Service-Based

Finance for businesses that sell time and expertise.

Service businesses live and die on utilization, billing discipline, and margin per hour. We build the bookkeeping and reporting around how you actually bill and deliver — so you can see which work is profitable and price the next engagement with confidence.

You sell time and expertise.

Your inventory is your people’s hours. That makes utilization, realization, and margin-per-hour the numbers that matter most — and the ones generic bookkeeping rarely surfaces. We structure your financials so you can see which work, which clients, and which people generate real margin.

From trust accounting for law firms to job costing for the trades, we match the books to how your specific model bills, closes, and collects.

Service businesses we work with.

Different models, different financials. Here’s who falls in this group and what each one needs from a finance partner.

Law Firms

Trust accounting, matter-level profitability, and partner compensation done right. We keep IOLTA clean and show you which practice areas and partners actually drive margin. Learn more →

Consulting Practices

Utilization, realization, and project margin are the whole game. We track revenue per consultant and which engagements make money — not just which ones keep everyone busy.

Medical & Dental

Revenue cycle, payer mix, and provider productivity managed as a financial discipline. See our dedicated medical practice finance resources for the full playbook.

Agencies & Design

Project profitability, retainer economics, and freelancer-vs-staff cost decisions. We help creative shops see past top-line billings to the margin underneath.

IT & Tech Services

Recurring revenue, deferred revenue, and contract margin tracked cleanly. Whether you bill MRR, projects, or both, we structure the books so the economics are legible.

Construction & Trades

Job costing, WIP, and cash flow across long project cycles. See our field services finance resources for crew-based and project-driven businesses. Learn more →

Industry finance resources.

Deep-dive resource centers built for the questions that come up in your world — pillar guides, diagnostics, and templates.

Let’s talk about your service business.

A 20-minute call. No pitch, no obligation. We’ll tell you honestly whether we can help.

Talk to an expert

Frequently asked.

How is bookkeeping different for a service business?

Service businesses don’t carry inventory, so the economics live in labor: utilization, billing realization, and margin per hour or per project. The chart of accounts and reporting are built around revenue per person, project or matter profitability, and the lag between delivering work and collecting cash — not around cost of goods sold.

What financial metrics should a service business track?

Revenue per billable employee, utilization rate, realization rate, gross margin by service line or project, days sales outstanding, and the pipeline-to-cash lag. Together these show whether you are delivering profitable work and collecting on it fast enough to fund growth.

When does a service business need a fractional CFO?

Usually when revenue is growing but cash feels tight, when you can’t say which clients or service lines actually make money, or when a hiring or pricing decision needs real numbers behind it. A fractional CFO gives you that strategic view without a full-time executive salary.

Local teams in eight markets.