Research
🕒 4 min read 4 October, 2022 By Yurii Kotula

What Is Professional Services Automation Software (PSA) And Why Do You Need It

PSA software is the key operational system specifically targeted at accomplishing the needs and goals of professional services companies. 125 times was the ROI (return on investment) after implementing the PSA tool as reported by SPI Research. About 96% of the gains were attributable to the top three categories such as improvements in billable utilization, better project margin, and successful project delivery.

We’ve shared key points and insights on what Is professional services automation software, which companies will benefit most from the PSA implementation when it is most effective to implement it, and also what features the software should contain. 

PSA Software: Explained In a Few Words

What is PSA Software? PSA, or PSA-system is a software developed to automate organizations providing professional services, including consulting businesses, audit firms, law practices, architectural firms, IT consultants, etc.

Typical PSA solutions include time tracking, project and resource management, and customer billing. PSA often integrates with CRM, financial accounting, and personnel systems to create complex integrated solutions. 

Who Needs PSA Software and Benefits from it

From medium-sized businesses to global corporations, companies are actively using PSA in their workflows to automate routine tasks, improve customer service levels and, as a result, increase business profitability. 

The software is now earning wide adoption across several industries, including: 

  • Information Technology (IT);
  • Marketing, PR, and Communications, by both client-facing agencies and internal departments;
  • Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC);
  • Business Consulting. 

Organizations delivering billable work stand to benefit the most from PSA software. By centralizing project delivery data, PSA applications can provide visibility into performance metrics such as revenue, cost, utilization, and profit margins. 

PSAs Key Advantages For Businesses of All Sizes

The main benefit of Professional Services Automation software is enabling people who are responsible for business performance to manage and measure service delivery at scale. Executives can see where the business is performing efficiently and where there are opportunities to improve certain areas.

Effective PSA solutions help companies easily manage projects by reducing spreadsheet time, and optimize Resource Use by improving utilization rates. PSA tools can also help organizations gain control over their project, financial, timeline and resource data. Great PSA software keeps top thinkers out of spreadsheets and more engaged with the data at a high level. We’ve also collected some statistics that may convince you.

Less admin, more billable hours

With the right PSA software, a company can easily save 100 hours of admin work per employee per year.

Massive revenue growth

Businesses using PSA software have experienced Year-over-Year revenue growth of more than 143%.

The Best Time to Invest in PSA Software

According to the Professional Services Benchmark Survey, by the time a services company reaches 20 employees, it should have already thought about implementing a PSA tool. For most firms, a PSA solution is the first or second major app they consider implementing, especially if they are planning on growing rapidly. 

Here are some additional telltale signs that it is time to invest in a PSA solution.

Your Service Delivery Team Is Using More Than 3 Tools 

If you are among these companies that are yet to hop on the PSA bandwagon, you probably still have separate tools for task management, project planning, resource management, time tracking, etc. The use of a large number of tools leads to siled data and reduces the efficiency of processes.

You Are Not Sure If You Are Making Money Because You’re Lacking Project Financial Data 

Is a project a success when it is delivered on time and the client is happy with the results? What about if it lost money? This is the challenge that many services companies find themselves grappling with. The culprit is typically a lack of project-level financials. Waiting until the end of the project to tally costs and expenses, to see if money was made or lost is not an ideal option. At the same time, PSA software allows you to track where your finances are going and how to properly optimize them, in real-time.

What Features You Should Look for in PSA Software, And Why

The choice of a PSA solution is going to be contingent upon the unique setup of your business, your goals, and your limitations. Some features you may want to consider when developing a professional services automation software purchasing decision include:

  1. Current Tech Stack: Even the greatest PSA software in the marketplace can be a misfire if it does not integrate with the tools you are using for your CRM, accounting, and marketing processes.
  2. Plans for the Future: Be sure your PSA software choice matches your business objectives, including the ability to scale over time.
  3. Your Customer: Your new application should account for any changes to the customer experience, both positive and negative.
  4. Security: Nowadays, any vulnerabilities to your data and the internal infrastructure of your business should always be at the forefront.

For more information about professional services automation software buying tips check out the company library of software reviews, tips, and resources.

How Custom PSA Solution May Help to Boost Your Business

Custom software development solutions are specially designed to meet the specific requirements of your business and the end users. It’s like an English tutor when you have to pass IELTS in a month. A good tutor will not train everything with you, but only the most relevant topics. This will help you pass the exam with the right score.

Ready to fuel your organization’s growth? Manage project lifecycles with ease by tracking tasks, progress, profit, and more, focus on billable resources, monitor billable and non-billable hours, and allocate resources based on real-time availability, track results in real-time, and make data-driven decisions with the Intelvision’s dedicated software development team. Contact us to get a free consultation and an approximate calculation of the project development cost that will help your professional services company to uncover revenue and profits. 

Whether it is creative and marketing agencies, consulting companies, architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, accounting teams, or IT service providers, our developers are ready to create a customized solution that fits your exact business needs at a much lower cost. We also provide all the necessary security frameworks and granular governance tools to protect your privacy and secure all of your documents and data. If your current system needs someone to make sure it keeps running smoothly, Intelvsion can provide cost-effective support for as long as you need.

Numerous studies estimate that embracing digital transformation helps companies generate an average of $100 million or 8% more operating income yearly than those who don’t. PSA solutions are one such transformation that can help businesses better manage their entire service delivery lifecycle. 

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