Consulting firms · Management and IT
Fractional CFO for consulting firms
A consultancy carries its salaries every month whether or not the hours are billed, so small changes in utilisation and rates move the profit fast. We help you see what each point of utilisation is worth, price the work that pays and plan the cash for growth or a sale.
What consulting firm owners are deciding
Rules and rates are stated in general terms. Your legal adviser or tax adviser can confirm how they apply to your business.
How much billable time the team really sells
Bench time, internal work and write offs all sit between the hours available and the hours billed.
How to price as AI tools shrink the hours
Hourly billing passes every hour saved to the client, so fixed and value based fees decide how much of the saving the firm keeps.
Which clients and kinds of work pay best
A busy team on low rate work can earn less than a smaller team on the right mix.
What the firm is worth, and what protects it
Buyers pay more when clients stay after a consultant leaves. Draft law released in September 2026 would ban non compete clauses for most workers. It is not yet law, and your lawyer can confirm what it would mean for your contracts.
Illustrative example · Consultancy · Brisbane
What each point of utilisation is worth
A consultancy has 12 consultants, each with 1,800 hours a year available after leave and training, billed at $220 an hour. At its target of 75 per cent utilisation it bills 16,200 hours, or $3,564,000.
The team actually bills 68 per cent, or 14,688 hours, so fees come in at $3,231,360. The gap of $332,640 comes straight off profit, because the salaries are paid either way. Each point of utilisation is worth $47,520 a year.
75%
Target utilisation
68%
Actual utilisation
$332,640
Fees lost to the gap
$47,520
Each point of utilisation, a year
Utilisation is one of three numbers behind a consulting margin, beside the rate actually realised and the mix of work, so the three are best read together each month.
Illustrative, modelled on a consultancy of this size. Not a client engagement.
Method: billable hours as consultants times available hours times utilisation; fees at $220 an hour. Worked in code on 22 October 2026.
How an engagement runs
Every engagement starts with discovery and a diagnostic in the first two weeks. We get under your numbers, from utilisation, realised rates and margin by client to payroll, contractors and aged debtors, and surface the issues and opportunities that matter most to a consultancy.
In weeks three and four we set up clean reporting, a cash flow forecast and the rhythm of reviews. The first decisions land in the second month, in pricing, cash or cost, and from the third month we are part of how the business runs, alongside your accountant and bookkeeper. The fractional CFO service page sets out the full scope.
Tools to start with
Free tools for the questions consulting firm owners ask most, each with its result on screen straight away.
Reading for consulting firm owners
Common questions
Do you replace our accountant?
No. Your accountant keeps the tax returns, BAS, year end accounts and the advice on how profit is taxed, and your bookkeeper keeps the books. We add the forward looking work: cash forecasts, utilisation, realised rates and margin by client, and the numbers behind decisions on fees, hiring, partners and a sale. We share what we find with your accountant, so everyone works from the same figures.
What does it cost?
The fractional CFO partnership starts from $3,750 a month, billed month to month with no long term lock in. When you need a figure for the business, before a sale or a handover, an indicative valuation starts from $4,500 and a comprehensive valuation from $13,500. Each of these is a starting price.
How is the fee sized?
Engagements usually stay at the starting price. Some need closer oversight or a deeper assessment, and the scope and fee rise to match. Find your fit confirms your price based on the characteristics of your business, and the pricing page explains how everything is sized.
Do you work with consulting firms outside Brisbane?
Yes. We work with consulting firms across Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast, and further afield across Australia. Most of the monthly work happens over video calls and shared reports, with visits to your office as each engagement needs, so distance changes little. The locations we serve page has the detail.
What do you need from us to start?
Read only access to your accounting software and timesheet system, the last two years of financial statements, hours and fees by consultant and client over the last year, aged debtors and your payroll and contractor summary. A first meeting with you covers how work is won, staffed and priced. Nothing needs to change in your systems before we start.
Talk it through with us
A 45 minute discovery call is complimentary. Bring a year of hours and fees by consultant.