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Services enable you to maximize the value of your business.  Below is a listing of services provided.  To obtain information of representative projects completed, click on individual service area.

Benchmarking

Fee Schedule and Billing Rates Analysis

An analysis and comparison of fee schedule and billing rates compared to industry averages were completed.  This enabled the Company’s leadership and professional staff selling their services and rates to clients to know where they stood compared to competitors.  Analysis helped employees to feel comfortable their rates were properly positioned given their business strategy.

Financial Results and Cost Savings Example

An analysis and comparison of financial and operational statistics were completed. The Company’s results were compared to industry statistics and disclosed how it compared to other firms – competitors as well as others in the industry.

  •  Review key ratios and critical success factors

  •  Understanding of the company’s performance compared to others in its industry.

  •  Where needed, recasting of results to properly compare to surveys. 

  •  Deviations were noted with analysis performed to disclose reasons. 

  •  Strengths and weaknesses of the Company were identified. 

  •  Specific analyses included

    • Profit percentages,

    • Bonus and profit sharing payments,

    • Revenue and labor multipliers,

    • Chargeability,

    • Margins,

    • Overhead rates,

    • Return on equity and assets,

    • Current ratio,

    • Accounts receivable turnover,

    • Equivalent staff statistics,

    • Chargeable hours per person,

    • Average billing rates

    • Average salary costs.

  •  Review and analysis of department financial reporting including:

    • Review of revenue and expense allocations,

    • Reasonableness of allocation methods,

    • Consideration of changes in allocation methods and

    • Assessment of need for additional departments.

  •  Specific recommendations were provided on ways to implement and improve performance and profits. 

 Operational Performance Example

An analysis was completed regarding obtaining, managing and closing projects.  Examples of areas and some of the specifics included are:

  •  Client Selection

    • Consistency with business strategy.

    • Disciplined approach.

    • Target clients?

    • What clients do not fit with company?

    • How are decisions made?

  •  Pricing of services

    • How determined?

    • Do employees understand pricing?

    • Are employees comfortable with pricing and talking dollars?

    • Do people know how to differentiate themselves from the competition?

    • Are alternative pricing methods used?

      • If so, do employees know how to do and believe in methods?

  •  Contracting

    • Success in obtaining.

    • Employee acceptance and support.

    • Feasibility of retainers and deposits.

    • Minimizing impact of “Pay When Paid” and “Retainage” provisions.

    • Including change provision criteria.

  •  Scope of Work

    • Well-defined scopes established?

    • Read and followed by project people?

    • Communicated to client and staff?

    • How are changes to scope handled?

  •  Recording time and expenses

    • Acceptance of process?

    • Is all quality time reported?

      • What prevents project people from charging for such time?

    • Impact on lump sum and other total price committed projects.

    • Compliant with government rules and regulations?

  •  Tracking Project Progress

    • Do project people believe in the system?

    • Do project people regularly review?

    • How should system be used to manage project?

    • How should system be used to communicate progress to clients?

    • What performance is expected of project people on projects?

  •  Managing Project Changes

    • What are attitudes of employees?

    • How to determine attitude of clients.

    • Obtain acceptance of changes and building relationships with clients.

    • Changing paradigms of clients and employees.

    • Impact of clients, employees and profit.

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Billing and Collecting

Several projects have been completed in reviewing and/or developing a process to assure timely billing and collecting for work performed. 

  •  Do people understand and accept importance to Company?

  •  How can this be done painlessly and efficiently?

  •  Ways to communicate and build relationships with clients.

  •  How do project people positively and negatively impact?

  •  See “White Paper” AR Collections on this website for further discussions regarding specifics of a Billing and Collecting process.

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Cash Management

The importance of cash cannot be overemphasized.  Especially in privately owned firms, cash may be the most important financial issue.  In virtually every consulting assignment, the importance of cash is emphasized. 

  •  The impact on cash must be considered for all changes and decisions made.

  •  Planning, cash flow budgeting,

  •  Contracting, project performance,

  •  Billing,

  •  Collecting,

  •  Payment of vendors and subcontractors,

  •  Payroll, fringe benefit programs,

  •  Financing relationships

All aspects of a company’s business must be considered and understood to develop an appropriate cash management system.  When the system is developed, cash flow planning and projecting is implemented to assure no surprises occur. 

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Change Acceptance

Systems have been developed for a number of clients.  These systems include methods of communicating and documenting information to clients.

  •  Emphasize the need to develop a process. 

  •  Communicating and obtaining acceptance of change. 

  •  Understanding client’s attitude toward change

  •  Understanding your attitude toward change

  •  Accepting reasons for changes

  •  Managing to avoid negative changes

  •  Positively managing the process

  •  Successfully completing changes while building relationships with clients.

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Facilitating

Annual Planning

We assist firms in their planning process for developing their annual plans.  This often follows work performed regarding strategic planning.  This facilitating assures that tactical planning is implemented more than strategic. 

  •  What specifically should be achieved this year and how should we plan to accomplish? 

  •  What are the challenges and how can they be overcome?  

  •  What lessons can be learned from the past? 

Coaching Client in Winning Presentation

Provided consulting services for preparing presentation to win approximately a $2.0 million design, landfill remediation and construction management project. The competition was two firms with approximately 3,000 and 26,000 professionals.  The client had 400 professionals. 

  •  Customer desires and needs were determined.
  •  Developed presentation to address desires and needs
  •  Positively differentiated the client from the competition. 
  •  Developed a schedule to meet deadlines
  •  Provided approach, questions and guidance to the team
  •  Advised and coached team in preparing for presentation and interview.

The presentation and interview went perfectly and the customer selected our client team.

 Strategic Planning

Projects include facilitating and leading firms through the process of strategic thinking and assessment. 

  •  Process assures the right areas are addressed and assessed from a strategic perspective. 
  •  Specifics often include business strategies within the industry
  •  SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis
  •  Assessment of future strategy including options and alternatives

  •  Acceptance and commitment by the leadership team. 

  •  Strategic action items are developed to assure follow-up and implementing. 

  •  We often work with our clients in follow-up assignments to assure strategic planning is successfully implemented.

These questions and other more specific to each assignment are developed and used to assure the planning process is completed efficiently and effectively.  To complete the process, action items are assigned with completion dates for the group to assure all is accomplished as is needed. 

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Financial Management

We have worked with companies and individuals in understanding the economics of the industry.

  •  What happens to a dollar of revenue for an engineering consulting firm?

  •  What drives the finances of an engineering firm?

  •  How can the individual employee (project manager) impact?

  •  Assessing financial reporting to determine ability to reward and hold people accountable.

We served as the consultants working with a company that had experienced a failed software conversion. Management had little information to manage the firm. We assisted them in:

  •  selecting and implementing a new accounting and project management software system.

  •  developing and implementing financial and management system controls.

  •  solving cash flow problems by improving their billing and collecting system.

  •  implementing a cash flow projection system.

  •  developing a weekly reporting system for people to access in real time project progress.

  •  preparing monthly financial reporting package that disclosed operating and financial results within 10 days of month end for management’s assessment.

This system is now working efficiently and effectively with timely and accurate data. 

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Negotiations

Have completed numerous projects involving negotiation of transactions.  Recently completed the negotiation of a $30,000,000+ construction and environmental services contract. 

  •  Participated at the start of the process through to signing the final completed contract. 

  •  Attended pre-pricing meetings with client and their customer

  •  Participated in strategy regarding pricing of services, developing of indirect cost and profit rates, subcontractor reporting and pricing, review and assessment of contract terms and conditions and other related tasks.

  •  Developed negotiating strategy and plan

  •  Led negotiation of contract terms and conditions with client team

  •  Worked intimately with client and client’s customer in obtaining satisfactory project and business terms and conditions.

 Also see “Training Programs” below that discusses Win/Win Negotiating training and “White Paper” section of our website that discusses Negotiating. 

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Pricing Strategies

Engagements have included the following services:

  •  Determining approach needed given cost structure of firm.

  •  Developing and selling strategy to clients.

  •  Assisting in pricing of large proposals.

  •  Implementing alternative type systems and incentive based systems.

  •  Comparing pricing with industry averages.

  •  Assessing changes in fee schedule rates from year to year.

  •  Comparing fee schedules rates to negotiated rates in place.

Project management training programs (see Training Programs) often includes pricing case studies and exercises that emphasize:

  •  Understanding your fee schedules,

  •  believing in your rates,

  •  communicating and selling your rates to clients,

  •  addressing objections

  •  providing skills to participants to assure what is obtained is what is deserved. 

The specifics as to how to accomplish this are described that enables increased skill and comfort when working with clients.

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Profit Improvement

Working with all levels of companies, substantial improvement in profit can result.  We have worked at all levels including individuals, projects, departments, divisions and company wide. 

  •  Processes are developed that meet the needs of clients and employees.

  •  Decisions become more routine and address maximizing revenues and minimizing costs. 

  •  People and company obtains what is deserved while building strong relationships with clients. 

  •  Cost at all levels are addressed that assure money is spent when and where needed.  Cost not needed is stopped or alleviated such that employees continue to serve client and company needs.

  •  Emphasis is placed on what individuals and teams can do to positively impact profit.

 Also see Benchmarking and Cost Savings.

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Project Management

Principal of Company worked 9 years as a project manager with Ernst & Young.  Audit and management consulting assignments with Fortune 50 to small companies were constantly in process and completed.   For 11 years, worked closely with and assisted project managers of an international engineering consulting firm.  Since 1997, has completed numerous consulting assignments utilizing the project management skills developed and implemented through many years of experience.  Skills developed assure on time and on budget performance that meet the needs of clients and profitability.

 

Four to twenty-four hour training programs have been developed and taught to thousands of engineers, architects and other professionals.  Programs teach the pragmatic aspects of meeting client needs and building relationships while successfully completing projects.  See Training Programs below for more information.

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Strategy

Allocation of Costs

  •  How should costs be allocated for people, projects, departments, divisions and for the overall company? 

  •  What should be the basis of cost allocation? 

  •  What alternatives are acceptable and what methods are most appropriate? 

  •  How does one allocate cost to comply with government cost accounting standards and other rules and regulations.

Business Strategy

Projects are often completed that address developing and implementing a successful approach that meets the needs of clients, employees and profitability. 

  •  What is the Company’s business strategy? 
  •  Are Company personnel aware of the strategy and following it?
  •  How does the Company differentiate itself from the competition? 
  •  How is the Company inconsistent with its strategy? 

The What, When, Where, Who, Why and How of strategy are assessed with needed changes implemented to meet the Company’s present and future needs.

Strategic Planning

Projects include facilitating and leading firms through the process of strategic thinking and assessment. 

  •  Process assures the right areas are addressed and assessed from a strategic perspective. 

  •  Specifics often include business strategies within the industry

  •  SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis

  •  Assessment of future strategy including options and alternatives

  •  Acceptance and commitment by the leadership team. 

  •  Strategic action items are developed to assure follow-up and implementing. 

  •  We often work with our clients in follow-up assignments to assure strategic planning is successfully implemented.

Also see Pricing Strategies above.

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Training Programs

Developed Programs

Numerous training programs are developed and continually presented. Programs are very interactive and get participants involved in the learning process.   All programs can be customized and personalized to meet your specific needs.  Programs include:

If you wish to present these programs yourself, each of these programs can be licensed for such use.  Instructor manuals, Participant manuals, PowerPoint presentations, exercises and handouts are available for your use.  Of course, all can be customized to fit your own personal needs.

 

Developing In-House Training Programs

If the developed training programs cannot be customized and personalized to meet your specific needs, we can work with you to develop your own training programs.  We have worked with several entities in developing training programs.  Often instructor manuals, PowerPoint programs, exercises, case studies and handouts are developed that lead the instructor through the entire training process.  Participant manuals and other learning tools can be developed for the programs.  These manuals and handout material serve as future reference material after the training session is complete.

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 See also: Lee James Profile

 

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