How Professional Service Automation (PSA) is paving the way forward

For those businesses that offer a service and are seeking to get ahead by maximising their performance, productivity and profitability, cloud-based Professional Service Automation (PSA) can offer a unique and all-encompassing solution.

In an age where transparency is key, professional services SMEs can benefit from technology that enables real-time visibility across all departments – from accounting to sales and marketing – for enhanced understanding of projects, resource planning, budget tracking and more. Not only does this equip leaders with the bigger picture, but it also helps to drive more effective decision-making across the business as a result; and this is where PSA comes in.

Whether it’s the expectations of customers who demand a more personalised experience, or the need to offer a digital service more efficiently (and cost-effectively), the needs of each and every professional services business are ever changing. From software companies to creative agencies, the more businesses can utilise PSA, the harder it works to empower them with the right tools – delivering an agile solution that grows with their specific needs.

We’ll explore just some of the ways Oracle NetSuite’s integrated PSA solution could propel your organisation towards even greater success, and what the NetSuite 2022 Release 1 updates could mean for the future.

Meeting your business needs from one single system

Uniting the ERP and professional services automation function to meet business requirements via one single system, NetSuite PSA is the first cloud native solution to deliver this integrated package. This includes Project Management, Resource Management, Project Accounting, Timesheet and Expense Management, and Analytics. With the ability to manage projects, resources, and finances from one central location, NetSuite PSA makes it easier for leaders to keep their finger on the pulse while remaining in control of the many moving parts of an omni-business model.

The benefits of PSA for SMEs

As the PSA market goes from strength to strength in the UK and across the globe, professional services businesses both large and small continue to reap the rewards with full visibility over enterprise-wide processes. NetSuite PSA empowers leaders with the ability to run and grow their company with confidence thanks to just some of the following benefits:

Visibility – From back-office financials to front-office services, NetSuite PSA gives SMEs enhanced, real-time visibility over operations in order to fully optimise billable resource utilisation, improve project profitability, and make smarter, data-driven decisions backed by powerful business metrics.

Automation – Driving efficient processes in order to remain competitive, NetSuite PSA enables SMEs to automate and manage multiple facets of a business across the full bid-to-bill lifecycle. Not only does this enable them to deliver better quality services, but automation also contributes to on-time project delivery, resulting in greater project success rates.

On the go – For improved collaboration across an organisation, NetSuite PSA provides service professionals on the move with real-time business information, wherever they happen to be. In a hybrid-working world, and for teams working cities (or even seas) apart, up-to-the-minute mobile access any time, any place will only support more cohesive workflows.

Global access – As outlined above, the comprehensive, real-time visibility offered by NetSuite PSA also addresses the needs of international businesses. Whether that’s integrated financials or services management from corporate to subsidiaries – or even currencies and tax jurisdictions – the optimisation of such processes for those based in multiple worldwide locations can only hope to bolster global operations.

NetSuite 2022 Release 1 updates

Whether new to Oracle NetSuite or long-standing customers, professional services businesses and their project managers can expect to gain from a number of updates following the roll-out of NetSuite Release 2022.1.

• Superior project control – the project-centric control panel within SuiteProjects that is the new Project 360 dashboard presents suite-wide data in a custom-tailored way for users. This allows leaders to drill down into focus pages with visual deep dives for a more holistic view of each project in the portfolio.
• Swifter payments – with the time-saving arrival of billing advances and customisable invoice presentation templates (configured line item by line item), services businesses can process invoices – and speed up approvals and payments – quicker than ever before. Labour expense allocation also makes it simple to capture time more accurately and effectively assign payroll costs – both salary and benefits.
• Improved cashflow – the all-new Cash 360 dashboard and its cashflow forecast functionality can present ‘what-if’ scenarios – giving project managers a comprehensive view of cash inflows and outflows based on transactional data and projected collections and disbursements.
• Greater budget flexibility – the estimate at complete (EAC) function within NetSuite 2022 Release 1 makes it easier for businesses to project the final cost of a job as labour and materials prices continue to fluctuate; for customers, this also avoids any unwanted surprises further down the line.
• Enhanced goal setting – empowering employees and their managers to collaborate over goal setting, goal management enhancements with greater visibility over progress and advanced scheduling capabilities allow leaders to keep track of this all-important timeline (while checking in at regular intervals).

If you want to learn more about Professional Service Automation, or how the NetSuite Release 2022.1 could impact your operations, why not complete our call back form and one of our dedicated NetSuite experts will get in touch to answer your questions?