8 Ways Consulting CEOs Are Lifting Profits - With Help From Resource Management Software

This is a field guide for consulting leaders who are done losing hard-earned profits through poor project and resource management. Borrowed from the fastest-growing consulting firms using Projectworks resource management software, these tried and tested strategies will be a game-changer for your firm’s resourcing. Implement them tomorrow - your margins will thank you.

1) Commit From A Live Resource Planning View - Not Gut Feel

Before you price or promise, pull a single, current view of who is available by skill and location, and make your delivery calls based on facts rather than gut-feel. A real-time resource planning tool like Projectworks will speed things up massively here. If you’re still running resource management planning out of spreadsheets, it’s time to make a change – trust us, you’ll never look back.

Why it lifts profit: Fewer blown delivery dates and discount conversations, higher win rates.

“The rich resourcing and capacity reporting helps us plan the business. We know what we have available and coming up, allowing us to effectively manage workloads as well as staff wellbeing.”
Jo Mickleson, Capability & Growth Advisor, Aware Group

See how Projectworks helped Aware Group get their resourcing ready for expansion here.

2) Take The Data Doubt Out Of Your Resource Management  Decisions

Better data = more confident resourcing decisions, so identify core metrics like utilization, budget burn, margin, and make them visible to management and delivery leads. Update them weekly, and sanitise them so everyone trusts the data enough to make decisions based on it. A shared resource management tool like Projectworks will eliminate hours of manual data gathering and sanitisation - but the habit matters most.

Why it lifts profit: Better pricing, faster approvals, fewer write-offs.

“A business is only as good as the data it has. So having access to that live project data makes that day-to-day decision making so much easier.”
James Woods, Regional Director, MBB

See how Projectworks' resource management software helped MBB grow from 45 to 170+ people.

3) Shift The Conversation From Project Planning To Energy Allocation

In your weekly resource management planning meetings, ask “Where will our best energy go next week?” If you use resource management software, make sure it gives you a full view of where the whole firm’s energy is being spent, not just individual projects, so you can spot any under-or-over utilization risks.

Why it lifts profit: Less context switching for your team, better throughput, higher quality work delivered.

“This is strange coming from a creative person, but accountability is a beautiful thing. It helps us prioritize where we put our creative energy. It helps us make sure each project get what it needs.”
Peta Miskovich, Associate Director, Oculus

See how Projectworks saves Oculus thousands of resourcing admin hours.

4) Resource The Future, Not Just The Next Few Weeks

Tie pipeline to capacity and extend your project and resource management view to 12, 18, and 24 months. Use it to spot skill gaps, shape offerings, and decide whether to hire, train, or subcontract. A forward-looking resource planning tool like Projectworks makes this a daily ritual, rather than a once a quarter chore.

Why it lifts profit: Right-time hiring, fewer bench costs, no panic contractors.

“Now that we can forecast more accurately, we’re able to see where we’re going to be 12, 18, 24 months from now, and see where we might need more people, or more projects.”
Eugene Brink, Chief Delivery Officer, bdna

See how Projectworks helped bdna grow their firm by 60%

5) Democratize Resourcing Visibility So Everyone Can Learn From The Past

Share plan vs. actuals with the whole delivery team. In project and resource management conversations, review “what we thought vs. what we did,” then change estimates and staffing rules accordingly. If the data is getting stuck on your accountant’s desk, it might be time to migrate the whole team onto a more accessible resource management software tool.

Why it lifts profit: Earlier risk signals, smarter staffing, stronger margins.

“With Projectworks, I’m able to share my operational and financial knowledge with the team more easily. In a resourcing meeting, I can pull up last month’s utilization of all our staff vs. resourcing to actually look at what we did vs. what we thought we would do.”
Breccan McLeod-Lundy, CEO, Ackama

See how Projectworks gave Ackama a single resourcing view across multiple offices.

6) Give Project Leads Real Resourcing Numbers - And Real Ownership

Arm your delivery leads with the very best resource planning tool you can afford - ideally one that shows both current and projected burn rates. They’re your best defence against the hundreds of tiny profit leaks - but only if they have the project data to spot them, and the ownership to plug them before they gobble up your quarterly margins

Why it lifts profit: Issues surface sooner, scope is defended, margins hold.

“I’ve seen over and over again what happens when you help an organization move from disconnected legacy systems to a single integrated system. The impact is massive; people are more focused, they love showing up for work more, they make better decisions.”
Marty Wauchope, Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer, bdna

See how Projectworks became bdna’s project resourcing compass

7) Replace Delayed Spreadsheet Reporting With A Self-Serve Resourcing Management Tool

Retire monthly resourcing spreadsheet dumps - and the hours of busywork that go into them. Stand up an always-on resource management software dashboard for live burn, margin, and utilization data. Bonus points if it’ll automate your timesheet nudges to keep data current.

Why it lifts profit: Less overhead, more delivery, faster decisions.

“We used to spend a week per month pulling project data from different sources, sanitising it, checking it, and reporting it to project leads. With Projectworks our project leads always have live accurate data, right there, anytime they need it.”
Jemima Butt, Operations Director, MBB

See how Projectworks gave MBB’s operations team back a week every month

8) Invest In The Right Resourcing Tool And Measure The ROI

Quantify the time you and your firm spend doing project and resource management firefighting. Compare it to the cost of an integrated resource management software solution. Track the payback in write-offs avoided, utilization lifted, and deals won.

Why it lifts profit: Spreadsheets feel free, but they hide delays, errors, and rework. The right system pays for itself across every person and project.

“What’s particularly good about Projectworks is that you don’t need to be reliant on one person in accounts knowing the system or a subject matter expert feeding the information back to you. Any one of us from the executive through to the administration team can navigate the system.”
Dien Tang, Director & Principal, Diversus

See how Projectworks’ resourcing kept up with Diversus’ ambitious growth plans

Project resource management is not about squeezing more hours. It is about understanding your reality sooner, making more confident commitments, and putting your team’s best energy in the right places. Start with one project and resource management habit this week, and watch the impact compounds quickly in your profits.

When you are ready to scale the wins, bring your project plans, budgets, and staffing into one unified resource management software. The payoff is real. Clearer choices. Steadier delivery. Higher margins. A business that is easier to run and worth more to own. Book a demo with the Projectworks team to see the ROI for your firm’s profits.