Accounting and tax for agencies, consultancies, and licensed practices
Service firms make money on time, so the financial questions are different from a business that sells a product. What you can bill, how much of your team's time turns into revenue, and how the owners take money out all move the tax result more than anything on the expense side.
Where it gets complicated
- Revenue arrives unevenly across billing cycles while payroll stays constant, so cash can be tight in a profitable month.
- Owner compensation is often set by habit rather than a plan, which affects both payroll taxes and the year-end return.
- Profit by client or engagement is hard to see, so it's not obvious which work is actually worth doing.
- Most costs are people, so small changes in utilization or headcount move the margin quickly.
How we help
- A monthly close that tracks revenue and profitability by engagement, so you can see which work pays.
- Owner salary and distribution planning that holds up if the IRS asks, especially for S corps.
- Cash flow forecasting around hiring, so the next salary doesn't outrun the revenue to cover it.
- Estimated tax planning so variable owner income doesn't produce a surprise in April.
Services that usually apply here
Bookkeeping
Books categorized, reconciled, and closed every month, so your records reflect what actually happened and are ready before filing.
Tax Advisory Services
Decisions made during the year on entity structure, income timing, and owner compensation, so the return reflects planning rather than default.
Fractional CFO
Senior financial help scoped to the decisions in front of you: cash, capital, margin, and forecasting.
Talk to us about your professional services business
Bring your questions and your current numbers. We will tell you what we would do and what it would cost.