Book Your Call
One call. Clear direction. Faster execution.
How a busy agency lifted net margin from 6% to 17% in a year.
The team was fully booked, revenue was growing and yet there was almost nothing left at the end of the year. Skillfi's fractional CFO found where the profit was leaking, priced work properly and set clear targets, with the same 120 people. It's how our fractional CFO service works: senior financial leadership, exactly when you need it.
Always busy, rarely profitable.
The agency designs websites and runs digital marketing for mid-sized brands. Revenue had grown to $18M, the team worked long hours and new work kept coming in. But net margin was just 6%, and the founders couldn't say why.
Projects were quoted from gut feel, so overruns were common and rarely billed. Some clients asked for endless revisions on fixed fees. Time was tracked loosely, and the only report was a yearly profit figure from the accountant. Nobody knew which clients, services or projects were actually making money.
We had never been busier, and we had never worked harder for so little profit.
Founder & CEO, client
Find where the profit leaks, then fix how work is priced and run.
Our fractional CFO started with data the agency already had, then changed how it quotes, delivers and reviews work. Team targets and roles were updated with a fractional COO.
Profit by client and project
Two years of time, cost and billing data combined to show the real margin of every client, service and project for the first time.
Pricing that covers the real cost
A pricing model built on true delivery costs, clear scope limits, paid change requests and retainers in place of open-ended fixed fees.
Targets the team can see
Utilisation targets by role, weekly project budget tracking and a monthly profit report for every client lead.
12 months, step by step
From busy and barely profitable to a margin the founders are proud of. Here's how the engagement unfolded.
- Month 1–27 loss-making clients
Profitability analysis
Margin calculated for every client, service and project, revealing a handful of accounts that lost money.
- Month 2–3New rate card
New pricing model
Rates reset on true costs, scope templates written and change requests made billable for new work.
- Month 3–54 repriced, 3 exited
Client conversations
Loss-making clients repriced, moved to retainers or let go respectfully, freeing the team for better work.
- Month 4–6Targets by role
Utilisation targets
Accurate time tracking, targets by role and capacity planning so work is shared fairly.
- Month 6–8Monthly reports
Profit reporting
Weekly project budget alerts and a monthly profit report for every client lead and the leadership team.
- Month 9–1217% margin
Grow the right work
Sales focused on the most profitable services and client types, with a margin check before every proposal.
Four levers that moved margin
No layoffs and no cost-cutting drive, just better decisions about which work to take, how to price it and how to run it.
Know what makes money
- Margin by client
- Margin by service
- Margin by project
Charge for real effort
- Cost-based rate card
- Clear scope limits
- Paid change requests
Work worth doing
- Loss-makers repriced
- Retainers over one-offs
- Margin check on proposals
Stay on budget
- Utilisation by role
- Weekly budget alerts
- Monthly profit report
Twelve months later
Net profit margin
With the same 120 people and revenue up 9%.
We nearly tripled our margin without hiring or cutting anyone. Now we know exactly which work makes money, and our team works fewer late nights.
Founder & CEO, clientBusy all year, but little profit to show for it?
Our fractional CFO will show you which clients and services make money, fix your pricing and set targets your team can hit. Want delivery to run tighter too? Add a fractional COO.
- Profit by client, service & project
- A pricing model on real costs
- Utilisation targets by role
- A monthly profit report
30 minutes. No obligation.
Related Case Studies