How do we win good, profitable new work steadily and for the long term?
01Answered by the Sales process
Pipeline, opportunities and forecast in one view, with every enquiry kept on the contact.
To the Sales processSeven core processes. Seven goals, reached step by step.
Core processes are the workflows through which a firm earns its money. A professional services firm has seven, and each one pursues a goal. You do not have to tackle them all at once: you start where it matters most for you and improve your firm one process at a time.
How do we deliver projects reliably, on time and profitably?
02Answered by the Project delivery process
Plan vs actual and project margin are up to date every day, not only at the end.
To the Project delivery processHow do we turn work into revenue quickly and completely?
03Answered by the Billing process
Logged hours land on the invoice without anyone retyping them.
To the Billing processHow do we keep costs and liquidity under control at all times?
04Answered by the Cost control process
Costs, contribution margins and cash planning come together every day.
To the Cost control processHow do we look after clients quickly, competently and by value?
05Answered by the Customer care process
Requests are prioritised by client value, with SLA time left as a traffic light on the ticket.
To the Customer care processHow do we steer capacity, skills and motivation well?
06Answered by the Workforce process
Availability, skills and utilisation side by side before you staff anyone.
To the Workforce processHow do we lead the firm on current data?
07Answered by Business steering
Eight KPIs with their own traffic lights in one management dashboard, fed by every process.
To Business steeringEvery services firm runs the same seven processes.
Whether consultancy, IT service provider or engineering office: the business runs on the same core processes, from first contact to paid invoice. teamspace maps them in one system and makes each process individually steerable. Pick the area below that pinches most right now.
- Value creation: four processes
- People: two processes
- Steering: one process
Core processes, maturity, profile: the short answer
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A professional services firm has seven core processes, and each pursues a goal: sales, project delivery, billing and cost control carry value creation, customer care and the workforce process carry the people, and business steering brings all six together.
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A process map shows these processes at a glance, on three levels: steering at the top, value creation from client to cash in the middle, and at the bottom the processes that carry it.
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Nobody has to improve all seven at once. You begin with the process whose goal matters most today, then move on to the next.
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How far a process has come is shown by a maturity model with six automation levels, from unplanned to fully automated.
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The maturity profile records, at a given date, where each process stands and which level comes next. Kept up to date, it shows how the firm develops over the years. You can do the assessment yourself or with us in a first call.
Seven processes, seven goals
Every process pursues a goal. teamspace provides the answer.
The goals are the questions a professional services firm has to keep answering. Whichever matters most right now decides where you start.
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01 · Sales process
How do we win good, profitable new work steadily and for the long term?
The answer in teamspace
The sales process brings pipeline, opportunities, activities and ABC classification into one system. Every enquiry stays on the contact, and the forecast comes from the opportunities rather than from gut feeling.
How you see progress: Order intake and pipeline value in the management dashboard.
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02 · Project delivery process
How do we deliver projects reliably, on time and profitably?
The answer in teamspace
The project delivery process keeps plan, hours and margin together every day and flags deviations early, instead of only showing them at close.
How you see progress: Project margin and plan vs actual per project, every day.
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03 · Billing process
How do we turn work into revenue quickly and completely?
The answer in teamspace
The billing process connects time capture, billing rules and invoicing. Logged hours land on the invoice without anyone retyping them, and the revenue forecast shows what is still to come.
How you see progress: Actual revenue and revenue forecast.
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04 · Cost control process
How do we keep costs and liquidity under control at all times?
The answer in teamspace
The cost control process brings fixed costs, project costs, contribution margins and cash planning together. Every cost lands on the project the same day, and every receipt goes through an approval before it is paid.
How you see progress: Liquidity and contribution margin per project.
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05 · Customer care process
How do we look after clients quickly, competently and by value?
The answer in teamspace
The customer care process prioritises requests by client value rather than by volume. Tickets, SLA and communication sit in one view, and a looming SLA breach is flagged, not hidden.
How you see progress: Agreed response and resolution times are measured, not just agreed.
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06 · Workforce process
How do we steer capacity, skills and motivation well?
The answer in teamspace
The workforce process connects availability, skills, utilisation and pay, so the right people work on the right projects.
How you see progress: Utilisation and revenue per head.
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07 · Business steering
How do we lead the firm on current data?
The answer in teamspace
Business steering compresses the data of the six operational processes into eight metrics in one cockpit for the leadership, each with a leading question and its own threshold logic.
How you see progress: All eight metrics, each with its own traffic light.
Which goal matters most for you right now? Assess it yourself or together with us in a first call.
Start individually
Not everything at once: you improve a firm one process at a time.
Rebuilding an entire firm in one move rarely works. The process-oriented approach splits the complex task instead: each of the seven processes is examined and improved on its own. In sum the firm as a whole becomes more steerable and more economical, without anyone having to carry everything at once.
This happens step by step, not as a big bang. You start where the lever is largest, and the day-to-day business keeps running the whole time. So the rollout does not tie the firm up for three to six months. It stays one controllable step after another, and you close no doors for later.
And everyone knows where they stand. Each firm keeps its own profile that records, at a given date, how far each process is supported today and which level comes next. Through the automation levels you see the current state and the next possible step at any time. How closely we accompany that path is your call: sometimes intensively, sometimes more gently, depending on what else is on your plate.
Maturity profile
Example, level per process
2026: Baseline set
Every process has its level. Now you decide which goal comes first.
2027: Focus set
How do we turn work into revenue quickly and completely?
How do we deliver projects reliably, on time and profitably?
2028: Next step
How do we win good, profitable new work steadily and for the long term?
How do we keep costs and liquidity under control at all times?
2029: Further developed
How do we steer capacity, skills and motivation well?
How do we lead the firm on current data?
The path through the processes
Five steps that repeat every year.
Not a project with an end date, but a cycle: take stock, choose a goal, move up a level, record it, then on to the next process.
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Take stock
Maturity
Each of the seven processes gets its level on the maturity model, recorded in the profile.
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Choose a goal
Focus
You pick the process whose goal matters most today, usually where the lever is largest.
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Move up a level
Implement
The process moves up a level in small, controllable steps. Day-to-day business keeps running.
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Update the profile
Record
The new state goes into the profile, with a date. That way the development over the years becomes visible.
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Next process
Continue
The next process comes in. Data and configuration grow with you, nothing is ruled out.
Where you stand
In 30 minutes we see which of your seven processes comes first.
In a first call we go through your processes, place the most pressing one and name the biggest lever.
Maturity model
Automation levels: where does your firm stand today?
A maturity model describes in levels how far a process is defined, supported and automated. Not every firm can reach fully automated processes overnight. We rate each process on a six-step model that exposes a realistic development path.
Level 0: unplanned
Processes are not defined. Activities happen ad hoc. Success depends on individuals stepping up.
Level 1: manual
Tasks are done in a structured way, but without system support. Spreadsheets are the norm.
Level 2: structured
Processes are described and applied systematically. Data still lives in separate places.
Level 3: assisted
Software actively supports the process. First reports, dashboards and forecasts become possible.
Level 4: largely automated
Reports, reminders and handovers run mostly automatically. Processes are integrated with each other.
Level 5: fully automated
Processes run almost entirely on their own. Prioritisation, forecasts and escalations are system-supported in real time.
Maturity check
Four questions that reveal the real level of a process.
Many firms overestimate their maturity. 'We have a CRM' or 'we have reports' says nothing about real steerability. These four questions help you assess each process honestly.
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Completeness
Are all relevant items captured systematically, or only the ones somebody happened to remember?
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Currency
Is the data up to date and trustworthy at any moment, or does it reflect last month's reality?
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Integration
Are opportunities, activities, projects, hours and invoices linked, or do they live in separate tools?
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Automation
Does the system actively support with forecasts, reminders and prioritisation, or does everything need manual review?
Where you stand
Your firm's maturity profile
Every firm gets its own profile. It records, at a given date, how far each process is supported today and which level should be reached next. So you can see at any time where you stand and what is still possible.
Maturity profile Roadmap
As of: Q2 2026 · sample profile
Now Target
Process
L0L1L2L3L4L5
Step Sales
Project delivery
Billing
Cost control
Customer care
Workforce
Business steering
We accompany you long term, sometimes intensively, sometimes gently, depending on what else is on your plate.
Working long term
Keep the profile up to date, if that is what you want.
A profile is of little use if nobody ever updates it. There is already a suitable occasion for that: the audit workshop, four hours remote, once a year. It covers more than the processes, and taking stock is one of the elements you can choose to include. If you do, you assess the seven processes yourself and we put that assessment into context against what we see at comparable firms. What comes out is a single page: where each process stands, what the next step is, and what it takes.
The workshop is included in standard and premium support, once a year. With basic support you can book it as well, charged by time spent. Neither the workshop nor the stocktaking inside it is compulsory: if you simply want to use the software, that is entirely fine.
For many firms that is exactly what sets it apart from other systems. Modules can be compared and, eventually, copied. Software that tells you once a year where your business stands and what the next sensible step would be is something other than a feature list.
Acceptance was high from the start and has stayed high.
Ida Kaiser, Managing Director, B.B.S.M. mbH
One data model
Why the answers hold: every piece of information is created only once.
A question can only be answered reliably if the data behind it fits together. In teamspace every piece of information hangs on the same item: the quote becomes the project, the hour becomes the invoice, the ticket becomes billing.
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CRM
Quote accepted
The client accepts the quote. It becomes a project automatically.
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Project management
Project created
The project starts with budget and team. Every hour logged counts against the budget.
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Time tracking
Hours logged
Tracked hours land on the project and become the invoice basis. No CSV export in between.
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Invoicing software
Invoice written
The logged hours appear on the invoice, nobody retypes them. If needed, it goes out as ZUGFeRD or XRechnung.
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Ticket system
Request becomes a ticket
Whether it arrives through the customer portal, Outlook or a Teams call, the request lands as a ticket in the service desk.
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Ticket system
Effort on the ticket
Service tickets capture effort directly, no second time sheet needed.
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Invoicing software
Hour pool or invoice
The effort is drawn from the client's hour pool or billed.
How you measure the goals
Eight metrics out of seven processes.
Above the six operational processes sits a steering level. It compresses their data into eight metrics, each with a leading question and its own threshold logic. It is not the single number that decides, but how they play together.
Cockpit Forecast Status logic
May 2026 · Management
8 metrics
Order intake
312 k €
How is future revenue developing?
Pipeline value
540 k €
How much potential sits in sales?
Revenue (actual)
1,84 Mio
How is business doing right now?
Revenue forecast
2,05 Mio
Where is revenue heading?
Project margin
+12 %
Are we earning on our projects?
Utilisation
82 %
Are we using resources well?
Revenue per head
142 k €
How productive is the firm?
Liquidity
268 k €
Are we financially stable?
on track watch
from 7 processes Process map
The process map of a professional services firm: seven core processes on three levels.
A professional services firm earns its money by selling time and expertise. Seven processes map that value creation in full. Sales wins the engagements, project delivery delivers them, billing turns work into revenue, cost control protects the margin. Customer care and workforce management hold the people on both sides of the work. And business steering joins the six operational processes into one view for the leadership.
In process management this is drawn as a process map with three levels: management processes at the top, core processes in the middle, supporting processes at the bottom. Our map follows the same logic and calls the levels steering, value creation and people. We still count customer care and workforce management as core processes, because without them a services firm delivers nothing it could bill.
Seven processes thus cover the whole way from acquisition to liquidity and still stay manageable. Define twenty and you lose steerability; define three and you miss the key levers. What matters is less the number of tools than how they connect: only when every process draws its data from the same set does a collection of tools become a steering system.
Steering
07 Business steeringValue creation
Three overviews
Two more ways through teamspace
The same software, sorted differently: by function or by industry.
Functions and modules
The nine teamspace modules at a glance, from time tracking to quality management.
Learn moreSolutions for your industry
How teamspace fits consultancies, IT service providers, system houses, agencies and engineering offices.
Learn moreFrequently asked questions about process steering
Do we have to roll out all seven processes at once?
No. That is exactly the advantage of the iterative approach. You start with the process where the lever is highest, often billing or utilisation. Other processes follow step by step. Data and configuration grow with you, an extension is not a migration.
What goals do the seven core processes pursue?
Sales: win good, profitable new work steadily and for the long term. Project delivery: deliver projects reliably, on time and profitably. Billing: turn work into revenue quickly and completely. Cost control: keep costs and liquidity under control at all times. Customer care: look after clients quickly, competently and by value. Workforce process: steer capacity, skills and motivation well. Business steering: lead the firm on current data.
What is a maturity model?
A maturity model describes in levels how far a process is defined, supported and automated. The teamspace model has six automation levels, from level 0 (unplanned) to level 5 (fully automated), and is applied to each of the seven core processes separately. That shows which process needs the next step.
What is the maturity profile?
The profile records, at a given date, which level each of the seven processes has reached and which level comes next. Kept up to date, for example in the annual audit workshop, it shows how the firm develops over the years. You can create a first version yourself with the self-assessment.
What are the seven core processes of a professional services firm?
Four processes carry the financial value creation: sales, project delivery, billing and cost control. Two carry the people: customer care and workforce management. The seventh, business steering, compresses the data of the six operational processes into a management dashboard with eight KPIs. Together they cover the way from acquisition to liquidity.
What is a process map?
A process map shows all the key processes of a firm on one page and arranges them in levels: management processes, core processes and supporting processes. For a professional services firm, teamspace calls these levels steering, value creation and people. Value creation runs as a chain from client to cash: sales, project delivery, billing, cost control.
Why seven processes, not ten or twenty?
Seven processes cover the full value chain of a professional services firm from acquisition to liquidity while staying manageable. Defining 20 processes destroys steerability. Defining three misses the key levers. These seven processes each answer one management question and connect cleanly.
How do we assess maturity honestly without fooling ourselves?
Honest assessment comes from four questions per process, not from your tool list: are all relevant items captured, is the data current, are the areas integrated, does the system support actively? If most answers are 'rather no', the level is usually one step below what you guessed.
How does the model fit our ISO 9001 context?
Very well. The maturity model complements ISO 9001 by adding a quantitative development path to the process view. You can document the current level per process in audits, define a target state and demonstrate progress over time. That is more tangible than descriptions alone.
What does rolling out an integrated steering system cost?
Because rollout is iterative, there is no flat answer. In a 30-minute first call we discuss which process makes sense first for you and what the realistic effort looks like. Prices are annual, per active user per month, with half-yearly (+10%), quarterly (+15%) or monthly (+20%) terms available.
First call
Which goal is your first step?
In a 30-minute first call we score your seven processes against the maturity model and show where the largest potential sits.