Professional Service Firms
Modern financial challenges require more than traditional accounting.
We help law firms, architecture firms, and accounting firms tighten their financial operations, bill faster, and make smarter decisions - by replacing guesswork with clarity and chaos with control.
How we help
We support professional service firms by optimizing project profitability tracking, enhancing client billing accuracy, and facilitate strategic growth planning - even in complex multi-partner environments or highly regulated industries. From implementing time-tracking integration to providing fractional CFO guidance, Ascend enables firms to maximize realization rates, improve cash flow predictability, and align financial reporting with operational performance.
Our clients consistently achieve clearer project margins, streamlined month-end processes, and enhanced partnership decision-making across all practice areas.
"It was exactly the level of expertise we required without the permanent commitment."
Case Study: Law Firm Client
The Challenge:
A mid-sized law firm was struggling with revenue leakage and inconsistent cash flow due to slow invoicing cycles, unbilled hours, and disjointed time-tracking across practice areas. Attorneys were using manual logs or separate tools, while the back office lacked real-time visibility into billable hours and client retainers. Month-end close was frequently delayed, and forecasting was reactive rather than strategic.
The Solution:
Ascend implemented a centralized time and billing system fully integrated with the firm’s accounting platform. The team created practice-specific reporting dashboards, automated retainer tracking, and established a disciplined monthly close process. Partner-level financial reviews were introduced alongside rolling forecasts. As a result, the firm accelerated its billing cycle by 40%, reduced unbilled hours by 35%, and gained the clarity needed to evaluate partner productivity and optimize service pricing.
“We needed someone who understood both the business side and the complexities of law firm finances. Ascend's fractional CFO helped us restructure our partnership distributions, and prepare for our office expansion… [It] was exactly the level of expertise we required without the permanent commitment.”
