Services Selling: Two Opposing Studies and Recommendations
by Joe Longo, VP, PSVillage

I was fortunate to attend the DC and Boston Executive Breakfasts back-to-back this month. Matt Dixon, author of the Challenger Sale was guest speaker in DC. Mike Schultz,  author of Rainmaking Conversations was guest speaker at Boston. Both speakers were wonderful - informative,engaging, entertaining. Additionally, both authors are passionate about the topic, highly articulate, eloqu ...Read More

4 Leadership Skills That Define 'Servant Leadership'
by John D. Vancil, Director of Professional Services, Open Systems Technologies

Good leaders spend time thinking about being good leaders… and how to be great leaders. They think about what it means to be a leader, and especially in our world of professional services they ask themselves; how do I provide effective leadership to a group of highly motivated, self-directed, super-smart people? How do I infuse the idea of accountability and ownership throughout the org ...Read More

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PSVillage Professional Services Industry Benchmark

The PSVillage Professional Services Industry Benchmark results enable professional services organizations (PSOs) to measure their performance against their peers and identify areas for improvement in their human capital, finance and operations management.

Instead of wading through hundreds of pages to find the key nuggets of data, you can readily view the actual responses—aggregated into tables and chartsfrom over 135 services leaders who completed the survey from June 2011 to the present.  Throughout the year, newly completed surveys will be dynamically added to the tables so you always have real-time access to the most current data.

The PSVillage PS Industry Benchmark results will enable you to:

  • More effectively manage your organization's human capital:  View key metrics (e.g., salaries, bonuses, billable rates, target utilization) for 19 different PS roles in management, sales support, operations, and delivery.
     
  • Improve your financial operations and success measurements:  Compare your gross margin target, operating income margin, expense targets, and other key data to your peers.
     
  • Measure your performance against the most comparable organizations:  Filter the results based on geography, company size, professional services organization size, and software delivery model. 
     
  • Be confident in the results:  Surveys are exclusively submitted by executives with P&L responsibility.

For more information, view the slideshow or download the Professional Services Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and other metrics used in this study.

We welcome services managers with P&L responsibility in software companies or services firms to login and complete the benchmark survey.  To obtain a login ID, register as a Guest or Premium Member.  After you login, you can access the survey by selecting My Profile and then select PS Benchmark Survey (in the upper right of the page). Premium Members with P&L responsibility who complete the survey will receive 1-year complimentary access to the results.

Use the secure online form to purchase either 30-day or 1-year access to the survey results.

Participants who have purchased access to the survey results may log in to access the results and view over 150 tables and charts.
 

Questions? Please contact us.

                                                    
                                 A Special Thanks to Our Benchmark Sponsors:

                    Tenrox PS Benchmark Sponsorship logo      Compuware PS Benchmark Sponsorship logo

 

                            Netsuite OpenAir PS Benchmark Sponsorship logo             

 

 

Expand Your Knowledge... Leapfrog Your Peers

The PSVillage Professional Services Library, the first-ever resource of its kind, provides professional services managers with a rich repository of practical tools, methods, and resources to help build, run, and optimize a professional services business.  All documents have been submitted by PSVillage members—many with over 20 years of professional services management experience. 

If you're looking to fine-tune your PS operations, you'll find tools such as a gross margin calculator, a skills matrix, and travel policies.  If you're setting up a new PS business, you'll find sample contracts (e.g., master services agreement, statement of work, and partnership agreement).  To better manage engagements, you can download excel spreadsheets for risk assessments, project financials, or project reviews. You can also view presentations on topics such as best practices in the cloud, and essential traits of effective consultants. To find specific templates, models, guidelines, presentations, and more that will help you manage your PS business, view the full list of library items.

Using the Library

  • Both Guests and Premium Members can view abstracts of all library items.
  • Premium Members can view and download library documents.
  • Your book bag enables you to easily store library items that can be retrieved later.
  • Visit our FAQ and learn how you can contribute items to the library in exchange for complimentary Premium Membership.

Search Library

Join our Global Community of 2,000 Professional Services Leaders

At PSVillage, our mission is to provide a supportive and resource-rich environment for Professional Services and Consulting Leaders globally.  Whether you lead a Professional Services Organization (PSO) in a software or hardware company, manage a team of IT Professional Services practitioners in a consulting firm, or are ramping up a services group in a startup, the PSVillage community is here to help you succeed! 
 
There are two ways in which you can participate in the community:
 
Guest Account– gives you limited access to the PSVillage site at no charge, including the Job Board, Newsletter and more; however it does not allow access or participation in the Forums, access to the PSVillage Professional Services Industry Benchmark or the PS Library, or interaction with other members on the site.

Premium Membership– As a member, you'll be part of the inner circle with full access to the entire repository of premium content on the site, including the Forums, PS Library, Newsletter, Job Board, access to discussion notes from our Executive Breakfast Series, and the ability to search and contact other members through the site. You’ll also receive discounts on programs, such as the PS Industry Benchmark, and priority registration for PSVillage events (as available).

Limited Time Offer: Upload an accepted artifact to the PS Library and receive a year of free Premium Membership.  Contact PSVillage for details.

Learn More/Join

Forums

Is there any tool out there that provides resource management that also ties in with Oracle?  - Sally  Read More
 
Are there best practices around integrating PS teams from acquired software companies? - Dave  Read More

 

Recent Job Postings

VP Customer Success, Conenza - Seattle, Washington Read More

PMO Manager, CFI - Southfield, MI Chicago, Il Read More

Sr. Consultant, EcoSys - Multiple Locations, US. Read More

Poll of the Month

What is the single most important skill any Professional Services member needs to succeed?

Services Academy

Services Selling into Existing Clients. Part 1 of 3: Challenges & Opportunities

Services Selling into Existing Clients. Part 2 of 3: Reversing the Bow Tie

Services Selling into Existing Clients. Part 3 of 3: Strategies for Success