No More Flying Blind on Projects & Profit: Real KPIs for Real Decisions

You’ve got mountains of project data. Financial reports. Utilization rates. Backlog. Pipeline. But somehow, no one on your leadership team can answer: “Are we on track?”

A&E Firm KPI Dashboards: Transform Project Data into Actionable Ideas

The Problem: Data, Data Everywhere — But Not a Dashboard In Sight

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) shouldn’t be something you only see for the first time at a management meeting three weeks after the end of the month, and you shouldn’t have to sift through your email inbox, a dozen spreadsheets, and CRM export to find the answers either.

Yet for most AEC firms, getting insight is still manual, siloed, and slow. 

The Symptom: You're Making Gut-Calls, Not Data-Driven Decisions

• Your PMs aren’t reviewing earned value or WIP reports
• Your leadership team debates data instead of aligning on it
• You don’t have confidence in forecasts — so you delay hiring or reinvesting

The Real Business Cost of Flying Blind: Missed Signals & Reactive Decisions

• Flying blind leads to cost overruns that aren’t caught until the invoice goes out
• Staffing tensions erode trust and morale
• Stunted growth and burnout from underutilized cash or talent

The Solution: 3-Step Framework for Building Effective KPI Infrastructure:

Our KPI Development Approach: From Chaos to Clarity:

1. Defining Metrics That Matter: define what really drives business performance — beyond just financials.
2. Building KPI Infrastructure: From dashboards to scorecards, map the systems and processes to ensure KPIs are tracked and reported consistently.
3. Enabling Decision-Making Routines: Implement rhythms within your team to actually use the data—weekly huddles, monthly ops reviews, quarterly forecasts.

Implementing Dashboard Discipline in Your A&E Business

If You Use BQE CORE, Here's How to Unlock KPI Visibility  

BQE CORE has powerful built-in dashboards and custom report capabilities, so you can get deep visibility into every area of your team, exactly when you need it. Here’s how to make the most it:

• Leverage Custom Dashboards by Role: Tailor your dashboard views for Sales, Principals, PMs, and Finance so each role sees what matters most
• Automate KPI Reporting: Automate task reminders and establish management disciplines & incentives tied to KPI performance targets
• Use BQE CORE’s Budget vs. Actuals View: Get immediate insight into project and firm health without waiting for month-end close

Client Insights: One Firm's Idle Labor Turnaround

An architecture firm we advised was regularly overstaffing based on gut-feel workload. After implementing a KPI cadence using CORE’s dashboards, they aligned hiring with backlog and reduced idle labor by 12% in 6 months, driving an extra $100k of profit to the bottom line!

Choosing the Right KPIs for Architecture, Engineering & Consulting Firms

Actionable takeaways that transform your decision-making with real-time metrics:

• Define 5–7 core KPIs that align with your business model
  (e.g., WIP, backlog, utilization, gross margin, AR days)
• Assign owners to each KPI—who pulls it, who reviews it, and how often
• Build a weekly or biweekly review habit—start small, stay consistent

 Next Steps: Implementing Your KPI Dashboard Strategy

You can’t manage what you don’t measure. KPI discipline is the secret weapon of high-performing A&E and consulting firms. When your team has access to real metrics in real-time, better decisions follow.

Accelerate Your Team's Success with an Integrated ERP Solution
Our accounting and finance engineers can transform your organization with a unified business ecosystem. Imagine having real-time analytics and 360-degree visibility that empowers everything in your business - from operational efficiency to faster decision-making at every level. Learn more about our ERP Implementation & Optimization Services, and supercharge your business today.