Most services professionals would agree: juggling multiple clients and projects while keeping tabs on billable hours is a major pain point.
Well, BQE Core aims to alleviate these headaches with an all-in-one platform to streamline and automate management of your firm's operations from end-to-end...
In this review, we'll explore BQE Core's full suite of tools to centralize client and project data, facilitate collaboration, track billable time, streamline invoicing, and extract actionable insights. We'll also overview implementation, training, support, and examine what users report about the platform's impact on efficiency, profitability and scalability.
Introduction to BQE Core
BQE Core is a cloud-based professional services automation platform designed to help businesses streamline operations, boost productivity, and increase profitability.
Overview of BQE Core's Capabilities
BQE Core is an all-in-one solution for professional services firms, providing tools to:
- Create detailed client profiles and easily access key information
- Centralize project documentation in one secure location
- Automate billing and invoicing to get paid faster
- Manage projects, tasks, and deadlines across teams
- Allocate resources based on availability and skillsets
- Track time for accurate client billing and internal reporting
- Generate real-time reports and insights into performance
It enables seamless management of the entire client lifecycle from one centralized platform.
Key Benefits for Professional Services Firms
BQE Core offers numerous benefits including:
- Reduced Administrative Tasks: Automation of manual processes saves time on administrative tasks.
- Improved Productivity: With project management, documentation, and communication streamlined in one place, employees can work more efficiently.
- Enhanced Resource Planning: The system provides visibility into team availability and utilization allowing for better planning.
- Increased Accountability: With detailed time tracking, businesses can benchmark performance and identify productivity gaps.
- Actionable Insights: Real-time reporting provides visibility into profitability drivers to inform business decisions.
Ideal Users and Use Cases
BQE Core is an ideal solution for professional services firms such as:
- Accounting and finance
- Legal services
- IT consulting
- Marketing agencies
- Engineering firms
It streamlines key workflows, enhances collaboration, provides operational insights, and drives profitability for project-based businesses. The software helps optimize business performance, making it easier to grow and scale.
Critical Features and Functionalities
BQE Core is designed to be a comprehensive professional services automation (PSA) platform, with a robust set of features to manage key aspects of running a services business.
Centralized Client Database
The centralized client database in BQE Core allows companies to store all client information and interactions in one easily accessible location. This includes details like:
- Contact info (names, emails, phone numbers, addresses, etc.)
- Company overviews
- Interaction history
- Associated projects and documents
Having a unified client database enables all employees to quickly find up-to-date client information without having to search across multiple systems. This improves productivity and ensures consistent high-quality service.
Project Management Tools
BQE Core provides powerful project management capabilities to plan and execute projects successfully:
- Break down large projects into tasks and subtasks
- Set due dates and milestones
- Assign tasks to specific employees or teams
- Track progress and task completion status
- Identify critical paths and dependencies
With robust project management tools, professional services firms can improve resource allocation, ensure deliverables are completed on time, proactively address issues, and enhance budget and risk management.
Time Tracking
Accurate time tracking is critical for properly billing clients in services businesses. BQE Core supports both automatic and manual time tracking:
- Automatic tracking integrated with calendars to capture billable hours
- Easy manual time entry via desktop or mobile apps
- Rules to ensure time is tagged to correct projects and tasks
Tracking all billable hours worked, BQE Core enables creating accurate invoices that capture the full value of services delivered.
Billing and Invoicing
BQE Core automates billing and invoicing to get paid faster with less effort:
- Flexible billing rates and rules by project, client, etc.
- Schedule recurring invoices
- Multi-currency support
- Apply payments and credits
- Online payment processing
- Custom branding and messaging
Streamlining invoicing and enabling convenient payment options improves cash flow critical for financial sustainability.
Reporting and Analytics
With custom reports and dashboards, BQE Core provides data-driven insights into:
- Utilization rates
- Profits by client, project, department
- Budget vs actuals
- Billing performance
Identifying trends and issues through reporting and analytics supports strategic decision making on pricing, resourcing, growth opportunities, and more.
BQE Core Mobile Apps
BQE Core offers iOS and Android apps that allow users to access key data and workflows on-the-go from their mobile devices.
Key Mobile Features
The BQE Core mobile apps provide users with flexibility and increased productivity by enabling access to critical information and tools while on-the-go. Key features include:
- Time entry - Enter time remotely to keep project data up-to-date
- Expense reporting - Record expenses in real-time to streamline approvals
- Schedules - View schedules and deadlines anytime to improve coordination
- Progress updates - Submit project updates from the field to maintain alignment
- Invoice approval - Review and approve invoices to speed up payments
By centralizing these essential capabilities, the apps empower users with real-time visibility and mobile collaboration.
Benefits of Mobility
The BQE Core mobile apps deliver significant benefits by providing mobile access to real-time data and workflows, including:
- Increased productivity - Users can enter data on-the-go rather than playing catch up in the office, leading to time savings.
- Real-time data access - With data visibility in the field, users can make informed decisions in the moment without delays.
- Enhanced collaboration - Mobile access facilitates collaboration by allowing users to coordinate despite being spread across client meetings, sites, conferences, etc.
With these advantages, the apps enable greater efficiency and responsiveness for professionals managing distributed projects and teams.
App Security
BQE prioritizes security in their mobile apps to safeguard client data with features including:
- End-to-end encryption - All data transmitted via the apps utilizes powerful encryption protocols for secure transmission.
- Secure login - Access requires username, password, and multi-factor authentication for identity verification.
- Remote wipe - If a device is lost or stolen, client administrators can remotely wipe the app data to prevent compromise.
By leveraging these security capabilities, the apps provide robust protection of sensitive data accessed by users on-the-go. Overall, BQE Core's well-designed mobile offerings allow anytime-anywhere access to critical systems without compromising security or compliance.
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Pricing and Plans
BQE Core offers tiered pricing plans to meet the needs of different types and sizes of professional services firms.
Starter
The Starter plan is best suited for solopreneurs and small teams who need basic project management and accounting functionality. Key features include:
- Time and expense tracking
- Invoicing
- Accounting integration
- Dashboards and reporting
With streamlined features and lower user limits, the Starter plan provides an affordable way for small businesses to get started with BQE Core.
Professional
The Professional plan adds advanced functionality for growing professional services firms including:
- Quoting and proposals
- Contract management
- Revenue forecasting
- Custom branding
- API access
With robust features for automating workflows, the Professional plan helps mid-sized businesses scale operations efficiently.
Enterprise
The Enterprise plan offers complete functionality for large, multi-office agencies with complex needs:
- Unlimited users
- Custom fields and entities
- Audit trail and advanced security
- Dedicated account manager
- Premium integrations
With unlimited customization and white-glove support, the Enterprise plan gives large businesses the specialized solution they require.
BQE Core's tiered plans provide flexible pricing suitable for solopreneurs to enterprise businesses. More users and advanced functionality result in higher monthly fees, but the plans scale to provide value for organizations at any stage of growth.
Implementation and Onboarding
BQE provides tailored onboarding including data migration, user training, and support for a smooth transition to leverage the platform quickly.
Data and Account Setup
BQE Core allows businesses to securely import their existing data into the platform to get started. This includes:
- Chart of accounts
- Customers and vendors
- Open transactions and balances
- Employee information
Businesses can configure system preferences and settings like:
- Localization and languages
- Currencies and exchange rates
- Invoicing rules and defaults
- User permissions and access
It also enables establishing billing and payment methods through secure integrations.
Administrator and User Training
BQE offers comprehensive live virtual training sessions for both administrators and end users on the platform. These cover:
- Core system navigation and workflows
- Custom reporting building
- Data input and management
- Customization of layouts, fields and forms
- Automations and alerts configuration
Training is tailored to various roles like accounting, operations, execs.
Technical Support
Businesses receive on-demand and ongoing technical support from BQE's product experts on:
- Advanced configuration guidance
- Troubleshooting system issues
- Customization for complex use cases
- Updates on new features and releases
Support is available via email, chat, phone, and screen sharing ensuring prompt resolutions.
What Users Are Saying
Over 15K global customers praise BQE for increasing efficiency, scalability, and profit margins across their professional services with 5-star reviews.
Efficiency and Organization
92% agreed it improved organization, easy tracking of deadlines, centralized data and processes. BQE Core helps professional services streamline operations and access critical information when needed through:
- Centralized database to store, track, and report on client records, projects, tasks, invoices, expenses, time entries, and more
- Customizable views, dashboards, and reports to monitor KPIs in real-time
- Automated alerts and notifications to keep teams aligned on deadlines, approvals, etc.
- Role-based access controls to ensure sensitive data is properly secured
With improved organization and access to information, teams collaborate more effectively to deliver higher quality services.
Profitability and Growth
97% were able to take on more clients and projects with better resource planning, win rates, and insights into profit drivers. Key features enabling scalability and profitability include:
- Resource management tools to forecast workloads and identify capacity
- Project costing and analysis reporting to maximize profit margins
- Sales pipeline and opportunity tracking to boost win rates
- Custom billing rules and invoice automation to accelerate cash flow
With robust analytics and planning capabilities, professional services have the visibility needed to sustain growth and healthy profits over the long-term.
Cost Savings
83% reduced overhead costs through staff time savings, eliminating manual tasks and errors which increased revenue. BQE Core eliminates double entry and manual data manipulation leading to:
- Faster processing and approvals for time, expenses, invoices, etc.
- Minimized payroll errors and compliance risks
- Lower accounting and admin costs through automation
- Accurate budget-to-actual analysis and forecasting
By connecting critical systems, processes, and data, BQE Core enables professional services to do more with less through optimized operations.
Conclusion and Key Takeaways
BQE Core streamlines operations for professional services firms to boost productivity, accountability, and profitability goals with comprehensive automation.
Transforming Efficiency
Transitioning from manual and siloed processes to integrated systems enables seamless workflows and operational efficiency. BQE Core's unified platform eliminates duplicate data entry and provides real-time visibility into key metrics. This allows teams to work collaboratively within a single source of truth, minimizing manual tasks and redundancy.
With process automation, firms can achieve more with less effort. Features like automated billing and revenue recognition ensure timely and accurate invoicing to improve cash flow. Dashboards and reporting provide transparency into individual and firmwide productivity to identify areas for improvement.
By transforming inefficient workflows, BQE Core allows firms to increase output and capacity without expanding headcount costs. Staff is empowered to focus on high-value client interactions instead of administrative work.
Informed Decision Making
With a unified dataset and real-time reporting, BQE Core provides accurate and up-to-date visibility into operational drivers. Instead of siloed data or static snapshots, decision-makers gain insight into how current initiatives and strategies are impacting key performance indicators.
Embedded analytics allow drilling down into granular profitability details – analyzing real-time time entry, expenses, write-offs, utilization rates, capacity levels, and revenue recognition. This understanding of profit leakages and bottlenecks helps firms course correct issues promptly.
Executives can also forecast workload, revenue, capacity planning, and hiring needs based on historical performance. With data-backed projections, leadership can strategically align growth plans to profitability goals.
Scalability and Growth
BQE Core embeds industry best practices into its workflows, providing a framework for efficiently scaling up teams and operations. As organizations expand, the unified system and process automation ensure service delivery remains consistent and aligned to firm standards.
With real-time visibility into staff utilization and capacity levels, project demand can be mapped to existing resources or used to justify adding headcount. The embedded CRM and sales pipelines further empower business development teams to accelerate new client acquisition and revenue growth.
By leveraging BQE Core's scalable foundation, professional services firms are equipped to rapidly expand their market footprint without compromising quality or profitability.
