Discover our AI Advisor for instant ERP guidance - try it now Discover our AI Advisor
de
Book Meeting
professional-services-1 banner overlay image

ERP Success Factors for the
Professional Services Industry

professional-services-1

Discover how professional services firms in the DACH region can optimise project delivery, compliance and financial transparency. Dreher Consulting helps transform operational challenges into measurable results.

Identify Your ERP Success Factors
"When running a services based business, nothing is of greater importance than excellence in customer satisfaction." - Dr. Harald Dreher.
State of the industry

What should service companies consider when choosing an ERP solution?

Professional service companies know that efficiency is the key to success in their industry and they want to ensure that their company's finances stay on track.

ERP systems help with this - a comprehensive package designed specifically for service companies such as hospitals and educational institutions that includes features not available anywhere else, such as real-time planning tools. This allows you to focus on service delivery instead of managing it manually!

Analyse Your Growth Pain Points
  professional-services
Why digitalisation is not software. It is the future of your company. image

Why digitalisation is not software. It is the future of your company.
Why independent advice makes the difference and why we deliberately reject up to 30% of inquiries image

Why independent advice makes the difference and why we deliberately reject up to 30% of inquiries
Why the first-principle approach saves ERP and digitalisation projects

Independent consulting: Why the first-principle approach saves ERP and digitalisation projects

ERP Challenges in Professional Services

How tailored ERP systems resolve data, project and client management issues for service-driven businesses.

Your Challenges
  • Inconsistent or inefficient handovers between sales and service teams
  • Delays in accessing project and client data
  • Difficulty in tracking progress from lead to final payment
Dreher Solutions
Process Mapping ERP Implementation: Centralises data, providing clear visibility from the sales funnel through to checkout, facilitating tracking and improving process efficiency
ERP Implementation (1) ERP Project Management: Manages and standardises transitions, ensuring smooth handoffs from sales to service for a seamless client experience
It Strategy Consulting IT strategy Consulting: Develops an integrated data strategy, enabling real-time access to project and client information across teams
Key Issues
  • Limited access to real-time project updates
  • Inconsistent user experience across portal features
  • Challenges with secure document sharing and communication
Dreher Solutions
robot-automation ERP Implementation: Centralises project data, enabling customers to access real-time updates directly through the portal
Process Optimisation Process Optimisation & Management: Refines portal workflows to ensure a effortless and consistent experience across all features, improving client satisfaction
ERP Implementation (1) IT Strategy Consulting: Establishes secure, user-friendly strategies for document sharing and communication, enhancing trust and usability within the portal
Key Issues
  • Challenges in synchronising data from external vendors
  • Difficulty in tracking and reconciling travel expenses
Dreher Solutions
ERP project management Process Optimisation & Management: Streamlines integration workflows, ensuring seamless data synchronisation between internal systems and external resources
Process Optimisation ERP Implementation: Centralises expense data, enabling consistent tracking, reconciliation, and reporting of travel expenses within a unified platform
cta
banner overlay image

Why Industry
Context Matters

The professional services sector in the DACH region relies on efficiency, transparency and seamless collaboration to stay competitive. ERP systems must not only manage client and project data but also ensure smooth handovers between teams, real-time visibility across the project lifecycle and accurate financial reporting. Dreher Consulting ensures your ERP is not just deployed — but fully aligned with your service workflows, client expectations and growth goals.

  • End-to-end visibility — from lead management to project delivery and invoicing.
  • Seamless team collaboration — bridging sales, service and finance to improve client experience.
  • Accurate financial control — ensuring real-time tracking of project profitability and resource utilization.
Curious which KPIs matter most for your role? Try our Pain Point Analyser
Pain Point Analyser

Key KPIs and Challenges in Professional Services

Professional services firms in the DACH region face growing demands for efficiency, transparency and compliance. From managing complex client engagements to ensuring real-time visibility of project performance, success depends on more than just software. At Dreher Consulting, we help service organisations focus on the KPIs that matter most, transforming operational challenges into measurable outcomes.

Feature / Need

Key KPIs (measurable targets)

Typical Challenges (pain points)

Compliance & Regulation
Key KPIs (measurable targets)

100% compliance with regional tax, audit and data protection requirements

Typical Challenges (pain points)

Managing GDPR, financial reporting standards and audit readiness across multiple jurisdictions

100% compliance with regional tax, audit and data protection requirements

Managing GDPR, financial reporting standards and audit readiness across multiple jurisdictions

Process Fit
Key KPIs (measurable targets)

20% faster project delivery through integrated workflows

Typical Challenges (pain points)

Aligning sales, project management and service delivery without duplication of effort

20% faster project delivery through integrated workflows

Aligning sales, project management and service delivery without duplication of effort

Scalability
Key KPIs (measurable targets)

30% increase in billable utilisation rates without raising overhead

Typical Challenges (pain points)

Balancing resource allocation and profitability while scaling operations

30% increase in billable utilisation rates without raising overhead

Balancing resource allocation and profitability while scaling operations

Localisation
Key KPIs (measurable targets)

Full localisation for DACH-specific invoicing, tax and language requirements

Typical Challenges (pain points)

Adapting ERP to multi-country client needs without fragmenting data or processes

Full localisation for DACH-specific invoicing, tax and language requirements

Adapting ERP to multi-country client needs without fragmenting data or processes

Curious which KPIs matter most to your business?
Pain Point Analyser

The customer experience is at the very heart of the service industry

When running a service business, there is nothing of greater importance than sheer excellence in customer satisfaction.

To ensure that your customers are happy and satisfied from start to finish, you need an effective system to manage all customer-related data.

This includes resources used by employees as well as any feedback or complaints so that managers can take the right action if something goes wrong later on. An ERP system provides exactly these functions because it is able to provide a central repository that facilitates tracking. This saves precious time and gives you round-the-clock access to important data without having to employ additional staff.

 

Schedule Consultation

services-erp-industry-1
What we do

We develop solutions that shape the future of companies, increasing competitiveness & unleashing potential.

Integral first step:

Process optimisation should be considered before ERP implementation as it ensures the system operates on streamlined, efficient workflows. Without it, ERP systems risk magnifying inefficiencies instead of resolving them. Process optimisation

  • Prevents automating flawed processes
  • Identifies key inefficiencies to address early
  • Aligns system configuration with optimised workflows
  • Maximises ERP’s potential for improved performance
  • Sets the foundation for long-term operational success

Learn More

Future Focused:

Building regulatory compliance capabilities within ERP, especially for sustainability and CSDR, ensures the system is equipped to handle evolving regulations. Early integration minimizes future disruptions and enhances long-term sustainability efforts. The integration of regulatory compliance

  • Embeds compliance tracking into system functions
  • Ensures CSDR capabilities are built-in early
  • Supports automated compliance reporting
  • Reduces future costly system modifications
  • Strengthens sustainability and regulatory alignment from the start

Learn More

A Crucial Foundation:

The selection of an ERP system is fundamental to long-term success. The right system ensures operational efficiency, compliance, and scalability, reduces future costs, and enables sustainable growth. A structured and professional selection process:

  • Aligns system functions with business objectives
  • Reduces future costs for unplanned system changes
  • Supports scalability and future business expansion
  • Ensures the system's adaptability to evolving industry requirements
  • Supports scalability and growth by adapting 
  • Secures stakeholder buy-in

Learn More

Crucial Transformation:

ERP implementation is crucial for transforming business operations by integrating key processes into a unified system. It enhances efficiency, streamlines workflows, and provides real-time data insights, driving overall business success. The implementation of an ERP-system

  • Unifies business functions into a single platform
  • Enhances decision-making with accurate, real-time data
  • Streamlines processes, reducing manual tasks and errors
  • Increases efficiency by automating repetitive operations
  • Supports scalability and growth by adapting to evolving business needs

 

Learn More

Future Foundation:

The AI and Automation module focuses on leveraging technology to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance decision-making. Built on a foundation of standardised processes and clear data, this module helps businesses harness the full potential of AI and automation for sustainable growth. The integration of AI-technologies.

  • Automates repetitive tasks, increasing efficiency
  • Enhances decision-making with data-driven insights
  • Improves productivity by streamlining workflows
  • Scales easily to adapt to growing business needs
  • Personalises customer experiences

Learn More

stack layer one stack layer one Process Optimisation
stack layer two stack layer two Compliance
stack layer three stack layer three ERP Selection
stack layer four stack layer four ERP Implementation
stack layer five stack layer five Automation & AI

Process Optimisation

Integral first step:

Process optimisation should be considered before ERP implementation as it ensures the system operates on streamlined, efficient workflows. Without it, ERP systems risk magnifying inefficiencies instead of resolving them. Process optimisation

  • Prevents automating flawed processes
  • Identifies key inefficiencies to address early
  • Aligns system configuration with optimised workflows
  • Maximises ERP’s potential for improved performance
  • Sets the foundation for long-term operational success

Learn More

Compliance

Future Focused:

Building regulatory compliance capabilities within ERP, especially for sustainability and CSDR, ensures the system is equipped to handle evolving regulations. Early integration minimizes future disruptions and enhances long-term sustainability efforts. The integration of regulatory compliance

  • Embeds compliance tracking into system functions
  • Ensures CSDR capabilities are built-in early
  • Supports automated compliance reporting
  • Reduces future costly system modifications
  • Strengthens sustainability and regulatory alignment from the start

Learn More

ERP Selection

A Crucial Foundation:

The selection of an ERP system is fundamental to long-term success. The right system ensures operational efficiency, compliance, and scalability, reduces future costs, and enables sustainable growth. A structured and professional selection process:

  • Aligns system functions with business objectives
  • Reduces future costs for unplanned system changes
  • Supports scalability and future business expansion
  • Ensures the system's adaptability to evolving industry requirements
  • Supports scalability and growth by adapting 
  • Secures stakeholder buy-in

Learn More

ERP Implementation

Crucial Transformation:

ERP implementation is crucial for transforming business operations by integrating key processes into a unified system. It enhances efficiency, streamlines workflows, and provides real-time data insights, driving overall business success. The implementation of an ERP-system

  • Unifies business functions into a single platform
  • Enhances decision-making with accurate, real-time data
  • Streamlines processes, reducing manual tasks and errors
  • Increases efficiency by automating repetitive operations
  • Supports scalability and growth by adapting to evolving business needs

 

Learn More

Automation & AI

Future Foundation:

The AI and Automation module focuses on leveraging technology to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance decision-making. Built on a foundation of standardised processes and clear data, this module helps businesses harness the full potential of AI and automation for sustainable growth. The integration of AI-technologies.

  • Automates repetitive tasks, increasing efficiency
  • Enhances decision-making with data-driven insights
  • Improves productivity by streamlining workflows
  • Scales easily to adapt to growing business needs
  • Personalises customer experiences

Learn More

Get in Touch

+49 7031 714 879 0