The ultimate consultancy dashboard: 8 KPIs you can't afford to ignore

Running a consultancy successfully shouldn’t rely on guesswork, it should be led by data. Complete this year’s Consultancy Benchpress NOW and use the report to challenge your business assumptions and targets.

Focusing on key performance indicators (KPIs) and benchmarking against industry standards is the key to sustainable growth – as the saying goes – what gets measured gets done.

One of my most successful SME clients doubled the size of his financial services business year on year for 3 years in a row before selling to Capital One for £69m. One of the distinguishing characteristics of this business was that he ran his firm by being absolutely laser focused on just six KPIs.

Having gained insight into hundreds of consultancies, one thing I’ve learnt, is it is not about measuring every single metric, it’s about focusing on the ones that really matter.

These are the 8 KPIs I would choose to build the ultimate consultancy dashboard:

1. Net Promoter Score (NPS)

Since 41% of new consulting business comes from referrals, tracking NPS helps measure client satisfaction and predict growth. Benchmarking your NPS against industry leaders provides insights into where you stand and what improvements are needed.

2. Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS)

A leading indicator of staff engagement and staff turnover. High-performing consultancies benchmark their eNPS to ensure they are attracting and retaining top talent.

3. Utilisation rate

Measure how much time consultants spend on client work. Regularly comparing this to industry benchmarks helps optimise resource allocation and future planning. What’s more, our Consultancy BenchPress research has shown that for the average consultancy with at least 20 consultants, just a 1% increase in utilisation rate results in a 20% increase in operating profit.

4. Equity partner billable time

On average, equity partners are billable 47% of the time, a key barrier to scaling. If you want your business to be less reliant on you, this number should be lower, allowing your team more responsibility for the day-to-day, while you can focus more on strategy and innovation. Benchmarking against other consultancies will highlight whether you’re too involved in client delivery, limiting business growth.

5. Revenue performance

The fastest growing consultancies track actual revenue against projections monthly. Comparing revenue growth rates to industry benchmarks helps understand if the growth is market driven or you are stealing market share.

6. Gross margin & profitability

In order to reach 50% gross margin or more, you should monitor profitability by service, sector, client, project and individual. Benchmarking your gross margin against your peers will help you determine if you have work to do to make your pricing strategy more profitable and your cost structure more competitive.

7. Cash-to-overhead ratio

Indicates financial stability by measuring how many months of operating costs your cash reserves cover. Industry benchmarks will provide a guide as the level of reserves your peers are holding and provide input into how you build long-term commercial sustainability.

8. Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs)

Measure MQLs to track future revenue potential and ensure your accountability for your marketing team. Benchmarking against leading consultancies provides insights can help align your expectations when it comes to marketing effectiveness and lead generation targets.

Benchmark your consultancy

Consultancy BenchPress is the UK&I’s largest benchmarking survey for boutique consultancies, with 1,000+ firms participating over the last 5 years. This year’s survey contains benchmarks for several of these KPIs, including utilisation, revenue performance, margins and overheads, as well as AI adoption and leadership.

By completing the survey you will get exclusive access to the full 50+ page 2025 report, allowing you to benchmark your KPIs against your top-performing peers… No more guesswork!

Complete the survey

Plus, by completing, you will be entered into a prize draw for an iPad, £500 John Lewis voucher or £500 charity donation!