Press enter or space to select a node.You can then use the arrow keys to move the node around. Press delete to remove it and escape to cancel.
Press enter or space to select an edge. You can then press delete to remove it or escape to cancel.
About This Automation
Time-to-invoice and retainer billing at advisory firms requires collecting timesheets, consolidating entries, calculating billable hours, and tracking retainer balances across multiple spreadsheets and email threads.
Automation pulls time entries directly from timekeeping systems, calculates billable amounts by client and staff level, looks up retainer balances in accounting software, and generates invoices with a single approval step.
Key features:
Pull time entries automatically from timekeeping systems and validate against project and staff assignments
Calculate billable hours by client, apply correct rates by staff level, and adjust for non-billable time in one step
Look up retainer balances and prior invoices to determine whether to bill against retainer or invoice for overage
Generate draft invoices in accounting software with all line items, amounts, and retainer references pre-filled
Send invoices to clients and log retainer drawdown in a single automated transaction
Flag edge cases such as missing rates, exhausted retainers, and misclassified projects for human review
The issues teams report most often with this process
#
Friction point
Companies Report This
1
Manual data re-entry across systems
Finance staff manually copy timesheet data into spreadsheets, then re-key it into accounting software, introducing transcription errors and duplicates.
80%
2
Retainer balance discrepancies
Retainer tracking spreadsheets are updated late or skipped, causing mismatches between invoiced amounts and recorded balances that trigger client disputes.
67%
3
Rate and project assignment errors
Staff level changes and project reassignments are not reflected in timesheets, causing incorrect billable rates to be applied.
53%
4
Delayed invoice delivery
Manual review and correction cycles delay invoice delivery by 7-10 days, pushing cash collection into the next month.
40%
5
Inconsistent retainer billing decisions
Finance staff make ad-hoc decisions about whether to bill against retainer or invoice for overage, creating inconsistent client treatment.
26%
DisclaimerAll data is based on anonymized FullSpec mapping sessions and proprietary industry research. Learn more
Automation readiness
How well-suited this process is for automation
Process Pain Score™Manual consolidation, rate lookups, and retainer tracking create errors and.
8.9/ 10
AI Fit Rating™Time entries, rates, and retainer balances are structured data; rules-based.
9.1/ 10
Automation Lift Index™Automation eliminates 90% of manual data entry, improves retainer accuracy to.
8.8/ 10
Hidden Overhead™Context switching between email, spreadsheets, and accounting software.
7.3/ 10
How The Automation Works
The full workflow, from trigger to completion.
Press enter or space to select a node.You can then use the arrow keys to move the node around. Press delete to remove it and escape to cancel.
Press enter or space to select an edge. You can then press delete to remove it or escape to cancel.
1. Month-End Triggertrigger
Automation fires on the last business day of the month or when a retainer balance falls below a configured threshold. The trigger pulls all time entries for the billing period.
2. Fetch Time Entries
Automation queries API to retrieve all logged time for the month, grouped by client and staff member, with rates and project codes.
3. Calculate Billable Hours and Amounts
Automation sums hours per client, applies the correct rate based on staff level and project type, and flags non-billable time. Output is a structured billing summary.
4. Lookup Retainer Balance
Automation queries for the client's prior invoices and retainer agreement details, calculates the remaining balance, and determines whether the new invoice should draw from retainer or be billed as overage.
5. Create Invoice
Automation creates a new invoice with client details, line items, amounts, and retainer reference. The invoice is saved as a draft pending final review.
6. Send Invoice
Automation exports the invoice as a PDF and sends it to the client contact email address with a standard cover message. A copy is logged for the client record.
7. Update Retainer Tracking
Automation updates a Google Sheet with the invoice amount, new retainer balance, and drawdown date. The sheet becomes the single source of truth for retainer status.
Everything you need to know before mapping this process.
The automation flags missing entries and incomplete projects for the finance team to review and correct before invoices are generated. This prevents incomplete invoices and ensures all billable work is captured.
Harvest
Xero
Gmail
HubSpot
Google Sheets