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.
The full workflow, from trigger to completion.
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.
Automation queries API to retrieve all logged time for the month, grouped by client and staff member, with rates and project codes.
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.
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.
Automation creates a new invoice with client details, line items, amounts, and retainer reference. The invoice is saved as a draft pending final review.
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.
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.
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