Margin and capacity

The Mandate Margin Desk compares each mandate’s contract value with delivered and billed amounts. It also presents realization, projected margin and over-budget signals, with a drilldown to the mandate record. The mandate stores delivered cost, gross margin, budget hours, logged hours and remaining-to-bill calculations. Consultants carry capacity, bill and cost rates, logged hours, fees delivered and utilization percentage.

• Source record. The Mandate Margin Desk brings contract, delivered and billed amounts into one mandate drilldown. Client mandates holds cost, hours and margin calculations; Consultants holds logged hours, capacity and utilization.
• Named owner. Practice Lead uses the mandate drilldown to discuss budget pressure with Engagement Manager. Finance Manager checks milestone and payment records when billed and collected amounts differ.
• Visible outcome. Check the source status and linked evidence before the next person acts.

Agree which amount represents the contract value, how cost rates are maintained and who may see margin information. Compare a low-margin case with a healthy case during setup. Check the underlying delivery and expense records before acting on a signal, because the desk is an operational view of those records.

For example, a search remains Active while consultant hours approach the budget. The practice lead opens the margin desk and checks the mandate drilldown. Delivered hours and logged hours show different aspects of the work; approved and invoiced delivery amounts explain whether work has advanced toward billing. The lead can discuss scope and staffing with the manager while the mandate is still open. A high utilization percentage may call for a capacity conversation, but it is not an assignment calendar.

When the desk flags a search, open its mandate and inspect the delivery lines and expense totals behind the calculation. Compare budget hours with logged and delivered hours. Discuss consultant capacity from the consultant record, since one person may work across several mandates.

Use the consultant roster to discuss capacity separately from a single mandate. A person may record hours on several searches; the practice lead should inspect each linked mandate before changing staffing.

• Active Mandates — Compare open searches by fee value, budget and lead consultant.
• Completed Mandates — Review closed work separately while finance follows remaining fees.

See the related process and review the record model.