Vertical SaaS For Professional
Services Is Driving Material Benefits
How Professional Services Firms Can Overcome Key
Business Challenges With A Purpose-Built Solution
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FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS

2Overview
Overview

Unique Industry Needs Require
Out-Of-The-Box Vertical Solutions

Current State
Challenges
Benefits
Future StateThe generic, one-size-fits-all approach of traditional horizontal
software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions fails to meet the unique,complex needs of professional services (PS) organizations.
To meet these requirements, vertical SaaS for PS solutions
are emerging to deliver industry-specific tools. A vertical,
professional services SaaS solution is a cloud solution thathas been purpose-built by domain experts with configurable
out-of-the-box capabilities that are specifically designed toaddress the unique needs of services organizations. Thesesolutions provide access to capabilities and vendor support/
expertise that are aligned with industry standards and improvedata management and access.

Conclusion

In 2022, Kantata and Salesforce commissioned Forrester toconduct a study that investigated how vertical SaaS solutions
are intentionally designed to help professional services
organizations create loyal customers, mitigate risk, andmaximize profits.
FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

Key Findings

Professional services organizations areinvesting in more vertical solutions to mitigate
challenges associated with their unique needs,
and 89% agree that vertical SaaS is the wayof the future.

Vertically aligned and minimally customized
tech stacks outperform generic solutions andestablish leaders.

Vertical, out-of-the-box SaaS solutions
for professional services organizations
drive material benefit for 91% of users.

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS

3Overview

PS Business Challenges

Current StateChallenges
Benefits

Professional Services
Companies Struggle To Realize
Top Business Priorities(Showing “Very challenging” and “Extremelychallenging”)

Decision-makers from professional services companies
were asked to evaluate their organizations’ initiatives.
Their top priorities include creating loyal customers(87%), making more informed decisions (86%), andmaximizing profits (85%), but many are still challenged
with client retention (53%), lack of visibility/insights(58%), and lower-than-expected profits (55%), signalingthat these organizations are finding it difficult to achieve
their goals and meet their top priorities.

Lack of visibility into
plan/baseline vs.
actual performanceof projects

59%
58%
56%

Lower-thanexpected profits

55%

Future State

54%
Poor retentionof employees

53%

Conclusion

53%
FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

Inability to predict
project resource
needs in advance

Lack of data/
insights needed toengage in robust
forecasting

Inefficient
processes

Poor retentionof clients

Base: 383 global technology decision-makers for professional services firms
Source: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Kantata and Salesforce, July 2022

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS

Overview
Current StatePS Tech Stacks
Underperform
On Essential
Tasks …

4The pursuit of business goals significantly impacts how PS firms approach tech stack development, as they
focus on solutions offering enterprisewide tooling (60%) that supports customer goals/outcomes (58%).
Decision-makers report the most essential features of their tech stacks for PS processes include professional
services automation (PSA) (24%), customer relationship management (CRM) (21%), and enterprise resource
planning (ERP) tools (15%). Yet, three out of four (77%) companies also utilize spreadsheets to manage
engagement and workforce coordination.

Challenges
Challenges

The majority of companies find it challenging to perform goal-oriented tasks with their tech stacks, such as
conducting resource planning across the entire services workforce (51%), collaborating directly with clientson engagements (51%), and maintaining visibility into project performance (51%).

Benefits

PS Organizations Find
Tasks Challenging With
Their Current Tech Stack

Future State

Extremely challenging
Very challenging

Conduct resource planning and project team collaboration across the entire services workforce — both internal and external
23%
28%

TOTAL

51%

Conclusion

Collaborate directly with clients on engagements with the ability to route relevant approvals to client stakeholders and control
what is shared with them and what isn’t
21%
30%

51%

Project budgeting and project accounting with visibility into plan/baseline vs. actual performance
21%
30%

51%

Integrate solutions seamlessly so that relevant information can be shared across the organization in an accurate and timely manner
22%
27%

50%

Manage project pipeline with ability to track probability and underlying resource needs, so skill and capacity gaps are assessed
ahead of demand
22%
27%

49%

Analyze robust forecasting and revenue recognition data related to professional services performance
22%
25%

47%

FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

Base: 383 global technology decision-makers for professional services firms
Note: Percentages may not total 100 because of rounding.
Source: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Kantata and Salesforce, July 2022

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS

5Overview… But Leaders Have Tools To Overcome
Business Challenges And Meet Goals

Current State
Challenges

The ability to mitigate challenges and accomplish essentialtasks without the need for complex, over-customized solutions
matters. Professional services decision-makers report that they
feel their organizations are limited when vendors provide generic(rather than industry-specific) tech solutions that require highcustomization (78%).

Benefits
Future State

Leader organizations in this study were identified by how wellthey were able to accomplish key tasks with tech stacks that
did not require significant customization to meet their needs.
Compared with less mature organizations, leaders were better
equipped to overcome business challenges that impact theirability to achieve top initiatives.

PS Business Challenges Have The
Highest Impact On Laggard Organizations(Showing “Very challenging” and “Extremelychallenging”)
Leaders

Transitioning

Unsustainabile growth
10%

31%

65%

Inability to predict project resource needs in advance21%
43%

Lower-than-expected profits
14%

Poor retention of employees
8%Conclusion

Poor retention of clients
12%

FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

Laggards

77%

32%

76%

36%

38%

73%

70%

Base: 383 global technology decision-makers for professional services firms
Source: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Kantata and Salesforce, July 2022

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS

6Overview
Current State

Vertical SaaS for PS Addresses The
Unique Needs Of Professional Services
Organizations

Challenges
Benefits
Benefits

Professional services decision-makers agree that their industry has
unique needs compared to other industries (84%), and customizing
solutions to meet essential use cases has been costly and difficult tomaintain (81%). Vertical SaaS for PS provides specific solutions thataddress the unique needs of professional services organizations.
Utilizing this option is having a direct impact on the ability ofbusinesses to achieve their organizational goals.

Future State

Current vertical SaaS for PS users are realizing benefits that directlyalign with client retention goals and help overcome top challenges,
like forecasting accuracy. Additionally, those reporting an increase inbillable utilization estimated a 49.5% increase in utilization.

Conclusion

9 in 10

users agree that vertical SaaS drives
material benefit for their PS organization.
FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

Benefits of Vertical SaaS for PS(Showing “Vertical SaaS for PS users”)

47%

Increased forecast
accuracy

46%

Increased customer
satisfaction

44%

Increased employee
retention

47%

Increased client
retention

43%

Increased services
revenue

43%

Improved average
project margin

Base: 329 global technology decision-makers for professional services firms who use vertical SaaS for
professional services
Source: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Kantata and Salesforce, July 2022

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS

Overview
Current State

Vertical SaaSFor PS Is The
Way Of TheFuture7

As professional services decision-makers consider future investments, they are putting their confidence andbudgets behind vertical SaaS for PS. Of those who currently use vertical SaaS for PS, 88% report that they
intend to increase their vertical SaaS for PS budgets in the future.
Of those decision-makers who have not yet adopted vertical SaaS for PS as part of their tech stack, 73%
say they believe their organization would greatly benefit from vertical SaaS for PS. Because nonadopters
recognize the benefits of vertical SaaS for PS, they report they are very likely to consider adopting in thefuture (57%) and plan to increase their budgets to accommodate adoption (65%).

Challenges

89% of users agree believe that vertical SaaS for PS is the way of the future.

Benefits
FutureFuture StateState

Nonusers See Business Value
In Vertical SaaS For PS

73%

Conclusion

My organization would greatly benefit fromvertical SaaS for PS that has out-of-the-box,
configurable capabilities that support theessential use casesfor my organization.

FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

Nonusers Are Likely To Consider Adopting
Vertical SaaS for PS In The Future

13%

Extremely likely

44%

Very likely
Base: 45 global technology decision-makers for professional services firms who don’t use vertical SaaS for
professional services
Source: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Kantata and Salesforce, July 2022

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS8OverviewConclusionCurrent State

Vertical SaaS solutions for professional services provide necessary
capabilities that offer specific features to meet the unique needs ofservices professionals. Benefits include:•Challenges

Increasing capabilities in resource allocation, including projectand data management processes. Vertical SaaS solutions enable
PS firms to operate more effectively, helping them to reapmaterial benefits.
Creating customer loyalty with operational efficiencies. Vertical
SaaS for PS meets technology needs with minimal configurationand enables greater transparency into operational processes
that support process improvements.

•Providing solutions to improve how leading services firmsdeliver successful projects. Vertical SaaS for PS is an essentialtechnology, enabling firms to deliver projects driven by uniquecustomer needs.

Benefits•Future StateConclusion
Conclusion

FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

Project Director:
Emily Drinkwater, Senior Market Impact Consultant
Britt Mountford, Market Impact Consultant
Contributing Research:
Forrester’s Application Development& Delivery research group

VERTICAL SAAS FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IS DRIVING MATERIAL BENEFITS

9OverviewMethodology

Current State

This Opportunity Snapshot was commissioned by Kantata andSalesforce. To create this profile, Forrester Consulting supplemented
this research with custom survey questions asked of 383 global
technology decision-makers from professional services firms.
The custom survey began and was completed in July 2022.

Demographics
COUNTRY
United States

67%

Canada18%

United Kingdom

16%

Challenges
Benefits

INDUSTRY

Future StateABOUT FORRESTER CONSULTING
Forrester provides independent and objective research-based consulting to help leaders deliver key
transformation outcomes. Fueled by our customer-obsessed research, Forrester’s seasoned consultants
partner with leaders to execute on their priorities using a unique engagement model that tailors todiverse needs and ensures lasting impact. For more information, visit forrester.com/consulting.

Conclusion
Conclusion© Forrester Research, Inc. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.
Information is based on best available resources. Opinions reflect judgment at the time and are subject
to change. Forrester®, Technographics®, Forrester Wave, and Total Economic Impact are trademarksof Forrester Research, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies. For
additional information, go to forrester.com. [E-54613]
FORRESTER OPPORTUNITY SNAPSHOT: A CUSTOM STUDY COMMISSIONED BY KANTATA AND SALESFORCESEPTEMBER 2022

COMPANY SIZE (BY NUMBER
OF EMPLOYEES)
100 to 499

15%

500 to 999

26%

1,000 to 4,999

39%

5,000 to 19,999

15%

20,000 or more

4%

TITLE

Technology/techservices

29%

Business/professional
services

26%

Architecture/engineering services

24%

Advertising and/ormarketing

20%

Note: Percentages may not total 100 because of rounding.

Director

48%

Vice president

32%

C-level executive

19%