The Handbook: The Operations Podcast
Running a serviced based business, an agency or consultancy isn’t just about great client work. It’s about keeping everything behind the scenes running smoothly.
That’s where The Handbook comes in. Our goal? To help you take your business to the next level of business maturity.
This podcast is for operations and service-business leaders who are juggling it all – people, processes, finance, tech, and everything in between.
Every other week, we dive deep into a specific challenge that businesses face as they grow in headcount and complexity. You'll get practical insights and real-world advice from experts who’ve been there, solved the problems, and know what works.
If you’re looking for smarter ways to scale, streamline, and strengthen your business, you’re in the right place. Welcome to The Handbook community, your go-to guide for better business operations.
And don’t forget to sign up for The Handbook newsletter – we’ll send you the key takeaways from each episode straight to your inbox: scoro.com/podcast/#handbook
The Handbook: The Operations Podcast is brought to you by Scoro.
The Handbook: The Operations Podcast
Ops Quickie: What the heck is a PSA?!
New series alert: Ops Quickies — snackable episodes on tech, tools, and systems. 🍿
We're kicking off with a big question wrapped in The Clunkiest Acronym: what the heck is a PSA ... or professional services automation platform?
Harv explains why the name’s a problem, what this kind of platform actually does, and why service businesses need to start paying attention.
If you've got any questions about ops tech, PSAs, or Scoro, drop me a message on LinkedIn. I'd love to hear from you – and might even turn it into a mini episode.
And if you know someone who needs this explainer, forward it on and ask them to give it a listen.
Hey guys. I'm Harv Nagra, I've been wanting to do a mini series on tech for a while. This is the first episode. We're starting with one of those questions that I hear all the time, which is, what the heck is a professional services automation platform or a PSA? First of all, I wouldn't blame you if you don't know.'PSA' is a fairly clunky title for a software category. I mean, I had implemented a PSA in one of my past workplaces, and even at that time, I wasn't aware that that's what the software was even called. I think the issue with the term professional services automation is that most businesses don't identify that way. You know, agencies call themselves agencies, consultancies call themselves consultancies, accountants, IT providers, architects, engineers. Everyone is understandably very specific in how they describe themselves. No one goes around saying,"hey, we're a professional services business." But I guess The reason that category name has stuck is because it is so broad, right? A PSA is meant for all of the above kinds of businesses, basically anyone that sells their time and expertise. So I suppose if it was called a consultancy management platform or an agency management platform or whatever, unless that vendor was only interested in selling to that specific vertical, they would alienate big chunks of their market. The real value of a PSA is the way everything connects and comes together. Your budgets, your timeline, your resources, delivery, invoicing, reporting, all of that flowing through one system. So great product, but not the sexiest or most intuitive name, and that is unfortunate for everyone: Both the vendors trying to sell these systems and the customers that would benefit from it, but don't know it exists. But the good news is you are now one of the people in the know. If you've got any questions about ops tech, PSAs, or Scoro, drop me a message on LinkedIn. I'd love to hear from you, and if you know someone who needs this explainer, forward it on and ask them to give it a listen. Thanks very much for listening.
