Financial transparency

We’re all-in on being upfront and honest, and that includes money. We don’t buy into the cultural taboo of financial secrecy. We also think it’s really important for our clients to know where their money is going — and how it helps our team do what we do.

So, we’re breaking down our billable rates. We’ll show you what we charge for-profit and nonprofit clients (and why). We’ll also give you a rundown of where that money goes to support our team while we’re busy working.

Budgeting for growth

It took us several years to create a monthly budget that works for us — a budget that is detailed and adaptable, thorough but not overly complicated. Here’s how it works.

We set a monthly spending goal that includes all of our goals. In other words, it accounts for what we need to spend each month to run the business, what we’ll need to spend in the future, and what we’re aiming for — even our pie-in-the-sky, aspirational goals. (More often than not, we’re able to follow through on those dreams. Not a flex, just the power of the budget).

We break down our budget into the following categories:

• Operations: Payroll, health insurance and other benefits, rent, utilities, office supplies, maintenance, computers and gear, postage, meals, etc.
• Operations software: Platforms we rely on for our basic infrastructure, like Basecamp, Slack, Harvest, Google, Zoom, and so on.
• Design software: Programs our design team uses to do their work (Adobe, Figma, etc).
• Development software: Programs our dev team uses, including website hosting and maintenance tools, for us and our clients.
• Reps and memberships: Our CPA, business insurance, Commerce Lexington, etc.
• Annual culture goals: What we want to provide to our team and community. This includes everything from professional development and well-being stipends to charitable donations, paid volunteering, and our annual team retreat.
• Building and construction: Any costs related to the two buildings we own, 714 and 712 N Limestone. This includes the work we’re doing for the stormwater feasibility grant (for more details, read our 2023 impact report).

Once a week, the management team meets to review these categories on a high level and see where our spending is up, down, or out of whack.

Every quarter, we share an in-depth financial report with the team. They can examine the exact dollar amounts spent on each category and see what’s coming in from each client month to month.

We also highlight any time we’ve cut down on billing to match a client’s budget. While this doesn’t happen all the time, we believe in owning up to our mistakes and what we’re still learning — it’s part of building long-term partnerships. This way, we can learn to use our time and money better so we have more to put towards reaching our goals.

Breaking down our fees

The perfect hourly rate is a balancing act. We need to make sure it covers our expenses, gives us room to grow and take care of our team, and makes sense for our clients. It can be tricky to find that sweet spot where everyone’s happy.

Our standard rate for regular (for-profit) clients is currently $200 per hour. That’s not a hard-and-fast figure: this rate can vary based on a number of factors, including the client’s specific needs and limitations, the amount of work we do for them, and the overall objectives of the project.

Approximately $178 of every $200 (that’s 89%) we receive funds our operations. The remaining 11% is split between the other categories in our budget: $6 (3%) to building and construction, $4 (2%) to operations software, $4 (2%) to reps and memberships, $4 (2%) to annual culture goals, $2 (1%) to design software, and $2 (1%) to development software.

Most of the money that comes in goes to keeping the proverbial lights on. Operations includes our employee benefits, so the more we can put towards this category, the better we can make our team members’ lives. (Which we believe has a powerful ripple effect throughout our various communities.)

Partnering with nonprofits

Being financially stable means we can give back to the community. Our financial model gives us the flexibility to partner with nonprofits operating on limited resources.

Our usual rate for nonprofits is $125 per hour. That just covers our basic operating costs, and doesn’t leave room for any extras. In other words, with the income from nonprofit clients, we’re not contributing to our stretch goals (or even just nice-to-haves); we put 100% of that energy into doing work that benefits the community. Because ultimately, we’ll all feel the benefit of that work.

Nerding out

We believe in the power of transparency and accountability. We hope this sheds light on how our clients’ investments support our team and community.

We’re always looking for ways to improve, so feel free to reach out with any questions or feedback. And if you want to talk shop on budget software, don’t hold back — we’re big fans.