CRM software for consulting firms

In a consulting firm, the opportunity is not a record beside the project: it is already the engagement, before it is won. BestConsultant puts the pipeline on that object — sale price, probability, staffing already considered, client file. When the deal is won, you do not recreate the file. Before you write the proposal, Orbit gathers the firm’s memory of the account.

Why is a consulting CRM not a generic CRM?

A generic CRM tracks contacts and campaigns. A consulting partner needs expected value, the engagement director, people already placed on the deal, and the client who will be billed. Stages are yours. Kanban or table, funnel and won totals, filters by director, client or office, saved views. On the deal: activity timeline, contacts, documents, proposals. One lead, one project: no re-keying at closing — as in the partner journey.

What is Orbit, before you write the proposal?

Orbit is the account briefing, inside the CRM. Open it on the deal: the team who already delivered for this client, evaluation signals from this year and last, a market brief, and how current news on the account connects to past missions — reuse, adjacent, risk, opportunity. Plus public entry contacts. This is not a generic web search: it starts from firm history and relationship quality, then market context — before the first slide.

What happens once the deal is won?

It becomes the project. The client file holds contacts, notes, documents and billing data. A handoff checklist covers contacts, value, director, dates, staffing and invoicing. Sales contributors and contribution targets stay visible in sales-cycle statistics.

How do you follow up and prioritise without a second file?

Workflows fire when a deal is created, when it enters a stage, or after inactivity: a task, a note, a notification, a field update. Custom fields sit on deals and accounts. A fit score (already a client, sector, recent activity) helps you prioritise. Ask CRM answers in natural language on the pipeline — deals at risk, who worked with this client, forecast, evaluations. A pre-meeting brief and follow-up suggestions can become activities.

What this is not

• A cold-email sequence tool or outbound prospecting engine.
• A marketing-campaign platform.
• A second system glued onto projects: the lead is the unwon project.
• A generic news monitor: Orbit is anchored in missions already delivered for that account.

Who uses it in the firm?