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The DAY ONE Way: one record that every team works from
An engagement starts as a promise: this scope, at this rate, on these terms. Then it passes from sales to delivery to finance, and each team keeps its own version. Every handover is a place where detail is lost and someone rebuilds the account from memory. The DAY ONE Way removes that step. Every team works from the same record, from Prospect to Payment, and passes on what was agreed.
The operating map
Follow one engagement through four teams. At each handover, ask one question: can the next team do its part without rebuilding the last team's account? The aim is less rework and fewer silos, not a maturity badge.
Sales
What have we agreed to do, for which fee and under which conditions?
Passes onThe approved scope, rates and billing approach, held in the system with the quote.
Read the Sales pillarDelivery
What work was done, and what changed from the agreement?
Passes onA plan and resourcing built from the engagement as sold, time logged to the same record, and each material change recorded as its own contract with a named approver.
Read the Delivery pillarFinance
What is earned, what can be billed and what still needs a decision?
Passes onDraft invoices built from approved time, ready milestones and approved expenses, under the contract's billing rules. A person approves before anything goes out.
Read the Finance pillarWhole business
Where has the commercial position changed, and who owns the next step?
Passes onOne system of record across every business unit, each stage with its own status.
Read the Whole business pillar
One engagement, one record: the agreed scope, the commercial rules and what happened, from Prospect to Payment.
Test it on one engagement
Pick an engagement that needed an invoice correction or a late scope decision. Ask each team where its part was recorded. The example below follows one engagement through Sales, Delivery and Finance. Whole business has no screen of its own.
Where was the final rule recorded?
The Planning tab holds minutes by role for each deliverable, with rate, cost and margin.
| Milestone | Senior consult. | Strategy consult. | Project manager | Partner | Technic. archite. | Content strateg. | Time | Cost | Revenue | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discovery & Assessment: Current-State Assessment | 12000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12000 Minutes | $27,999.60 | *$70,000.00 | 60.0% |
| Discovery & Assessment: Target Operating Model | 0 | 12000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12000 Minutes | $24,000.00 | *$60,000.00 | 60.0% |
| Design & Build: Build & Configuration | 0 | 0 | 12000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12000 Minutes | $24,000.00 | *$60,000.00 | 60.0% |
| Design & Build: Integration & Migration | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12000 | 0 | 0 | 12000 Minutes | $36,000.00 | *$90,000.00 | 60.0% |
| Unit rate | $5.83 | $5.00 | $5.00 | $7.50 | $5.00 | $5.00 | ||||
| Unit cost | $2.33 | $2.00 | $2.00 | $3.00 | $2.67 | $2.00 | ||||
| Est. cost | $27,999.60 | $24,000.00 | $24,000.00 | $36,000.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $111,999.60 | |||
| Revenue | $69,960.00 | $60,000.00 | $60,000.00 | $90,000.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $280,000.00 | |||
| Margin | 60.0% | 60.0% | 60.0% | 60.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 60.0% |
- Discovery & Assessment: Current-State Assessment60.0%
- Time
- 12000 Minutes
- Cost
- $27,999.60
- Revenue
- *$70,000.00
Senior consult. 12000
- Discovery & Assessment: Target Operating Model60.0%
- Time
- 12000 Minutes
- Cost
- $24,000.00
- Revenue
- *$60,000.00
Strategy consult. 12000
- Design & Build: Build & Configuration60.0%
- Time
- 12000 Minutes
- Cost
- $24,000.00
- Revenue
- *$60,000.00
Project manager 12000
- Design & Build: Integration & Migration60.0%
- Time
- 12000 Minutes
- Cost
- $36,000.00
- Revenue
- *$90,000.00
Partner 12000
Est. cost $111,999.60Revenue $280,000.00Margin 60.0%
Rate and cost by role
- Senior consult.$5.83 rate$2.33 cost
- Strategy consult.$5.00 rate$2.00 cost
- Project manager$5.00 rate$2.00 cost
- Partner$7.50 rate$3.00 cost
- Technic. archite.$5.00 rate$2.67 cost
- Content strateg.$5.00 rate$2.00 cost
What work is planned, and who owns it?
The Hub holds the contract, milestone, deliverables and task together, with a person and a due date on the task.
Contract
- Telephony Triage — Call Handling (000012.1)Active 24 Sep 2026 - 14 Jan 2027T&M - $280,000 (26%)
- Phase 2 (000012.2)NewT&M - $0 (0%)
- Phase 3 (000012.3)NewT&M - $0 (0%)
Milestone
- Design & BuildOpen 20 Nov 2026 - 14 Jan 2027$150,000 (0%)
Deliverable
- Build & ConfigurationIn progress 20 Nov 2026 - 17 Dec 2026$60,000 (0%)
- Integration & MigrationIn progress 18 Dec 2026 - 14 Jan 2027$90,000 (0%)
Tasks
- Build & Configuration — executionIn progress 20 Nov 2026 - 17 Dec 2026Tom Westbrook - High - Due in 55d
- One engagement: its contract, milestone, deliverables and task.
Which source did the invoice use?
The invoice names who it bills, and the engagement and contract it comes from.
Hierarchy
- Bill to
- NovaTech Care
- Bill from
- Day One Consulting
- Billing contact
- Michael Torres
- Approver
- Admin (000135.9.2329)
- Engagement
- Customer Telephony Triage Line
- Engagement contract
- Telephony Triage — Call Handling
Invoice line
- Description
- Current-State Assessment - Project Manager - Content Strategist - Strategy Consultant - Senior Consultant - Technical Architect - Partner
- Quantity
- 1
- Line amount
- $72,504.50
What sits behind the invoice amount?
The Traces tab shows revenue, cost and margin traced back from the invoice, and the amount by person.
- $72,504.50Revenue
- $30,759.60Cost
- $41,744.90Margin
Questions about the DAY ONE Way
Can't see your question? Ask us directly.
Is this a setup method or a product feature list?
Neither. It is a way to test how commercial decisions travel through your firm. The platform pages show how DAY ONE handles each step; this page helps your team map its own work.
Do we need to replace our accounting system?
No. DAY ONE holds the work and the invoice decision up to the handoff, and your accounting system takes it from there. See Invoicing and WIP.
Where should we start?
Follow one engagement from its agreed scope to its invoice. The first missing rule or owner gives you a practical starting point.
Do we need to change everything at once?
No. Start with a first scope through Quickstart and widen from there.
Is the guide available as a PDF?
Not yet. The full guide is the page itself. A PDF, when it exists, is a copy for sharing.
Talk through one handover
Tell us where an engagement's scope, work or invoice stopped matching, and we will talk it through.