How Xceptor unified project delivery, financial visibility, and scalability with Rocketlane

Introduction

Xceptor is the intelligent data automation platform for financial markets providing data ingestion, standardization, normalization, and validation services. Catering to thousands of unique use cases, its highly configurable and enterprise-grade platform offers proprietary solutions for tax, reconciliations, confirmations, client onboarding, and allocations.

Since 2003, Xceptor has been empowering businesses worldwide to trust their data and digitize their operational workflows. With offices in London, New York, Singapore, and Cape Town, Xceptor serves nearly 125 clients and over 11,500 users across 60 countries, including banks, asset managers, hedge funds, custodians, and asset servicers. 

‍Chris Cowlard, Senior Director, Head of Global Client Delivery and Jacqui Morgan, Head of Client Delivery, Transformation, drive operational transformation and standardization across Xceptor’s delivery teams, a goal Rocketlane is helping them realize.

‍

How was Xceptor’s life before Rocketlane?

As Xceptor’s customer base and delivery volume expanded globally, the Professional Services (PS) organization began to see the need for more connected operations. What had worked efficiently for a smaller team started to show limitations at scale with the company’s growth and geographic spread. 

• Each regional delivery team, in London, New York, Singapore, and Cape Town had developed its own processes and ways of managing projects.
• There was a limited view of where projects stood, how resources were being utilized, or what budgets looked like in real-time.
• Much of the team’s coordination still happened through spreadsheets, emails, and individual tools, which made collaboration less seamless as the business grew.

‍

#1 The need for a centralized project management

With teams distributed across regions, Xceptor’s delivery organization relied on locally managed spreadsheets and trackers. While these systems worked well within regions, leadership found it difficult to get an organization-wide view of delivery progress and a way to answer simple but crucial questions:

• How many projects are currently live?
• Which ones are at risk?
• What’s our delivery capacity next quarter?
• Are we tracking within budgets and timelines?

“Every region had its own way of doing things- spreadsheets, trackers, and manual reports. We couldn’t get a consolidated view of where we were with all our projects or what was coming up next.”

The team recognized the need for more standardization across project structures, milestones, and reporting to improve consistency and collaboration across global offices.

‍

#2 Evolving financial oversight requirements

Xceptor used NetSuite OpenAir for tracking timesheets and invoicing, and it continued to remain their core system of record. However, OpenAir was not purpose-built as a real-time delivery management layer. So while it captured hours accurately, delivery teams still needed additional ways to connect that data back to project progress, budget utilisation, and forecasts at the moment.

• This meant that tighter insights on burn, margins, or scope movement usually became clearer during month-end cycles, once finance reconciled the data.
• Teams managed hours in one system, tracked delivery plans in another, and sometimes relied on spreadsheets to bring the two together. 
• Without a combined operational and financial view in one place, conversations around scope alignment or budget changes often happened later in the lifecycle rather than earlier.

‍

‍#3 Reactive rather than proactive management

Because project, resourcing, and financial information lived in multiple places, it was harder to get a connected, real-time view of delivery. Project teams were still largely dependent on periodic reports or manual reconciliations to understand what was happening across engagements, which naturally made the process more reactive than predictive.

‍“We wanted to get to a place where we could manage ahead, not just review what happened last month.”

Because forecasting was done manually and based on assumptions across systems, the leadership team couldn’t accurately predict:

• How many projects the team could handle with current capacity
• What revenue could be recognized based on project progress
• Where new hiring or reallocation was needed to meet demand
  

‍

#4 Scaling challenges for a global delivery function

Xceptor’s delivery organization had grown to over 40 consultants spread across four global regions- London, New York, Singapore, and Cape Town. As the team expanded, each region naturally developed its own ways of planning, tracking, and reporting on project work.

At an executive level, this made it harder to get one consolidated picture that connected delivery data with financial outcomes. Xceptor saw an opportunity to bring these pieces together, not just to standardize how projects were run globally, but to enable more proactive decisions around resource allocation, risk management, and profitability.

‍

Xceptor’s solution approach

As the OpenAir renewal cycle approached, the leadership team treated it as a natural checkpoint to reflect on how their delivery organization had evolved, and whether the broader tech stack still supported where they were headed, especially as their global footprint continued to expand.

“When the renewal came up, we paused and asked ourselves — is this still the optimal setup for how we want to run delivery going forward? It felt like the right time to reassess and make sure our tooling was aligned with our next stage of growth.”

‍

Custom integrations that didn’t scale well

As Xceptor expanded, they attempted to extend OpenAir through several custom integrations, connecting it with internal CRM, resource planning tools, and reporting dashboards. However, the complexity of stitching data across multiple systems made these integrations harder to maintain over time. This increased the operational overhead on the team, and highlighted the need for a more unified, connected data model to support scale.

‍

Leadership alignment on future needs

As Xceptor grew, the leadership team recognized that their current stack didn’t support the level of visibility and efficiency they aspired for. They needed live dashboards, cross-project reporting, and a unified view of resource utilization, capabilities that had become important for a global PS organization.

The evaluation gained momentum when Strath, Xceptor’s Chief Success Officer, stepped in to champion the initiative. Having worked with Rocketlane in a previous role, he had firsthand context on how the platform could support professional services teams with more connected delivery operations and tighter financial control.

He encouraged the PS leadership, including the Global PMO and regional delivery heads, to assess Rocketlane as a unified, purpose-built solution that could bring together:

• Project management and collaboration
• Resource allocation and forecasting
• Time tracking and financial governance
• Customer-facing visibility through shared portals

‍

The buying process

Once Xceptor decided to evaluate a new delivery platform, the first step was to align on what success should look like. The goal wasn’t just to replace a timesheet or invoicing system, it was to find a platform that could support the next stage of scale that:

• Gave real-time financial visibility, so project managers could see budgets, burn, and forecasts live
• Unified data across delivery and finance, eliminating the silos created by OpenAir and manual spreadsheets
• Provided scalability and configurability to suit a global delivery model
• Offered Ease of adoption for delivery teams without heavy IT dependency

‍

#1 The evaluation involved multiple stakeholders across PS, Finance, IT, and Operations, ensuring alignment from day one. The team looked at a few PSA and project management tools, but most fell short in either usability or depth.

‍

#2 The team also experimented with Smartsheet as a lightweight workaround to gain some structure and visibility into project planning. While it helped organize information temporarily, it quickly became clear that Smartsheet worked well for lightweight task tracking, but it didn't offer the financial governance, resource forecasting, or scale required for a global delivery organization.

‍

#3 Rocketlane stood out early as the interface felt intuitive, the workflows were easy to configure, and the reporting capabilities hit exactly what Xceptor had been missing. 

“It wasn’t just about time tracking anymore — it was about giving us the live control and predictability we never had,”

#4 From there, things moved remarkably fast for Xceptor. The entire evaluation and decision-making process took just 10 days, a testament to how strongly the leadership and delivery teams aligned on the solution.

‍

#5 To validate the choice, they ran a pilot across a few live projects- testing workflows from setup to reporting. Within weeks:

• Project managers were able to view live budget consumption
• Delivery leads could proactively plan capacity
• Finance could forecast revenue more accurately

The pilot success sealed the decision, and the team quickly moved toward implementation.

With Rocketlane, Xceptor now runs delivery with stronger connection between projects, people, and financial outcomes, giving the team more confidence as they continue to scale.

‍

The transformation after Rocketlane

Rocketlane has helped Xceptor move from a fragmented, reactive operating model to one that is integrated, predictable, and scalable, with real-time insights driving every decision.

#1 Real-time visibility became the new normal

Today, every project manager at Xceptor has live dashboards showing effort, budget utilization, and forecasted revenue, something that was simply not possible in OpenAir. This has created a culture of proactive management instead of backward-looking analysis.

“Now we can see, mid-project, where we stand — how much effort we’ve burned, how much budget remains, and whether we’re still on track. It’s no longer a guessing game.”

‍

#2 Smarter financial governance and forecasting

Rocketlane has become the single source of truth for both delivery and financial data. By connecting project execution with financial outcomes, Xceptor’s PS leadership can now track revenue forecasts, budget burn, and profitability, all in real time. The teams no longer wait for manual reconciliations or spreadsheet uploads; instead, forecast accuracy has improved significantly, and leadership finally has confidence in forward-looking numbers. 

‍

#3 Unified delivery operations across regions

With 40+ consultants spread globally, Xceptor struggled earlier to maintain consistency in how projects were executed. Rocketlane brought in standardization and visibility at scale, enabling every region to work off the same playbook, with consistent reporting and governance. The result: fewer handoff delays, better accountability, and clearer ownership.

‍

#4 Efficiency gains through automation and collaboration

Manual follow-ups and updates that once consumed project managers’ time have been replaced by automated workflows, milestone tracking, and in-platform collaboration. Teams no longer toggle between spreadsheets, emails, and tools as Rocketlane brings everyone into one workspace.

“Before Rocketlane, we were always reacting. Now, we’re finally ahead of the curve — managing proactively, making data-led decisions, and delivering with confidence.”

‍

Xceptor’s implementation phase 

Xceptor implemented Rocketlane in phases, starting with project delivery and expanding into UAT/client issue tracking via the customer portal, timesheets/approvals, and financial forecasting. They’re also piloting AI Fills and progressing Salesforce/BambooHR integrations.

‍

‍

1. Rollout approach: Phased and template-driven

• Xceptor followed a phased rollout approach, starting with delivery projects before expanding into UAT issue tracking and client collaboration.
• Portal forms, shared client views, and strict field-level permissions were configured to ensure data control and transparency.
• Each project had defined triage ownership, with internal versus client-facing views to enable accurate status tracking.
• The team introduced visible ticket counts and exportable reports, making client reporting more efficient.
• Standardized templates were created for UAT, SIT, and Support projects, with automations to simplify updates and maintain consistency.

‍

2. Timesheets, resource management, and forecasting

• The delivery team adopted Rocketlane’s enhanced timesheet workflows, using filters, list views, and exports to streamline approvals and billing readiness.
• In-project time tracking enabled better visibility into logged hours, helping project leads validate efforts and forecast accurately.
• Resource allocation combined manual and automated methods, supported by visibility into task-level remaining hours.
• Forecasting was improved by distinguishing billable and non-billable efforts, with a planned rollout for multi-line budgeting (billable/non-billable).

‍

3. Finance alignment and data quality

• Finance and delivery teams worked together to refine revenue recognition across fixed-price and time-and-materials projects.
• Migration efforts addressed rounding issues and data consistency challenges to maintain clean financial records.
• Monthly financial snapshots and flexible close windows were introduced to improve financial review cadence.
• Custom report sync delays and portfolio data variances were resolved, with clearer expectations set for data refresh cycles and report accuracy.

‍

4. Integrations and automation

• Xceptor automated user lifecycle and time-off management by integrating Rocketlane with BambooHR through a two-hour sync cadence and policy-based filters.
• A Salesforce integration was implemented to auto-create projects from opportunities, streamlining estimation and project initiation workflows.
• Conditional triggers and project templates ensured every new engagement followed consistent delivery and reporting standards.

‍

Best practices implemented by Xceptor

Xceptor didn’t just deploy Rocketlane, they used it as an opportunity to redefine how delivery excellence is measured and sustained across the organization. The implementation became a blueprint for operational discipline, alignment, and data-led decision-making.

‍Template-driven consistency‍

Every project at Xceptor now begins with a Rocketlane template customized by project type and customer segment. These templates define key milestones, phases, and governance checkpoints, ensuring that every engagement follows a consistent, proven structure.

Data-driven resource management

Xceptor’s delivery leaders now actively use Rocketlane’s utilization dashboards to make real-time allocation and prioritization decisions. Instead of relying on static spreadsheets, they can view team capacity, workload distribution, and upcoming demand in one place. As a result, utilization is not only more efficient but also more sustainable, ensuring consultants are neither overbooked nor underused.

Proactive budget governance

Project Managers at Xceptor track project burn and budget thresholds through Rocketlane’s live financial indicators. When utilization or costs approach predefined limits, PMs can proactively initiate discussions with clients to realign expectations or adjust scope. This early-warning mechanism has made project governance more transparent and reduced the risk of unplanned overspend.

Client-centric visibility

Through Rocketlane Portals, Xceptor has established a new level of transparency with its customers. Clients can now view project milestones, upcoming deliverables, and UAT progress in real time, without needing to chase updates.

‍

What’s next for Xceptor

With the foundations of operational excellence firmly in place, Xceptor’s focus is now shifting from visibility to strategic growth enablement. The next phase of their journey is about leveraging Rocketlane for predictive insights and long-term scalability.

• Jacqui and her team are exploring deeper integrations with their CRM and financial systems to create a seamless “lead-to-revenue” view — giving leadership a unified perspective on every stage of the customer lifecycle.
• They’re also investing in enhanced capacity planning and forecasting models, powered by Rocketlane data, to proactively balance workloads and improve resource utilization across regions. 
• Another area of focus is customer experience visibility. By tying delivery milestones and performance data closer to customer outcomes, the PS team aims to give account leaders a clear sense of how projects are performing against business value, not just timelines and budgets.

In essence, Xceptor’s Rocketlane journey is evolving from operational transformation to strategic enablement, where real-time insights not only drive efficiency but also fuel growth, innovation, and customer success.

‍