The 7 best Kantata (Mavenlink) alternatives for professional services firms

If you are comparing Kantata with other time tracking, resource planning, and PSA tools, you are probably already past the “spreadsheet and basic project tool” stage.

You know Kantata (formerly Mavenlink) is a serious option. Operating.app is one too. So yes, this article is written by a competitor (us at Operating.app), but the goal is simple: give you a realistic view of where Kantata is strong, where teams struggle, and which alternatives are worth putting in your shortlist.

Thus, this is not a fully neutral analyst report. It is a practitioner’s guide based on what we hear from consulting firms, agencies, and other professional services leaders who are either:

• Rolling out Kantata
• Actively trying to replace it
• Or deciding between Kantata and a more focused PSA

If you recognize parts of their experience in your own firm, it is probably time to look at alternatives too.

1. Operating.app

Best for: Consulting and professional services firms that want modern resource planning and time tracking with enterprise-level functionalities – without the complexities that often come with enterprise platforms.

Operating.app was built as a modern alternative to legacy PSA tools like Kantata, NetSuite OpenAir, and Workday PSA. It focuses on what consulting and agency leaders care about most:

• Resource planning and project staffing
• Time tracking - nice and simple
• Forecasting and utilization rate optimization
• Invoicing and revenue leakage prevention

Instead of forcing you into an ERP-style setup, Operating.app connects to your existing stack. It offers:

• A REST API for finance tools like NetSuite, QuickBooks, and Xero
• Direct integrations to CRMs like HubSpot and Pipedrive
• HRIS integrations such as HiBob

The platform is designed for operations teams, project leads, and all key professional services stakeholders who need to plan people, track planned vs actual hours, and see margins at project and portfolio level without wrestling with a heavy UI.

Key highlights:

• Skills-based staffing and capacity planning across teams and offices
• Clear visibility into billable vs non-billable work
• Real-time utilization dashboards (Kantata dashboard might not always be real-time)
• Margin and revenue forecasting at client, project, and phase level
• Flexible project models (fixed price, T&M, retainers, hybrid)

Many teams also use Operating.app first as the resource planning and forecasting layer next to an existing PSA or finance stack. Over time, they expand to use Operating for timesheets and invoicing as well, which reduces double data entry while keeping change management under control.

Key difference to enterprise platforms

Operating provides a free trial with access to the platform and you can even have the account filled with relevant looking dummy data to make sure you're really able to test all the functionalities of the platform with minimal upfront investment. The Operating team also helps you make sense of the free trial by providing free consultation. After that, you'll get your own data migrated, and you can be up and running in mere days or weeks, depending the complexity of integrations etc.

With enterprise platforms, you're usually locked in from the day you want to start trying the platform.

What customers say

“Operating gives us a clear view of upcoming projects and resource needs, making forecasting so much easier, and the team is incredibly responsive to feedback.” – Adam, G2 review

“Operating is the software I wished I had 20 years ago when I started working in consulting. It is continuously developed to meet customer needs and is an efficient, intuitive tool for personnel management and staffing.” – Mourad, Capterra review

Pricing

Operating.app offers transparent pricing:

• Resource planning: $10 (annual) or $12 (monthly) per person / month
• Planning & timesheets: $13 (annual) or $15 (monthly) per person / month
• With invoicing: $18 (annual) or $20 (monthly) per person / month

Every plan includes a free trial, onboarding help, and live chat with the team, including the founders.

2. Scoro

Best for: Firms that want a single system for sales, projects, resources, and financials.

Scoro is a PSA platform designed for professional services firms that have outgrown spreadsheets and disconnected tools. Launched in 2013, it focuses on unifying sales, projects, resources, and financials so agencies, consultancies, IT services, and A&E firms can run quote-to-cash workflows in a single system.

Scoro includes CRM and quoting, project management, task planning, resource scheduling, utilization dashboards, and invoicing. Its financial tracking links project budgets, planned hours, and actuals, helping teams stay on top of margins and revenue leakage. It integrates with accounting tools like Xero and QuickBooks, as well as calendars and communication tools.

The platform is known for a clean and customizable interface, especially its dashboards. While it covers a broad set of functions, most teams ramp up quickly and expand usage over time.

What users say
“We’ve been using Scoro for over a year now and it’s had a significant impact on our operations. It’s helped us streamline our processes, stay organized, and make data-driven decisions.” — Cheryl, G2
“Scoro is an all-in-one business management tool that makes it easy to manage projects and collaborate. It’s much simpler to use than most alternatives.” — Dilak, Capterra

Pricing

• Core: $19.90 per user per month
• Growth: $32.90 per user per month
• Performance: $49.90 per user per month
• Enterprise: Contact sales

Scoro offers a two-week trial and is widely used by mid-size professional services firms that want a consolidated platform without moving into enterprise-level PSA complexity.

3. BQE CORE

Best for: Architecture, engineering, and other project-based firms that need deep project accounting and billing.

BQE CORE started in the A&E world and is still strong where phase-based budgets, WIP tracking, and billing precision matter – features that are very relevant for firms needing rigid project-level planning.

Highlights:

• Project accounting with phases, budgets, and WIP
• Comprehensive time and expense tracking
• Tight integration with accounting platforms like QuickBooks, MYOB, and Xero
• Dashboards for principals and finance teams to monitor profitability

It is a good fit if your biggest concern is financial accuracy and billing workflows, and you are comfortable with a more finance-driven interface.

Things to consider:

• Broad feature set can be more than some smaller teams need
• Best when finance, not project delivery, drives tool selection

4. Productive

Best for: Creative agencies replacing a “patchwork” stack of PM, timesheets, and invoicing tools.

Productive was created by agency operators who were tired of juggling multiple systems. It offers a modern UI and aims to cover the full client lifecycle:

• CRM and sales pipeline
• Project planning and task management
• Time tracking and expenses
• Invoicing and profitability dashboards

Strengths:

• Clear focus on agencies and digital-first services
• Strong visibility into client and project profitability
• Modern user experience and simple onboarding compared to legacy PSA tools

Things to consider:

• All-in-one approach may overlap with your existing CRM or task managment tools
• If your teams work heavily embedded in the clients' systems (like JIRA, Linear etc.) you might not find use for the task management features in Scoro
• Best suited for agencies that are comfortable centralizing more workflows in one platform

5. BigTime

Best for: Accounting, engineering, and consulting firms where time, expenses, and billing are the priority.

BigTime was founded in Chicago in 2002, and has been a key player in the PSA industry in the US for over two decasdes.

BigTime focuses on making it faster to:

• Capture time and expenses
• Push data into accounting tools like QuickBooks and Xero
• Generate invoices and manage WIP

Over time it has added forecasting, utilization reporting, and compliance features, including support for DCAA-compliant timesheets.

Strengths:

• Optimized for time and billing workflows
• Good choice when your accounting system is the center of gravity
• Clear improvements for firms that struggle with late timesheets and slow invoicing

Things to consider:

• Project management and resource planning are present but not as specialized as some other PSA tools
• Often best when finance and operations collaborate closely around time and billing

6. Workamajig

Best for: Creative agencies and in-house marketing teams that need traffic, production, and accounting in one tool.

Workamajig has been around since 2003 and is designed specifically for creative work. It combines:

• Project and traffic management
• Creative workflows, briefs, proofing, and approvals
• Resource scheduling and time tracking
• Built-in CRM and accounting

Strengths:

• Deep support for agency-specific workflows
• Single system of record for project delivery and financials
• Trusted by many mid-sized and large creative businesses

Things to consider:

• Interface can feel dated compared to newer tools
• Overkill if you do not need full accounting and agency-specific workflows in one platform

7. NetSuite OpenAir

Best for: Larger professional services organizations already invested in the Oracle NetSuite ecosystem.

NetSuite OpenAir is a mature PSA platform that focuses on:

• Project planning and scheduling
• Resource management and capacity planning
• Time and expense tracking
• Project financials, billing, and revenue recognition

It is a strong option for firms that want PSA deeply integrated with NetSuite ERP and are comfortable with longer implementations.

Things to consider:

• Often considered complex for smaller teams
• Configuration and change management can be heavy
• Typically more expensive than many mid-market PSA tools
• Has a steep learning curve – teams might consider simpler alternatives

How to choose the right Kantata alternative

When firms move away from Kantata or compare it with other platforms, the decision usually comes down to a few practical questions.

1. How important is resource planning and project staffing depth?

If your main problem is staffing projects efficiently, balancing utilization, and forecasting capacity across multiple teams, prioritize tools with strong:

• Resource planning views at person and project level
• Skills-based allocation
• Planned vs actual hour tracking
• Clear utilization reporting for both billable and non-billable work

Operating.app, Scoro, and Productive are often shortlisted here.

2. Where should financials and invoicing live?

If you prefer to keep your finance system as the “source of truth,” look for:

• Clean APIs and direct integrations
• Invoice generation either in the PSA or in the finance tool
• Flexible export and reconciliation flows

All of the tools listed here do fairly well in this category. Compare integration possibilities and look for a platform with a solid REST API.

3. How much complexity can your team realistically handle?

Some PSA tools are closer to ERPs. They cover a wide surface area but require:

• Dedicated admins
• Heavier implementations
• More training time

Kantata and NetSuite OpenAir often sit in this category.

If you want your staffing managers, project leads, and partners to use the tool daily without extra layers, focus on:

• A clear, modern UI
• Fast ways to adjust staffing mid-week
• Simple reporting that does not require exporting to Excel

Operating.app, Productive, and Scoro typically score better here.

4. What is your budget and time horizon?

Kantata sits at the higher end of PSA pricing, both in license cost and implementation investment.

If you want:

• Transparent per-user pricing
• Lower entry cost
• Faster onboarding and shorter time-to-value

then alternatives like Operating.app, BigTime, and Productive are often easier to get live quickly.

Summary: When does Operating.app make sense vs Kantata?

If you are a consulting firm, digital agency, or other professional services business that:

• Lives and dies by utilization and margins
• Needs practical resource management, capacity planning, and project staffing
• Wants time tracking and invoicing aligned with how your teams actually work
• Prefers a modern, focused PSA instead of an ERP-style implementation

then Operating.app is a strong Kantata alternative to test.

It gives you the core PSA capabilities you need, avoids unnecessary complexity, and connects cleanly to the CRM and finance stack you already use.

You can start with resource planning and project staffing, then expand into timesheets and invoicing as your team is ready.

FAQ

What is Kantata (formerly Mavenlink)?

Kantata is a professional services automation (PSA) platform created from the merger of Mavenlink and Kimble Applications. It is designed for larger professional services organizations that need detailed project accounting, resource management, and revenue recognition.

Why do teams look for Kantata alternatives?

Common reasons include slower planning workflows, dependence on spreadsheet exports for reporting, manual steps required for accounting integrations, rigid week-to-week resource scheduling, and limited visibility into non-billable work that affects utilization accuracy.

What are the best Kantata alternatives for consulting firms?

Strong alternatives include Operating.app, Scoro, BQE CORE, Productive, BigTime, Workamajig, and NetSuite OpenAir. These tools support resource planning, project staffing, time tracking, and project financials with varying levels of depth and complexity.

How should I choose between Kantata and its alternatives?

Start from your operational priorities. If you need modern resource planning and utilization visibility with simpler day-to-day workflows, tools like Operating.app, Productive, or Scoro may be a better fit. If you depend on advanced project accounting or revenue recognition, platforms like BQE CORE, BigTime, or NetSuite OpenAir may be stronger.

Is there a more affordable alternative to Kantata?

Yes. Several PSA platforms, including Operating.app, Productive, and BigTime, offer more transparent pricing and faster onboarding while still covering the core needs of resource planning, time tracking, and invoicing.