Service Performance Insight

What Service Performance Insight does

Service Performance Insight (SPI Research) is a privately held research, training and consulting firm founded in 2006 in Knoxville, Tennessee that targets professional services organizations (PSOs) and embedded services organizations (ESOs). The firm's central asset is the Professional Services Maturity Model (PSMM), developed in 2007, a framework that scores PS performance across five pillars — leadership, client relationships, talent, service execution, and finance & operations — and underpins an annual benchmark study that has collected submissions from over 9,000 organizations across 19+ years and 165 KPIs.

SPI monetizes its research through perpetual per-report licenses sold direct via its website (report prices range from $395 to $2,795), $6,500 custom PS Maturity Assessments, consulting engagements, and training. In 2025 the firm introduced SPI Inside, an embedded benchmarking engine that exposes its dataset via secure API to PSA, ERP and other technology platforms; Kantata was signed as the first integration partner. The company operates in the US (Knoxville), UK, and Singapore, and serves IT consulting, management consulting, SaaS/embedded services, A&E firms, agencies, and accountancies/legal services.

The business is founder-led by Dave Hofferberth (Managing Director) with a small 1–10 person team, complemented by a Global Director and adjunct blog contributors. The firm reports no external institutional or venture capital investment in the provided data and operates as an independent LLC.

Name

Service Performance Insight

Legal name

Service Performance Insight, LLC

Website

https://spiresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Service Performance Insight (SPI Research) is a privately held US research, consulting and training firm that benchmarks professional services organizations through its Professional Services Maturity Model (PSMM) and SPI Inside embedded benchmarking engine, serving IT, management and embedded services PSOs globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Services Research & Benchmarking

NAICS

Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Management Consulting Services (54161), Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Competitive Intelligence & Benchmarking (BPAHALAB)

Keywords

• Professional services benchmarking
• Maturity assessment
• Services research
• PSA analytics
• Consulting benchmarks

Headquarters

HQ city

Naples

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Research Reports: SPI Research publishes and sells benchmarking reports on professional services performance, PSA adoption, AI impact, talent management, and service productization. Reports range from $395 to $2,795 per license.
2. Custom Maturity Assessments: Custom 55-page PS Maturity Assessment reports comparing organizations to peers, including executive briefing and the full benchmark report. Priced at $6,500 per assessment.
3. Consulting Services: SPI provides consulting engagements to help organizations implement maturity improvements and strategic planning based on their benchmarking data.
4. Training: Training services to help professional services organizations understand and implement the PS Maturity Model and related frameworks.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Service Performance Insight (SPI Research) sells professional services benchmarking research, the Professional Services Maturity Model™ (PSMM) framework, customized maturity assessments, and an embedded benchmarking API (SPI Inside™), supported by consulting and training services. Its core deliverable is data-driven performance intelligence and maturity scoring that helps professional services organizations benchmark against peers and prioritize operational improvements.

Product overview

SPI Research offers a comprehensive research and benchmarking ecosystem for professional services organizations centered on the Professional Services Maturity Model™ (PSMM). The portfolio consists of: the PS Maturity Model™ framework for assessing performance across leadership, client relationships, talent, service execution, and finance & operations; the annual PS Maturity Benchmark™ report (now in its 19th edition) providing industry-leading market intelligence from 9,000+ firms; the PS Maturity Assessment™ for individual organizational scoring; and SPI Inside™ - an embedded benchmarking engine that delivers SPI's proprietary benchmark data directly into PSA and ERP platforms via secure API. Additional offerings include the 2026 PSA End-User Survey, specialized reports on AI impact, service productization, talent, project-based ERP, and structural divide analysis. The company also provides consulting services, training, and the SLM³ (Service Lifecycle Management) framework.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SPI Inside™: An embedded benchmarking engine designed to bring SPI's proprietary performance data directly into PSA, ERP and other technology platforms through secure API integration. Enables partners to train in-platform AI models using SPI's proprietary dataset.

Products and services

• Professional Services Maturity Model™ (PSMM) Foundational maturity framework providing a structured approach for assessing professional services performance across five pillars: leadership, client relationships, talent, service execution, and finance & operations. Used by over 50,000 organizations.
• PS Maturity Benchmark™ Report Annual benchmark report for professional services performance improvement, now in its 19th edition, drawing on over 9,000 project- and services-based organizations and analyzing 165+ KPIs across vertical markets with five-year trend analysis. Priced at $2,495-$2,795 for full report.
• PS Maturity Assessment™ Customized 55-page assessment comparing an organization's performance to similar peers, with prioritized metrics, quantified estimated profitability gains, and a 1.5-hour executive web consulting meeting. Priced at $6,500.
• SPI Inside™ Embedded Benchmarking Engine Embedded benchmarking engine that delivers SPI's proprietary performance data directly into PSA, ERP and other technology platforms via secure API, enabling real-time benchmark insights at the point of decision and the training of in-platform AI models.
• 2026 PSA End-User Survey Report Annual survey capturing how services organizations use Professional Services Automation, exploring adoption, integration, satisfaction, forecasting, resource management, project control, and performance impact.
• 2025 Impact of AI on Professional Services Benchmark 45-page benchmark report examining AI adoption and ROI in PSOs and ESOs based on surveys from 146 organizations worldwide. Priced at $1,495.
• 2025 Service Productization Benchmark 54-page report analyzing how 113 professional services organizations manage growth through SPI's SLM³ framework. Priced at $495.
• PS Talent Benchmark 122-page study profiling talent priorities, workforce composition, compensation benchmarks, and business applications across professional services verticals and 12 job levels. Priced at $995.
• The Structural Divide Report 50-page report revealing hidden structural reasons behind persistent friction between Sales and Professional Services, with evidence-backed strategies based on insights from 400+ firms.
• 2024 Project-based ERP Report 50-page report providing guidance for professional services executives on implementing Project-based ERP solutions, analyzing data from 2,898 firms over five years. Priced at $395.
• Consulting Services Consulting engagements helping professional services organizations drive performance and growth through benchmarking, maturity assessment, and operational improvement recommendations.
• Training Services Training services supporting professional services organizations in implementing the PS Maturity Model and improving operational performance.

Quantifiable outcome

• Level 5 firms outperform Level 2 peers by +1200% in revenue growth
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• KantatacoreTechnology or Integration · 12 November 2025Kantata is the first PSA vendor to integrate SPI Inside, SPI's embedded benchmarking engine. The integration brings real-time SPI benchmarks within the Kantata platform, giving users continuous visibility into how they compare against peers. The partnership represents a milestone for embedding industry-specific benchmarking directly into professional services technology platforms.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Forrester Research: Large, publicly listed research and advisory firm covering technology, services, and B2B. Overlaps with SPI on PS operations and PSA-related research but operates at much greater scale across many verticals.
• Aberdeen Group: B2B research and benchmarking firm publishing benchmark reports across operations, finance, and services. Comparable product format (benchmark reports) though broader vertical coverage than SPI.
• Gartner: Global research and advisory giant whose IT services and Sourcing, Procurement & Vendor Management practices cover enterprise services benchmarks. Represents the large-incumbent competitor if buyers consolidate research spend.

Regional players

• PAC (Pierre Audoin Consultants): European-headquartered analyst firm covering IT services and digital transformation with benchmark research across the European services market. Comparable in methodology and audience but primarily Europe-focused.
• Consultancy.uk: UK-based research and news platform for the consulting industry, publishing rankings, salary benchmarks, and firm-level intelligence. Overlaps with SPI's management consulting segment but is more news- and ranking-oriented.

Direct peers

• Source Global Research: A research and benchmarking firm focused on the professional services industry, producing subscription research and benchmark reports. Closest direct competitor to SPI in PS-specific market intelligence.
• HFS Research: Research and analyst firm covering IT and business services, with horizontal benchmarking across operations, digital, and talent. Comparable to SPI in audience (services leaders) and product (benchmark research and reports).
• ALM Intelligence: Provides research, benchmarking, and consulting to legal and professional services firms. Overlaps with SPI's legal/accounting PS customer segment and produces adjacent benchmarking products.
• TSIA (Technology Services Industry Association): Membership organization producing benchmark research, best practices, and advisory for technology services organizations — directly overlapping SPI's IT consulting and SaaS/embedded services customer segments.

Others

• IAOP (International Association of Outsourcing Professionals): Industry association producing research, standards, and benchmarking for outsourcing and services providers. Adjacent rather than directly competitive, but produces benchmark data overlapping SPI's IT services coverage.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/service-performance-insight
• Xx.com/SPI_Research
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Service Performance Insight