Table of Contents
Overview and Highlights
When overhead is embedded into license rates, agencies face under-recovery risk, budget volatility, and audit exposure. Traditional IT rate setting models weren’t built for today’s financial and compliance pressures.
The Challenge: Volatility & Audit Risk
Many organizations recover fixed costs through variable consumption. When usage drops:
Revenue Declines: Overhead recovery collapses
Budget Instability: Year-end positions become unpredictable
Compliance Risk: Inconsistent allocation increases audit exposure
Efficiency shouldn’t destabilize IT funding, but under legacy models, it does.
The Brightfin Framework: A Defensible Two-Part Model
The Brightfin IT Rate Setting Guide outlines a practical structure that separates fixed from variable costs:
Fixed Monthly Base Services Fee: Stable overhead recovery using drivers like FTE or endpoints
Consumption-Based Charges: Transparent unit pricing tied to actual usage
Documented Allocation Methodology: Aligned to A-87/2 CFR Part 225 for federal compliance
The Results: Predictability & Control
Financial stability regardless of consumption variance, transparent, audit-ready cost allocation, and reduced agency disputes and budget shocks.
Build a rate model that reflects economic reality and protects IT funding.