The Dirty Dozen: How Fixing 12 Clients Can Transform Your MSP’s Profitability
Every MSP has them.
The clients that chew through resources, tie up your best techs, and constantly erode margin. You might not even see it clearly — because you’re looking at total revenue instead of what’s left after the work is done.
That’s where the Dirty Dozen process comes in.
By identifying your 12 worst-performing clients by gross margin and taking decisive action, you can reclaim profit, free up your team, and even strengthen your company’s value — without adding a single new client.
Find the Real Culprits (It’s Not Always Who You Think)
MSP owners often assume they “know” who their problem clients are. But gut feel can be wrong.
The Dirty Dozen process starts with a data-driven review:
Pull gross margin by client (not just revenue).
Rank all clients from highest to lowest.
Identify the 12 worst performers.
Spoiler: Some “great” clients on paper are quietly tanking your margins.
Diagnose the Margin Problem
Not every unprofitable client has the same issue — and you shouldn’t treat them the same way.
For each client in your Dirty Dozen, ask:
Are we overservicing? (Too many tickets, endless scope creep?)
Are we undercutting? (Rates that haven’t been raised in years?)
Are we misaligned? (Clients buying services they don’t value or shouldn’t have?)
This diagnosis shapes your plan for each account.
Take Action — Fix, Raise, or Exit
Once you know why the margin is broken, you can decide how to fix it:
Fix Cost Issues – Streamline workflows, set boundaries, and tighten ticket management.
Raise Rates – Have the tough conversation and realign pricing to reality.
Offboard the Client – If they won’t align, help them find a better fit elsewhere.
Think of it as a “profit triage” — either heal it, adjust it, or remove it.
Why the Dirty Dozen Matters for Valuation
Fixing 12 clients won’t just improve today’s P&L — it will boost the future sale price of your MSP.
Buyers care deeply about gross margin health.
High-margin clients = stable, scalable revenue.
Low-margin clients = risk, chaos, and churn.
Cleaning up your “Dirty Dozen” sends a clear signal to investors: this MSP knows its numbers and runs with discipline.
Key Takeaways
The Dirty Dozen process identifies the 12 worst-performing clients by gross margin — and forces you to address them.
Each client falls into one of three buckets: fix costs, raise rates, or offboard.
Cleaning up your bottom 12 clients can dramatically improve margins, free up your team, and increase company valuation.
Want to run your own Dirty Dozen analysis?
Join the Value Creation Academy — and learn how to track client profitability, clean up your “bottom 12,” and turn every client relationship into a value driver for your MSP.