Why start with only three numbers?

Each number needs a definition, a source and a reconciliation before anyone trusts it, and that work multiplies with every tile you add. Get three right, then add the next one people ask for.

Does Xero make a Claude connector for Xero Practice Manager?

Not that we could find as at November 2026. Xero’s Claude connector reads Xero accounting data, read-only. Practice Manager data reaches Claude through third-party services or through exports you upload yourself. MCP for accountants, explained covers how connectors work.

Can the dashboard update itself every morning?

Not through a connector that fetches only when you ask. A daily view would need a scheduled task in your AI tool or a developer build against the XPM API. For three monthly numbers, a monthly refresh is usually enough.

Is it safe to give Claude all our practice data?

It can be, on a business plan, read-only, with a rule on who sees the output. The risk is less the model than the breadth: one connection holds every client’s job history and every staff member’s time. Is AI safe for client data? covers what to check first.

Do I still need the XPM reports?

Yes. They are the check. The dashboard is a faster way to see and slice the numbers; Xero Practice Manager stays the record you reconcile to.

Free template

Practice dashboard spec: three numbers and a starter prompt

A dashboard nobody trusts is worse than the monthly export. This spec makes you decide three numbers, what counts in each and where each comes from, before Claude builds anything, then sets the access, the reconciliation tolerance, the refresh routine and who may see it. The starter prompt at the end turns the spec into a first view. Product details were checked against vendor pages on 9 November 2026.

Updated 10 November 2026 · Editable Word document (.docx) · Free with a firm profile

Free with a firm profile

Get the editable practice dashboard spec

Or build it with AI

Open Claude or ChatGPT with the prompt filled in. It writes the finished document for your firm straight away, then asks a few questions to tailor it. No client data needed.

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Works without client data. Don't paste client names, tax file numbers or ledgers into an AI tool your firm hasn't approved for them. AI data safety playbook.

How to use it

How to use this template

Write the definitions before anything else

Decide exactly what counts in each number: draft invoices, disbursements, jobs with no due date. The definitions are what Claude follows and what you check against later. The read your firm’s numbers playbook explains which three to start with.
Choose the access route and leave writes off

A read-only connector service, a developer build against the Xero Practice Manager API, or exports uploaded to a Claude project. A dashboard never needs to change a job.
Build one view with the starter prompt

Run it in a Claude project so the definitions stay with it, and ask Claude to show its working for each number. Build a Xero Practice Manager dashboard with Claude walks through it step by step.
Reconcile before you share it

Compare each number with the Xero Practice Manager reports and Xero aged receivables for one month-end, within the tolerance you set.
Put the refresh in someone’s calendar

Name the day and the person, and save the prompt where they can find it.

The template

[Firm name] practice dashboard spec

Replace everything in [square brackets].

Spec details

Item	Detail
Firm	[Firm name]
Dashboard owner	[Name, role]
Signed off by	[Partner name, date]
Spec version	[Date]

1. The three numbers

Number	Starting definition	Source	Our definition
WIP	Time and costs recorded on jobs but not yet invoiced, in dollars and by job.	Xero Practice Manager	[Definition]
Lockup days	WIP days plus debtor days. WIP days: month-end WIP divided by trailing twelve months of revenue, times 365. Debtor days: month-end receivables over the same revenue, times 365.	WIP from Xero Practice Manager; receivables from the firm’s Xero ledger	[Definition]
Jobs overdue	Open jobs past their due date, by staff member and client.	Xero Practice Manager	[Definition]

2. What counts

Question	Our answer
Draft invoices	[Billed or not]
Disbursements	[In or out of WIP]
Write-offs	[How they are treated]
Jobs with no due date	[Shown or excluded]
Breakdowns	[By partner, manager, client, job type]

3. Access

Item	Our answer
Route	[Read-only connector service, developer build against the XPM API, or exports uploaded to a Claude project]
Connector service (if used) and where we read its documentation	[Name, link, date read]
What it reads	[Records it can read, from its documentation]
Writes off by default, and confirmed off	[Yes or no, date confirmed]
Claude account	[Firm-managed account on business terms]
Login used for the connection	[A login with only the access the dashboard needs]
How to disconnect it	[Steps; done when the person who set it up leaves]

As at November 2026 we found no Xero-built Claude connector for Xero Practice Manager (Xero’s own connector reads accounting data), so live practice data reaches Claude through a third-party service or through exports. Whichever service you use, check which records it reads, whether writes are off by default, which Claude plans it needs and how you disconnect it.

4. Reconciliation

Number	Check against	Tolerance	Result at [month-end date]
WIP	Xero Practice Manager WIP report	[Amount or %]	[Matches, or why not]
Lockup days	XPM WIP report and Xero aged receivables	[Amount or %]	[Matches, or why not]
Jobs overdue	Xero Practice Manager jobs list	[Number]	[Matches, or why not]

Differences usually come from definitions, not arithmetic: write-offs, draft invoices, disbursements, jobs with no due date, or a date-range limit on the connector. Fix the definition, rebuild and check again. If a number will not reconcile, take it from the XPM report by export and keep the rest live.

5. Refresh and who sees it

Item	Our answer
Refresh day	[Day of month]
Run by	[Name]
Where the saved prompt lives	[Claude project instruction or skill]
Who may see the dashboard	[Names or roles]

Do not assume the dashboard updates itself. Most connector services fetch only when you ask, so the refresh is a routine: open the project, run the saved prompt, compare the headline numbers with last month’s.

6. Data-safety checks

It runs on a firm-managed Claude account under business terms, as our AI policy requires.
Staff time and productivity figures are personal information about the team; we have decided who may see them.
We have read the connector service’s data terms and recorded where and when.
We can disconnect the connector in under a minute, and we do when the person who set it up leaves.

7. Starter prompt

You are building an internal practice dashboard for [firm name] from our Xero Practice Manager data. Using only read tools, pull open jobs, time entries, job costs and invoices for [date range], and receivables from our Xero organisation. Calculate three numbers as at [month-end date]: WIP, defined as [definition]; lockup days, defined as WIP days plus debtor days using trailing twelve months of revenue; and jobs overdue, defined as open jobs past their due date. Show each number with the calculation and any records you excluded. If a figure is not available from the data, say so instead of estimating. Then build a single-page interactive dashboard with the three numbers at the top, a breakdown by [partner or manager] below, and the data pull date in the header. Do not create, update or delete anything.

Naming a product is not an endorsement. This is general information, not security or legal advice.

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

Why start with only three numbers?: Each number needs a definition, a source and a reconciliation before anyone trusts it, and that work multiplies with every tile you add. Get three right, then add the next one people ask for.
Does Xero make a Claude connector for Xero Practice Manager?: Not that we could find as at November 2026. Xero’s Claude connector reads Xero accounting data, read-only. Practice Manager data reaches Claude through third-party services or through exports you upload yourself. MCP for accountants, explained covers how connectors work.
Can the dashboard update itself every morning?: Not through a connector that fetches only when you ask. A daily view would need a scheduled task in your AI tool or a developer build against the XPM API. For three monthly numbers, a monthly refresh is usually enough.
Is it safe to give Claude all our practice data?: It can be, on a business plan, read-only, with a rule on who sees the output. The risk is less the model than the breadth: one connection holds every client’s job history and every staff member’s time. Is AI safe for client data? covers what to check first.
Do I still need the XPM reports?: Yes. They are the check. The dashboard is a faster way to see and slice the numbers; Xero Practice Manager stays the record you reconcile to.

More templates

The thinking behind these: AI for accountants and bookkeepers: what actually works.