Large SR&ED Firms vs a Focused Team: What Founders Should Know
How large traditional SR&ED advisory firms differ from practitioner-led teams: junior delivery, handoffs, pricing, and when each model fits.
Not all SR&ED help is the same. A large national advisory firm and a focused engineering-led team both file T661s — but the experience, pricing, and audit defensibility can diverge sharply.
Read our large firms comparison for a side-by-side view. Here is what founders should watch for.
Who actually writes your claim?
At many large firms:
- Junior analysts draft narratives and financial schedules
- Senior sign-off happens late — sometimes days before filing
- Your technical story passes through several hands who never met your engineers
A focused team keeps practitioners closer to the work — especially important when CRA asks follow-up questions about architectural decisions only your CTO can answer.
Handoffs and scattered files
Large engagements often split:
- Business development → project manager → technical writer → reviewer → filer
Each handoff risks lost context. Claims spread across email threads and spreadsheets are harder to defend in audit than a single platform with document extraction, financials, and T661 in one place.
Pricing models
| Model | Typical structure | Founder consideration | |-------|-------------------|----------------------| | Contingency | % of refund | Aligns incentives but cost scales with success | | Flat software fee | Per fiscal year | Predictable; you invest founder time | | Hybrid | Software + advisory | Expert review without full outsourcing |
Contingency vs clarity is worth reading before you sign an engagement letter.
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When a large firm makes sense
- You want zero day-to-day involvement
- Claim is very large and internal bandwidth is nil
- You already have a trusted relationship
When a focused alternative makes sense
- You want visibility into the claim as it is built
- Technical nuance matters (software, ML, hardware)
- You prefer transparent pricing and software you keep year over year
Due diligence questions
Ask any provider:
- Who writes lines 242 / 244 / 246 — and will they talk to my technical lead?
- Where does my data live during the engagement?
- What happens if CRA reviews this claim 18 months later?
- Can I see a redacted example narrative in my industry?
Next steps
Unlock your full SR&ED potential.
Join hundreds of founders who never miss a dollar. Subscribe to our newsletter for insider tips, or book a free consultation to see how much you could claim.