Anyone running a successful software development agency in 2025? I have a few hard questions

I've been running a lean software consultancy (not SaaS) for 1–2 years, doing custom builds for clients. Things are going fine, but I'm at a point where I want to seriously understand what "healthy" looks like financially and operationally. Specifically:

1. What is a healthy gross profit margin (in % terms) for a software agency in 2025? I mean actual gross margins after direct labor costs, not revenue. We run lean: remote team, minimal overhead. I want to know what you’re hitting, what’s realistic, and what’s underperforming based on real agency experience.
2. How do you manage employee time?
   • Do you rigorously track hours?
   • What software tools do you use for this?
   • Do you factor in a productivity rate? For example, if someone is contracted for 40 hours a week, do you actually calculate billable value as 30–35 hours?
   • How do you forecast availability and project delivery time accurately?

I’m trying to figure out if I’m missing something fundamental about how the best-run agencies operate. I’ve made a lot of mistakes and am trying to course-correct before scaling further.

Any hard-earned advice, metrics, or personal experience would help.