Set up project settings

Settings › Project Settings has eight tabs. You see only the tabs your permissions allow. Set up the first five before the first project; Period Close, Finance & Reports and Migration are for running and reporting on projects later.

Tab	What it controls
Resource Type	Kinds of resource, for example Field Labour or Engineering, each with the Default Expense Account their cost posts to.
Resource Role	Roles within a type, for example Electrical Technician, with a unit of measure, a cost rate, and optionally a billing rate or markup for time-and-materials invoices.
Location	The Inventory Consumption Location: the stock location projects consume items from by default.
Service Lines & Locations	Service lines (for example GEN General) and project locations used to classify projects.
Readiness & Features	A check of what projects need before they can post, a Seed button, and the Optional project features switches.
Period Close	The project month-end: work in progress, proposed adjustments, closing the month and reconciliation.
Finance & Reports	Forecast and margin alert thresholds, variance reason codes, and the monthly country profitability emails.
Migration	Moving existing projects onto the newer project modules, with a dry run and sign-off.

Steps

1. Open Settings › Project Settings

   In the menu on the left, select Settings, then Project Settings. The Resource Type tab opens first.

   

   1. Project Settings in the Settings menu.
   2. The tabs.
   3. Add Resource Type.
   4. Default Expense Account: where this type's cost posts.
2. Add resource types

   Select Add Resource Type. Enter a Resource Name and choose a Default Expense Account (both required), then save.

3. Add resource roles

   Open Resource Role and select Add Resource Role. Fill in:

   • Role Name, Resource Type and Unit of Measure (all required).
   • Cost rate, in your base currency (required).
   • Under Billing (time and materials), optionally a billing rate or a Billing markup (%) (0 to 1000). Time-and-materials invoices bill this role's time at its billing rate; with no billing rate, at cost plus the markup; with neither, at cost. A markup on the project's contract line takes precedence over both.
4. Choose the consumption location

   Open Location, choose the Inventory Consumption Location and select Save.

5. Add service lines and project locations

   Open Service Lines & Locations. Under Service lines and Project locations, select Add to add each one. A service line can be deactivated with Deactivate.

6. Check readiness and switch on features

   Open Readiness & Features.

   

   1. Readiness says ready or how many items are left to fix. Check again re-runs the check. Seed adds the standard cost categories and a general service line if they are missing.
   2. Accounting project posting group: whether projects post from account settings or from project posting groups, and whether the default group has its accounts.
   3. Optional project features: which features are on.

   The readiness check also covers Cost categories, Service lines, Dimensions and Approvals. Further down, under Optional project features, tick each feature you use: project cost ledger, budgets and spend gate, contracts, revenue recognition, period close, forecasts, profitability, country reporting, project time from HR timesheets, and the manufacturing sector options. Features marked (coming later) can't be switched on yet.

7. Set finance alerts (optional)

   Open Finance & Reports. Under Project finance settings, set:

   • Forecast approval threshold (%): a forecast whose estimate at completion is above the approved budget by more than this needs approval.
   • Margin erosion alert (points), CPI alert below and EAC growth alert (%): when to alert on a worsening project.

   Select Save settings. On the same tab, Add reason adds variance reason codes, and New subscription sets up the Monthly Country Profitability emails (recipients and day of month).

Next

• Set up project posting groups
• Settings overview