Logging and billing for changes that come to the project after the quote has been made is a simple process with our Financial Suite.
In this scenario, we've got a project we're billing on a Fixed Cost basis, but there has been some alteration in the process that has required an extra item be noted in your quote/be billed for. This might be in the form of an added software expense, realising something will take longer than was quoted for, or any number of reasons.
You'll also need to agree with your client about how this variation will be billed. Is it a fixed cost, or a set number of hours that will be added? If it's a variation that requires more hours be tracked, will they be billed at the same rate?
Creating Variations
The main advice that we have is that variations should be created as their own separate item. Remember that although your project has a certain billing type, you can change the billing type of set items as you see fit. This means you could have a Fixed Value project for $10,000.00, and then have a single item noting a variation that is for $1,000.00.
To help with this, you may want to include a Product/Service Item that notes a variation. This is especially good when your variation is a fixed value or set deliverable. For example, in the Graphic Design industry, you may have a variation package that is a fixed amount, no matter how long you spend on it.
Milestone Billing & Variations
If you do Milestone Billing, be sure to include your variation in a Phase that does not have a fixed value, else it will not be included. In the example below, we have a project with predominantly fixed billing, but our planning phase has some variation. You may not have an entire phase worth of tasks to put here; in that case, make sure your variation exists in its own phase. In that scenario, you could also just add the variations value to the relevant phases' fixed cost total, however, having its own item/phase makes for better note keeping.
If your variation is an hourly one, it may make sense to create your variation item under the overflow task, and then affix your variation rate. Allocate the appropriate overflow hours, and now your project includes a variation that you can Quote/Bill from.
Adding Variations to Quotes
To include your variation in a new Quote copy, you'll effectively want to recreate your invoice and mark it with the same Quote number, but with a suffix like 'A' at the end (e.g. Quote 1234A as a variation from Quote 1234). Once again, select all items. This will mean a full itemised Quote, with an additional item.
Adding Variations to Invoices
There is less to think about here, as whether you are progressively invoicing or just submitting one big invoice at project completion, the variation will be included. As long as it has a value associated, we will not only include it in your invoice but also keep track of the fact that is has been invoiced for, as to ensure it is invoiced for again.
In the situation where your Variation Item is not a Task Item but a quantity based Item, you'll want to make sure you engage the below selection:
On the next screen, you'll be able to elect whether the variation exists within its own invoice or is included in an invoice with other items.
