At AutoPilot, we believe that planning is fundamental for a healthy business. Planning provides a current overview of the final financial performance during all stages in projects and makes you aware of which tasks are ahead. In this blog, we will focus on the gains you reap by combining planning with an allocation of fees to activities.
The advantages of allocating fees to activities
The primary gain by allocating fees to activities is that you will receive early warnings even earlier. If you allocate the fees to activities, then you will already know during the preliminary stages of the project if the finances of the stage are challenged. Early warnings allow the project leader to consider the progression of the stage and the rates of return for it. For example, it provides the opportunity for you to ask for further money in time, if this is an option. It strengthens healthy business and gives a return on the bottom line.
Another advantage of allocating fees to activities is that you get a current rate of return for the individual activities. A current rate of return per stage provides you with an additional layer of information which contributes to superior quoting. With this knowledge, you can find out if your original planning of projects measures up to reality. This way you become better at planning and develop bids which is essential in the architect and engineering industries.
The advantages in short
The advantages of allocating fees to activities
The primary gain by allocating fees to activities is that you will receive early warnings even earlier. If you allocate the fees to activities, then you will already know during the preliminary stages of the project if the finances of the stage are challenged. Early warnings allow the project leader to consider the progression of the stage and the rates of return for it. For example, it provides the opportunity for you to ask for further money in time, if this is an option. It strengthens healthy business and gives a return on the bottom line.
Another advantage of allocating fees to activities is that you get a current rate of return for the individual activities. A current rate of return per stage provides you with an additional layer of information which contributes to superior quoting. With this knowledge, you can find out if your original planning of projects measures up to reality. This way you become better at planning and develop bids which is essential in the architect and engineering industries.
The function itself provides the project leader with increased flexibility regarding fee allowances which continuously can be linked to exactly those activities that the money is provided for. This way the money goes where the work is. All in all, the project leader manages the project superiorly.
Example: Original fee and a fee allowance divided between stages.
How are fees allocated to activities?
As we have now presented the advantages of allocating fees to activities it is of course pivotal to know how to make use of it. First, the function must be activated in Configuration > Miscellaneous 2 > put a check mark next to ‘Option to percentage distribute the fee onto activities’.
When the function is activated the project leader, department leaders and management may access it from two places:
- From Fee breakdown > double-click the work package > [Allocation of fee to activities]
- From Planning > right-click the work package > [Allocation of fee to activities]
In the screen the project leader can allocate the fee to the various activities by entering the percentage of the fee that should be allocated to the selected activity.
