The office's finances

Finances shows all of the office's money in one place: what came in, the projects' expenses, the office's own expenses and the labour cost — and what is left, the net. A project's amounts are written in that project; here they are only added up.

Which pages does it have?

• Finances › Overview — the amounts of the period you choose, from what was collected (with VAT) to the net result, the twelve months and the «Upcoming payments».
• Finances › Income — every payment received in the period, with its project and whether a legal fee was written for it.
• Finances › Project expenses — every project's expenses and the partners' fees, and what is still unpaid.
• Finances › Office expenses — the office's own expenses: rent, power, software, the accountant… They are written and corrected here.
• Finances › Recurring bills — the bills that come back; each period becomes an office expense by itself.
• Finances › Labour cost — what the team costs and how much of it went to projects (How do I set and work out the labour cost?).

A period's expenses, and the copy for your accountant, come out as the «Office expenses» report: Analysis › Reports › New report (The «Office expenses» report).

How do I write an office expense?

Under Office expenses, with a description, a category and a supplier. If you tick «This is the official amount (invoice / receipt)» and write the net amount and VAT, the expense counts for the accountant from that day; without it the expense is unofficial: it counts in Finances but does not go to the accountant. «Paid» closes a payment; an expense you delete goes to «Deleted records».

What are recurring bills?

A bill that comes back (every month, every two months, every year…) opens each period as an expense by itself. If the amount changes every time, the period waits for its amount. A few days before it falls due, the payment shows in Tasks and in the «Upcoming payments» panel on Home; how many days before, what shows and whether a notice comes on the due day (bell and email — off at first) you set under Settings › Finances, with the expense categories.

Where are the documents?

In ErgoCloud, in the «Finance» folder, month by month: each office expense's file goes there with its expense. Only whoever sees the office's amounts sees the folder.

How is the net worked out?

The net is without VAT, as every project's result is: VAT is not the office's money. The Overview shows it step by step:

• Received (with VAT) — what came into the till, as on Home.
• Net income — the payments without their VAT.
• Project expenses and office expenses — without VAT.
• Labour cost.
• Net result = net income − project expenses − office expenses − labour cost.

An expense written without a net amount and VAT (unofficial) has no VAT breakdown: it counts at its total, and the Overview says how many such expenses there are, with a link to them. The office's expenses are not spread over the projects: a project's result stays its own.

Net or «Project contribution»?

Under Team › Time & cost the monthly Project contribution is what the projects left: the agreed fees less the partners, the project expenses and the team's time on projects. It does not take off the office's expenses or the time off projects — which is why it is larger than the net. The office's net is only here, on the Overview.

Who sees what?

Finances is seen by whoever sees the office's amounts:

Office expenses and recurring bills are written and corrected by:

Labour cost needs its own permission. Without it, it appears nowhere in Finances, and the net is shown before labour cost («Net (before labour cost)»), so it cannot be worked out by subtraction: