Estimated Fee Allocation Methods
If the CRM, CRM Plus, or Resource Planning module is activated, you can use the Project Forecast report to allocate your estimated fees for projects across time to help you forecast your future revenue stream. To do that, you use the Estimated Fee tab on the Contract Management form in the Projects hub to select an allocation method for estimated fees.
You select an allocation method at the project level of the work breakdown structure (WBS). That allocation method then applies to all WBS elements at lower levels of the structure.
Vantagepointprovides six allocation methods.
Definition: Total Estimated Fee
The allocations assign all or part of the total estimated fee amount to one or more dates on which you expect to receive payment.
- For an In Pursuit Project: For a project assigned to an In Pursuit stage, the total estimated fee is the amount entered in the Estimated Fee field in the Summary pane under Pursuit Details. This amount is only entered at the project level of the WBS, so allocations only occur at the project level.
- For a Won Project: For a project assigned to a Won stage, the total estimated fee is the total compensation amount entered for the currently selected WBS element on the Compensation tab of the Contract Management form, less the job-to-date (JTD) amount of that fee that has already been earned. For Won projects, you can allocate estimated fees at the project level and for any lower-level WBS elements for which not-yet-earned compensation amounts exist.
User-Defined Allocation Methods
Use Fee Allocation Grid with Specific Dates Method
Select this method to allocate the total estimated fee to specific dates. This activates the Estimated Fee Allocation grid. Use this grid to identify the dates on which you expect to receive fee payments and the payment amounts. This feature is useful for companies who receive revenue for a project at irregular intervals, rather than monthly or quarterly. For example, you could submit a fee schedule with a proposal that specifies that an inspection will occur on a specific date and, upon completion, a payment will be due.
For this method, you can either enter the allocations in an empty grid, or if allocation templates have been set up, you can select a template that provides default allocations. if you select a template, you can still change any of the default allocation information in the Estimated Fee Allocation grid, if necessary.
The Project Forecast report only spreads estimated fees to future dates. It ignores any fee allocation dates that are earlier than the date the report is generated.
| Description | Fee Date | Percent of Total Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Fee Payment 1 | 01/31/2019 | 25 |
| Fee Payment 2 | 0315/2019 | 25 |
| Fee Payment 3 | 06/30/2019 | 50 |
This method allocates 2250 as expected fee revenue received at the project level to the first date, 2250 to the second date, and 4500 to the third date. For phase 01, it allocates 250 to the first date, 250 to the second date, and 500 to the third date.
| Description | Time Frame | Time from Estimated Start Date | Percent of Total Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee Payment 1 | Months | 2 | 25 |
| Fee Payment 2 | Months | 5 | 25 |
| Fee Payment 3 | Months | 11 | 50 |
| Description | Fee Date | Percent of Total Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Fee Payment 1 | 03/01/2019 (2 months after est. start date) | 25 |
| Fee Payment 2 | 06/01/2019 (5 months after est. start date) | 25 |
| Fee Payment 3 | 12/01/2019 (11 months after est. start date) | 50 |
If you make no changes to these default allocations, Vantagepoint will allocate 2250 as expected fee revenue received at the project level to the first date, 2250 to the second date, and 4500 to the third date. For phase 01, it allocates 500 to the first date, 500 to the second date, and 1000 to the third date.
Pre-Defined Allocation Methods
Spread Evenly Across Time Scale MethodSelect this method to spread the total estimated fee in even amounts across the units of a time scale, between the estimated start date (the date entered for the Estimated Start milestone for the project) and the estimated completion date (the date entered for the Estimated Completion milestone for the project).
The Project Forecast report only spreads estimated fees to future dates. It ignores any fee allocation dates that are earlier than the date the report is generated.
Example: An in pursuit project has 10,000 in Estimated Fee in the Summary pane, the Estimated Start milestone date is 01/13/2019, and the Estimated Completion milestone date is 03/23/2019. If you select Weekly in Time Scale on the Estimated Fee tab, this method allocates 1,000 as expected fee revenue to the first day of each of the 10 weeks between the estimated start date and the estimated completion date.
Example: A won project has 10,000 in Total Compensation on the Compensation tab at the project level and 2,000 in that field for phase 01. JTD compensation already earned is 1,000 for phase 01. The Estimated Start milestone date is 01/13/2019, and the Estimated Completion milestone date is 03/23/2019. If you select Weekly in Time Scale on the Estimated Fee tab, this method allocates 900 as expected fee revenue received at the project level to the first day of each of the 10 weeks between the estimated start date and the estimated completion date. For phase 01, it allocates100 to the first day of each of the 10 weeks.
Allocate All Fees to Estimated Start Date Method
Select this method to allocate the total estimated fee to the project's estimated start date (the date entered for the Estimated Start milestone for the project).
The Project Forecast report only spreads estimated fees to future dates. If the estimated start date is prior to the report date, the total estimated fee amount is allocated to the date the report is generated.
Example: An in pursuit project has 10,000 in Estimated Fee in the Summary pane, and the Estimated Start milestone date is 01/15/2019. This method allocates 10,000 as expected fee revenue received on 01/15/2019
Example: A Won project has 10,000 in Total Compensation on the Compensation tab at the project level and 2,000 in that field for phase 01. JTD compensation already earned is 1,000 for phase 01. The Estimated Start milestone date is 01/15/2019. As expected fee revenue received on 01/15/2019, this method allocates 9,000 at the project level and 1,000 for phase 01.
Allocate All Fees to Close Date Method
Select this method to allocate the total estimated fee to the date the project is won (the date in Won/Lost Date under Win/Loss Details in the Projects hub Summary pane).
The Project Forecast report only spreads estimated fees to future dates. If the won/lost date is prior to the report date, the total estimated fee amount is allocated to the date the report is generated.
Example: A won project has 10,000 in Total Compensation on the Compensation tab at the project level and 2,000 in that field for phase 01. No compensation has been earned yet. The date in Won/Lost Date is 01/15/2019. As expected fee revenue received on 01/15/2019, this method allocates 10,000 at the project level and 2,000 for phase 01.
Allocate All Fees to Estimated Completion Date Method
Select this method to allocate the total estimated fee to the project's estimated completion date (the date entered for the Estimated Completion milestone for the project).
The Project Forecast report only spreads estimated fees to future dates. If the estimated completion date is prior to the report date, the total estimated fee amount is allocated to the date the report is generated.
Example: An in pursuit project has 10,000 in Estimated Fee in the Summary pane, and the Estimated Completion milestone date is 07/31/2019. This method allocates 10,000 as expected fee revenue received on 07/31/2019
Example: A won project has 10,000 in Total Compensation on the Compensation tab at the project level and 2,000 in that field for phase 01. JTD compensation already earned is 1,000 for phase 01. The Estimated Completion milestone date is 07/31/2019. As expected fee revenue received on 07/31/2019, this method allocates 9,000 at the project level and 1,000 for phase 01.