As a PM, I can plan finance

Project managers (PM), and other managers (PMA, PMO, PfM, PgM), can plan the project financial accounts at PLAN > Plan Finance:

Finance plan is represented with text and a chart:

The Finance chart is a waterfall chart. Incomes and project margin are depicted in grey color. Negative cash flows are in red: expenses, reserves, and costs.

Sections below show the detailed data:

  • Project Margin (Planned): Planned project direct margin calculated as incomes – expenses – reserves – costs. Headers include the project margin percent calculated as project margin over incomes.
  • Incomes (Planned): Incomes planned to cover the project finance requirements. Incomes often occur in incremental amounts and may not be evenly distributed.
  • Expenses (Planned): Some project expenses examples are per diem, meals, travels, mileage, lodging, fixed price contracts, etc.
  • Reserves (Planned): Contingency reserves are planned for known risks with active response strategies. Management reserves are planned for unforeseen work that is within scope of the project.
  • Costs (Planned): Costs are linked to “resource utilization” such as team member work hours, software as a service, etc. Some project expenses examples are per diem, meals, travels, mileage, lodging, fixed price contracts, etc.

Open section Add Fund > Plan New Fund to enter the following data:

  • Name: Name assigned to the finance item.
  • Work Package: Work package including this finance item. It can be chan
  • Amount: Monetary amount for this finance item.
  • D ate: Best estimate of the date for this cash flow. This field is optional.
  • Description: Finance item description.

Click button [Add] to add a new finance item. The new entry will appear in the corresponding section, in chronological order, and the amount will be added to the finance chart representation.

Any finance item can be deleted by clicking the “Delete” button, or updated by clicking the button [Save]:

Control finance can be performed at each review date at CONTROL > Control Finance, by comparing actual versus planned amounts and dates. Cumulated variances and forecasts can be calculated for the project itself and each work package.

Frequently Asked Questions
What is shown in the finance waterfall chart?

The chart shows planned incomes and margin in grey, and negative cash flows like expenses, reserves, and costs in red.

What are the types of finance items that can be added?

You can add incomes, expenses, reserves, and costs by specifying the amount, date, description, and work package.

Can finance plans be updated later?

Yes, finance items can be edited or deleted. You can also control and compare actual vs. planned values at each review date.