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Options relating to the Time Ledger configuration are stored under the Time Ledger General Options.
To view or change these settings:
Log into the Time Ledger.
From the menu select Options.
Click on Time Ledger.
To make changes on this screen you will have to log in as MASTER.
Time Periods
A Time Period is a container into which all postings in the Time Ledger are made and stored. Once all the postings have been completed, a period can be reconciled and then closed to prevent any further changes being made.
It is important to remember that the Time Periods can be a different length to timesheets, for example you may decide to have monthly Time Periods but weekly timesheets, see Time Entry for more information.
Both the Time and Fees Ledgers have separate periods, it is recommended that both are set to the same length and run concurrently. Click here for information on setting the Fees Ledger period length.
The recommended Time Period length is One Month.
Carry Forward
When WIP is invoiced, if the value of the invoice is not the same as the WIP a recovery has been made. The recovery may either be an Over recovery if profit was made on the invoice, or an Under recovery if a loss was made. Enabling these options will make a posting to the value of the recovery as WIP on the client account.
For example, if you made a £10 profit (Over recovery) on an invoice, the client account will be credited with £10 of WIP which can be set against future WIP postings. Likewise if a loss (Under recovery) was made, the client account would be debited by the value of that loss to be set against future invoices.
It is recommended the Carry Forward options are not enabled.
Over/Under Recovery Interim Bills
If you elect to use interim bills, they will be finalised when a normal invoice is posted. If WIP is written out (matched) to these invoices, the recovery is the total value of the invoices in the cycle, less the value of WIP written out. This option determines how that recovery is allocated across the invoices involved.
In the following example there are 3 interim invoices of £50 and a final invoice of £100, the total value of WIP written out is £210 resulting in an overall Over Recovery of £40:
All to final invoice - The interim invoices each make a 100% recovery, the Over Recovery of £40 will be assigned to the final invoice, creating a 167% recovery.
Split evenly - The Over Recovery of £40 is split across the 4 invoices (each will receive £10), the interim invoices will each have a 125% recovery, the final invoice will have a 110% recovery
Split weighted by amounts - The Over Recovery of £40 is weighted across the total invoice value (£40 / £250), then assigned to the invoices. Therefore the interims will receive £8 each, creating a 119% recovery on each. The final bill will receive £16 also creating a 119% recovery. Selecting this option will mean that all invoices in the cycle will receive the same recovery percentage during the finalisation process.
It is recommended the Over/Under Recovery Interim Bills is set as All to final invoice.
Cost Estimates For Interim Bills
When viewing WIP, any interim invoices on the client account will reduce the Gross WIP by their value. If you are Recording WIP Costs, you may desire the cost of WIP to be adjusted by interim invoices in a similar way.
If Apportion from outstanding WIP balance if possible is selected, the cost element of interim invoices will be calculated where possible from the WIP currently on the client account, for example:
A client has £300 of WIP on the account costing £200, the cost is therefore 67%. If an interim invoice is posted to the account for £100, the cost can be estimated as 67% of that (that is, £67).
It may not be possible for the cost element of interim invoice to be calculated from WIP on the client account, if you are billing in advance for example. In this situation, the cost can be estimated as a percentage of the invoice value, enter this percentage in Cost percentage of billed (ex-VAT) if required.
It is not recommended that Apportion from outstanding WIP balance if possible or Cost percentage of billed (ex-VAT) are enabled.
Time Format (Input/Display)
How WIP is entered into the system will probably be determined by the method you record WIP in your practice. If time is recorded in units, you would most likely wish to make postings in the same format, this format is selected under Time Format (Input).
You may decide to display WIP in a different format to how it was entered. This format can be selected under Time Format (Display), effecting the enquiry screens and reports.
For example, half an hour (30 minutes) will be posted/displayed as follows under each option:
Decimal - 0.5
Hours:Minutes - 0:30
Standard Units - 5 (this assumes that the standard unit is 6 minutes)
It is recommended that Time Format (Input) is set to Standard Units (for example, 5)
It is recommended that Time Format (Display) is set to Hours:Minutes (for example, 30)
Account at Job Level
Job Types are the first level of analysis used within Time & Fees, they are used to record WIP and billing information against different activities such as Accounts, Business Tax and Audit. If you have elected to Use Job Types under the Practice Management (System) Options you must select this option.
The recommended setting is to select Account at Job Level.
Use Timesheets
Timesheets are used to enter WIP and expenses relating to a member of staff into the Time Ledger. If you do not use timesheets the option to post Ad Hoc WIP will be enabled on the Time Ledger Posting menu. Only small practices with one or two members of staff should consider this.
The recommended setting is to select Use Timesheets.
Record WIP Costs
Any timesheet posting should have a charge (the value of WIP posted to the client/non-charge activity). However, these postings may also have the cost the practice incurs for the time the staff member spent on the client recorded (for example, an hourly rate based on annual salary).This is known as the WIP cost.
The recommended setting is to select Record WIP Costs
Control Who Can Update WIP
When postings are made that have an affect on the Time Ledger, they are held in a pending state. Once they are updated to the Time Ledger, no changes can be made to the original posting, contra postings must be made to make any changes. It is therefore possible to restrict who can update the Time Ledger, these restrictions can be set for each staff member on the Allowances tab under staff details.
The recommended setting is to select Control Who Can Update WIP.
Control Visibility of WIP/Costs
The value of WIP is sensitive information to your practice, it may be required that certain staff are not able to view or print this information or any information from which these figures can be calculated. To restrict access in this way tick Control Visibility of WIP.
The cost of WIP is also sensitive in that it can be used to calculate staff salaries, therefore tick the option Control Visibility of Costs to restrict the staff who have access to this information.
Staff can be given permission to this information under the Allowances tab under staff details.
The recommended setting is to select both Control Visibility of WIP and Control Visibility of Costs
A number of the settings on this screen will not take effect until the Time Ledger is restarted.
If you make changes on this screen, click OK to save and close the screen. Cancel will close the screen, abandoning any changes you may have made.
Click here for the Help Topic on setting up the Time Entry Options.