Job Command Center: costs, forecasts and profit

When to use: throughout the job. The job page groups Overview (Job summary), Field operations, Management (Financial, Change orders, Variance, Commitments & forecast, Actual costs, WHY) and History & closeout. Every member can read it.

The baseline is frozen when the job is created from its estimate or proposal. Later estimate edits never change it; approved change orders adjust the current contract value beside it.

1. Record manual actual costs in Actual costs → Add actual cost (category, date incurred, quantity, unit and unit cost); Can manage job costs is required. 2. Manage material purchase orders in Purchasing: issuing creates their linked commitment, and receipt costs require explicit posting. Do not create a second manual commitment or actual cost for the same order. Use Commitments & forecast for other manual commitments, and mark them fulfilled after recording the matching actual cost.

3. Enter Forecast to complete and choose Save forecast. It is every cost you still expect, including open commitments not yet recorded as actual costs. Each save is kept as a new dated forecast.

Read the result: Projected final cost = actual costs recorded + Forecast to complete. Open commitments are shown separately and never added again. Projected profit = current contract value − projected final cost, and stays unknown until a forecast exists.

Example (fictional): actual 18,400 + forecast 19,500 (which already includes 13,900 of commitments) = projected final cost 37,900. With a current contract value of 45,000, projected profit is 7,100.

When costs move, open Why is this changing? and use Add a reason (for example Price change or Scope not priced). Use Change orders when the customer agrees to a change in scope or price; only approved ones count.

What doesn't happen automatically: an actual job cost is not a bill, a payment or a cash movement, and nothing is sent to Managerial Finance. Recording a reason never closes the job.