This post is part of a series I’m creating connected with Project Service Automation (PSA) for Microsoft Dynamics 365. This time I will consider how to record expenses against a project.

In previous post I have explained time recording against a project, you can view that post here.

Expenses can be recorded via the mobile client or using the standard web application.

You should be aware that expense recording like this only applies to resources that are CRM users. (Meaning that out of the box, resources that are contacts / accounts cannot log expenses against a project in this manner.)

In the web client, we use the expenses option, as shown below;

Tip:
Similar functionality can also be found in the mobile client by using its expense option.

In the web client, when I first open expenses a view similar to the end shown below is shown. I can use the “+” option on a given day or use the “New” button to log expenses. (Note: The calendar view here and the filtering / navigation options are very similar to those we observed with time entries.)

Tip:
I use the “+” button to record expenses for a given day, maybe typically some date in the past. And I use the “NEW” option to record expense for today.

Having clicked the “+” button I will see a dialog similar to the one below. Here I can record the details of the expense. Including the value, currency, project and category of expense.

Also, notice the “Add Receipt” button. This allow me to add one or more attachments (receipts) to the expense claim.

Below you can see that I have added expenses for a hotel and meals. Notice that each type of expense is colour coded and also includes a icon to denote the type of expense.

Also, notice that I get a useful summary of expenses on the right hand side of the screen. Including totals by category in a pie chart.

As with time entries I can swap to a grid view which might sometimes make entry of expense details quicker.

Approval Process

As with time entries expense details need to be submitted and then approved by the project manager. Clicking the “SUBMIT” button will give me a dialog similar to the one shown below and I can opt to submit some or all of my expenses.

Tip:
Above I submitted two expense claims linked to my project and a third what was a generic claim for some books. The expense claim for the books still needs to be approved but instead of the approval being assigned to the project manager it is assigned to my line manager. (As defined in the system user record of CRM.)

Project Managers and Line Managers can use the project approvals option (shown below) to view and approve time and expense claims.

In the approvals option I can view and then accept or reject the expense claims.

Notice if I open the expense entry I can control the billing type and sales price. So that each claim could be made chargeable, non-chargeable etc.

If the manager rejects a claim, the will be able to record a reason. Back in the expenses option the team member can amend and then submit again. They may, for example, have miss attaching a receipt.

Once the project manager has approved the expenses, back on the project under “Actuals” they will be able to see all approved time and expense details. With associated costs.

I hope you can see that there is a lot of commonality between time entries and expense entries. If you think about it both processes are actually quite similar, as both are about recording actual values against the project.
J