Analyzing Projects

This chapter provides an overview of project evaluation and discusses how to:

Set up and use project valuation.
Perform flexible analysis.
View transactions in progress.
Analyze projects using analysis inquiries.
Analyze projects using accumulated costs.
Calculate percent complete.

Understanding Project Evaluation

This section provides overviews of:

Project valuation.
Flexible analysis.
Transactions in progress.
Analysis inquiries.
Accumulated costs.
Refresh summary tables.
Percent complete.

Project Valuation

You can set up templates that contain evaluation criteria for project and activity summary information. The templates can be used by anyone with security access to the Project Valuation component (PC_VALN_ANALYTICS). To perform the evaluation, you select a business unit, project, and template that the system uses to calculate a summary view of different project dimensions, and an activity-based view of financial data.

Set up project-level summary data is set up with these criteria:

Transaction group criteria: Transaction rows with the same analysis group, source type, category, and subcategory.

Transaction group summary values appear on the Project Valuation page, and can be used in formulas to calculate financial status.
Reporting calculations: Formulas using up to three transaction groups and operators (+, −, *, and /).

You can create arithmetic equations using parenthesis to calculate statistics such as the actual percent of budget. Reporting calculation results appear below the transaction group summary rows on the Project Valuation page.
Analysis groups: Groups that are used to summarize the project ChartField rows that appear in the Project Overview grid on the Project Valuation page.
Project ChartField criteria: Summary rows with the same combination of source type, category, and subcategory.

The system summarizes project-related ChartField rows by user-specified analysis groups.

Flexible Analysis

Flexible Analysis is a method of analyzing a project's costs at these levels:

Project
Summary activity
Activity
Source type
Category
Subcategory

The Flexible Analysis page provides a view of activity costs based on the analysis groups that are specified in a flexible analysis template. Flexible analysis is an interactive tool that works effectively if you want to view one data item at a time, such as costs by source type or category. The feature does not provide an overall financial analytic of the project.

You must create a template before you can perform flexible analysis. Templates specify the analysis types that the system uses to gather project costs. A template can be saved as a user default to save time performing flexible analyses. You can modify flexible analysis templates as required.

Transactions in Progress

Projects are comprised of transactions that are in various stages of the project cycle. Transactions in progress (TIPs) are tracked so that you can see project cost information before it reaches the Project Transaction table (PROJ_RESOURCE). Project managers can identify potential problem areas and see where each part of the project stands in the overall process. TIP information focuses attention on what needs to be resolved to ensure that the project is running smoothly and is not delayed because of a particular problem.

The PeopleSoft feeder systems that have costs associated with a project send TIP data to Project Costing by running an Application Engine process that is specific to each feeder system. TIP pages display fields that are associated with Project Costing, and key fields that are retrieved from primary feeder tables and pooled during the Application Engine process.

This table lists the types of TIPs that Project Costing delivers:

PeopleSoft Enterprise Feeder System	Transactions in Progress	Description	Application Engine
All	ALLTOPC	All transactions that have been transmitted to Project Costing and are either nonbillable or haven't been priced. Transactions are retrieved from the Project Transactions Summary table (PC_SUMMARY_TBL) where the Billing Distribution Status field (BI_DISTRIB_STATUS) equals U or N.	PC_PRICING
Expenses	EXTOPC	Expenses that are approved but not staged for processing in Project Costing. Transactions are retrieved from the Expenses Accounting Line table (EX_ACCTG_LINE).	PC_EX_TO_PC
Expenses	TMTOPC	Time that is approved and staged for processing in Project Costing. Transactions are retrieved from the Time Staging for Project Resource table (EX_PROJ_RES_STG).	PC_EX_TO_PC
Inventory	INTOPC	Inventory costs that are not yet distributed to Project Costing. Transactions are retrieved from the Inventory Accounting Distribution table (CM_ACCTG_LINE) and the Inventory Transaction table (TRANSACTION_INV).	PC_IN_TO_PC
Payables	APTOPC	Payable expenses that are not yet distributed to Project Costing. Transactions are retrieved from the Payables Accounting Entries table (VCHR_ACCTG_LINE) and the Payables Voucher Header table (VOUCHER).	PC_AP_TO_PC
Purchasing	POTOPC	Purchase order costs that have been distributed to Project Costing yet. Transactions are retrieved from the Purchase Order Line Accounting Entries table (PO_LINE_DISTRIB) and the Purchase Order Header table (PO_HDR).	PC_PO_TO_PC

Analysis Inquiries

By using analysis inquiries, you can view inquiry pages that display:

A financial summary of a project.
Employee costs by project.
Employee costs by activity.

Accumulated Costs

By analyzing projects using accumulated costs, you can view project transactions based on:

Assets
Budget exceptions
Time and labor
Inventory
Invoices
Journal entries
Orders
Purchase orders
Vouchers

Refresh Summary Tables

The PeopleSoft system delivers these summary tables that are used internally by Project Costing and Program Management for analytical reporting:

Project Transactions Summary (PC_ACTIVITY_SUM).

This table is used by flexible analysis reporting.
Project Transactions Summary (PC_SUMMARY_TBL).

This table is used by Project Costing and Program Management analytics, including estimate to complete, earned value, forecasting, and project valuation.
Summary Budget Data (PC_BUD_SUMMARY).

This table is used by budget versus actual, budget item analysis, and percent complete analyses.

All transactions that enter the Project Transaction table—whether from feeder systems, direct entry through the Add Transactions component (INTFC_PROJ_EXPRESS), or through the Load Third-Party Transactions Application Engine process (PC_INTFEDIT)—trigger the Refresh Summary Tables Application Engine process (PC_SUM_RFSH) to populate all necessary summary tables.

Percent Complete

It is important to be able to determine the progress of a project and to assess progress at different levels of the project cycle. Project Costing delivers tracking methods that are designed to provide information based on a project's percentage of completion.

Project managers can manually report the percent completion of their projects and activities, or the percentage of completion is calculated based on user parameters. Automatically calculated percentages are based on time that is spent on the project and are summarized at the project and activity levels.

Setting Up and Using Project Valuation

To set up project valuation, use the Project Valuation Template component (PC_VALN_TEMPLATE).

This section discusses how to:

Set up project valuation.
Evaluate project summary-level information.
Evaluate activity summary-level information.

Pages Used to Set Up and Use Project Valuation

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Valuation Template	PC_VALN_TEMPLATE	Project Costing, Interactive Reports, Valuation Template, Valuation Template	Set up project valuation templates for business units.
Project Valuation	PC_PRJ_ANALYTICS	Project Costing, Project Definitions, General Information Click the Project Valuation link on the Project Definitions - General Information page. Project Costing, Interactive Reports, Project Valuation, Project Valuation Project Costing, My Projects Click the Drill to Project Valuation icon on the Amounts tab of the My Projects page. Click the project ID link in the Top Projects operational summary portal pagelet that is available in the PeopleSoft ESA Portal Pack.	View project-level summaries based on user-specified criteria for transaction groupings and project overview information.
Activity Valuation	PC_ACT_ANALYTICS	Select the Activity Valuation tab on the Project Valuation page.	View a breakdown by activity of the transaction group criteria from the project valuation template.

Setting Up Project Valuation

Access the Valuation Template page.

This page contains all of the valuation templates for the business unit. Use the links and icons in the scroll area navigation bar to scroll through the templates or view all templates. Click the plus symbol (+) in the scroll area to add a new template, and click the minus symbol (-) to delete a template.

Template ID	Enter a unique ID for the valuation template.
Description	Enter a description that will help users identify this template.

Transaction Group Criteria

Enter up to ten transaction group criteria rows that the system summarizes for specific projects and displays on the Project Valuation page.

Transaction Grouping Label	Enter a label that describes the transaction groups that you set up on this page, such as Budget vs. Actual Comparisons. The label appears as the transaction group box label on the Project Valuation page for specific projects.
Criteria ID	Displays the order in which transaction summary rows appear on the Project Valuation page. Note. You cannot rearrange the sequence of criteria IDs to change the order of rows that appear on the Project Valuation page. To change the order of transaction summary rows, create a new template with the rows in the order that you want them to appear when you view the summary data on the Project Valuation page.
Label	Enter a label that describes the unique combination of analysis group, source type, category, and subcategory values in the corresponding transaction group row. Each label appears as a transaction summary row label on the Project Valuation page.
Analysis Group, Source Type, Category, and Subcategory	Enter a value in one or more fields for the system to use as the basis for summarizing transactions on the Project Valuation page.

Reporting Calculations

Enter up to three formulas that the system uses to calculate results and display them on the Project Valuation page for a specific project. To define the formulas, you can add, subtract, multiply, or divide the transaction summaries that you set up in the Transaction Group Criteria grid. For example, you can calculate a budget percent variance amount as: (budgeted cost amount − actual cost amount / budgeted cost amount).

If a formula contains a division, the system multiplies the results by 100 and displays the results in a percentage format. For example, if a calculation row results in a value of 0.25, the system displays the results as 25.00%.

The results of the reporting calculation rows appear below the transaction group summary rows on the Project Valuation page for a project.

Label	Enter a label, such as Actual Labor as % of Budget, that describes the formula that you enter in the corresponding reporting calculation row. Each label appears on the Project Valuation page with the results of the reporting calculation row.
Parenthesis	Enter a parenthesis as required to specify the sequence of calculations in the reporting calculation row.
Criteria ID	Enter the transaction group criteria ID row number to include in the formula. You can include up to three transaction groups in the formula.
Operator	Enter the operator symbol to add (+), subtract (−), multiply (*), or divide (/) the amount of the transaction group that you enter to the left of the Operator field, by the amount in the transaction group that you enter in the field to the right of the Operator field.

Example of Transaction Group Summary and Formula Results

This is an example of transaction group results on the Project Valuation page that are based on the sample data that is illustrated on the Valuation Template page:

Project Overview

Enter analysis groups that the system summarizes and further divides the amounts by source, category, and subcategory. For example, you can combine the labor source type with the consulting category, label it as the Consulting Labor summary, and view the summary amounts for specified analysis groups on the Project Valuation page. You can enter up to three analysis groups and four ChartField combinations.

Project Overview Label	Enter a label that appears as the project overview group box label in the Project Valuation page.
Analysis Group Columns - Label	Enter a column label for each analysis group that you select to appear in the Project Valuation page.
Analysis Group Columns - Analysis Group	Enter analysis groups that appear as columns in the project overview group box on the Project Valuation page. The system summarizes specified project-related ChartField amounts for the analysis groups that you enter in this field.
Project Chartfield Rows - Label	Enter a row label for each ChartField that you select to appear in the Project Valuation page.
Project Chartfield Rows - Source Type, Category, and Subcategory	Enter a value for one or more project-related ChartFields that the system uses to summarize analysis group amounts for this transaction group row on the Project Valuation page.

Example of Project Overview Results

This example of a project overview on the Project Valuation page is based on the sample data that is illustrated on the Valuation Template page:

Evaluating Project Summary-Level Information

Access the Project Valuation page.

Note. To find an existing project valuation when multiple valuation templates are defined for the business unit, enter the template ID in the Project Valuation component search page to narrow the list of project valuations from which to choose.

Select the business unit, project ID, and template ID.

Note. The system automatically calls the Project Valuation Calculation Application Engine process (PC_VALN_CALC) to calculate project and activity summary information.

The Project Valuation page appears with the selected project and template in the header. The default values for the From Date and To Date fields are based on your user preferences. If both dates are blank, the system returns all data that meets the search criteria. You can choose a different date range and the data on the project and activity valuation pages changes to display data only for the date range selected.

The valuation report uses the Project Transactions Summary table. Transactions in this table are grouped by month and posted using the first date of the current month. For example, a transaction with an accounting date and transaction date of November 14, 2005, appears in the Project Transactions Summary table with a date of November 1, 2005. If you want to include any transactions for a particular month in the valuation report, your selection criteria must include the first day of that month. For example, to retrieve results from transactions with dates that range from November 10, 2005 to November 20, 2005, you must select a From Date of November 1, 2005.

The currency code is based on the currency defined for the project business unit. Transactional data is based on the Project Transactions Summary table.

Evaluating Activity Summary-Level Information

Access the Activity Valuation page.

Use this page to view a breakdown by activity based on the transaction group criteria from the Project Valuation template.

If the project contains summary activities, click the plus symbol (+) to expand summary activities and view activity detail.

Performing Flexible Analysis

To create a flexible analysis template, use the component (PC_SUM_TMPL).

This section discusses how to:

Create flexible analysis templates.
View project summary costs.

Pages Used to Perform Flexible Analysis

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Flexible Analysis Template (new)	PC_SUM_TMPL	Project Costing, Flexible Analysis Template, Flexible Analysis Template Click Create New Template on the Flexible Analysis Template page for an existing template.	Create flexible analysis templates.
Flexible Analysis Template (existing)	PC_FLEX_UPD1_PG	Project Costing, Flexible Analysis Template, Flexible Analysis Template	Modify flexible analysis templates.
Flexible Analysis User Default	PC_FLEX_UPD2_PG	Project Costing, Flexible Analysis User Default, Flexible Analysis User Default Click the Change Default Template button on the Flexible Analysis Template page for an existing template.	Edit the default flexible analysis template for a specific user.
Flexible Analysis	PC_PROJSUMMARY_PNL	Project Costing, Interactive Reports, Flexible Analysis, Flexible Analysis	View project costs by activity group and drill down to view activity costs.
Refresh Summary Tables	PC_SUM_RFSH	Project Costing, Utilities, Refresh Summary Tables, Refresh Summary Tables	Run the Refresh Summary Tables process to refresh Project Costing summary tables. Note. Project Costing integration processes automatically update the summary tables that are used in Project Costing analytics. Use this page only under rare circumstances.

Creating Flexible Analysis Templates

Access the Flexible Analysis Template page.

Number

Enter the number that represents the order of the analysis group columns that appear in the Flexible Analysis page.

Analysis Group

Select analysis groups that have:

The Perform Multiplication option selected.

Values defined in the Quantity Multiplier and Amount Multiplier fields.

See Analysis Groups.

Field Heading

Enter the label that appears as the column heading for the analysis group on the Flexible Analysis page, or use the description of the analysis group that appears by default.

Viewing Project Summary Costs

Access the Flexible Analysis page.

The Flexible Analysis page uses information from the Project Activity Summary table (PC_ACTIVITY_SUM) that is extracted by the Project Costing Summary Application Engine process (PC_SUM). Summary tables are inception to date.

The Project Activity Summary table contains:

Business unit
Project
Activity
Analysis type
Currency code
Amount

This page operates in deferred processing mode.

Flexible Analysis Cost Summary

The costs that appear in the Flexible Analysis Cost Summary grid are based on the analysis groups that are specified in the flexible analysis template. You can view different levels of project and activity information as follows:

View costs at the project level for the selected analysis groups when you enter the page.
Click a link in the Project column to view the project's summary activity costs, if applicable.
Click a link in the Activity ID column for a summary activity to view the costs by detail activity.
Click a link in the Activity ID column for a detail activity to view costs by source type for the activity.
Click a link in the Source Type column to view costs by transaction categories.
Click a link in the Category column to view costs by transaction subcategories.

As you drill down to view the costs at greater levels of detail, links appear above the grid to illustrate the current level of analysis and provide access to previous levels.

Detail	Click to access the Transaction List page and view individual transactions. This button appears when you view costs at the subcategory level.
Flexible Analysis Template	Click to access the Flexible Analysis Template page to create or modify flexible analysis templates.

Viewing Transactions in Progress

This section discusses how to:

View transactions in progress details.
View transactions in progress charts.

Pages Used to View Transactions in Progress

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Transactions in Progress	PC_TIP	Project Costing, Interactive Reports, Transactions in Progress, Transactions in Progress	Enter search criteria to display a list of project transactions that are in progress.
Transactions in Progress - Projects (Graphical)	PC_TIP2	Click the Graphical View link on the Transactions in Progress page.	View project transactions that are in progress in a chart format.
Transaction in Progress Summary	PC_PE_TIP_SUM	Project Costing, Utilities, Transaction in Process Summary, Transaction in Process Summary	Run the Load Transactions in Progress Application Engine process (PC_PETIP_SUM) to refresh the transaction data from feeder systems that contain the PC Distribution Status field (PC_DISTRIB_STATUS) in their line records. This process evaluates the line records of PeopleSoft products with which Project Costing integrates, such as Purchasing, Payables, Inventory, Expenses, and so on, and refreshes the transaction data into Project Costing transaction summary tables. Transactions in Progress pages use this data to display transaction status. You can schedule this process to run automatically as often as needed by your business processes.

Viewing Transactions in Progress Details

Access the Transactions In Progress page.

Selection Parameters

Days Inactive Range

Select an option that reflects the number of days between the current system date and the transaction date of the TIPs that you want to view. Available options are:

31 to 60

61 to 90

< 31

> 90

All

Enter the remaining search criteria to filter TIPs and click Search. The list of TIPs appears in the Transactions grid.

Click the Graphical View link to view a chart that contains the listed TIPs.

Transactions

This grid lists the TIPs that meet the search criteria.

Click the Drill to Source icon to access the transaction source for the corresponding row. The type of TIP determines the page that opens when you click Drill to Source.

This table lists the pages that open when you click the Drill to Source icon:

Transaction in Progress	Source Transaction Page
ALLTOPC	Transaction List page (PROJECT_EXPRESSG)
APTOPC	Voucher Accounting Entries page (VCHR_ACTG_ENTRIES)
EXTOPC	View Expense Report - Expense Report Detail page (EX_SHEET_ENTRY)
INTOPC	Item Definition component (ITEM_DEFIN) search page
POTOPC	Purchase Order Inquiry - Purchase Order page (PO_LINE_INQ)
TMTOPC	Time Report Inquiry component (TE_TIME_ENTRY_INQ) search page

Source Information

Click this tab to view information from the transaction source, such as an expense report, voucher, or purchase order. The same fields appear regardless of the type of TIP that you select.

Details

Click this tab to view additional fields from the transaction. The fields that appear are based on the type of TIP that you select.

<Application> Specific

Click the application-specific tab to view information that is specific to the PeopleSoft application where the transaction originated. This tab is available for all types of Project Costing TIPs except for the ALLTOPC type.

Viewing Transactions in Progress Charts

Access the Transactions In Progress - Projects (Graphical) page.

Use this page to view an aging report for the transactions in the inquiry.

Selection Parameters	Expand this section to view the filtering options that the system used to select the TIPs for the graph.
Detail View	Click to return to the Transactions In Progress detail page to view the list of TIPs that appear in the chart.

Analyzing Projects Using Analysis Inquiries

This section lists the pages used to analyze projects by using analysis inquiries.

Pages Used to Analyze Projects Using Analysis Inquiries

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Summarize by Analysis Type	PROJECT_LTD_SUM	Project Costing, Review Costs, Summarize by Analysis Type, Summarize by Analysis Type	View a basic summary of costs that includes period-to-date, year-to-date, and life-to-date totals for each analysis type. Totals that appear on this page are for the selected project and all the activities that are directly attached to that project. Child projects are not included in the totals.
Set As of Period	PROJECT_LTD_SET	Click the Set As of Period tab on the Summarize by Analysis Type page. Project Costing, Review Costs, Summarize by Category, Set As of Period	Change the period for the Summarize by Analysis Type and Summarize by Category pages, which enables you to analyze the project life-to-date costs as of a specific period.
Summarize by Category	PROJECT_LTD	Project Costing, Review Costs, Summarize by Category, Summarize by Category	View a cost summary by analysis type, source type, and category.
Time by Activity	PC_LABOR_ACT_TIME	Project Costing, Review Costs, Time by Activity, Time by Activity	Review labor by activity in a chart format. The system retrieves transactions from the Project Transactions Summary table (PC_SUMMARY_TBL) for transaction rows with an analysis type that belongs to the LABOR analysis group.
Time by Employee	PC_LABOR_EMP_TIME	Project Costing, Review Costs, Time by Employee, Time by Employee	Review project labor by employee in a chart format. The system retrieves transactions from the Project Transactions Summary table (PC_SUMMARY_TBL) for transaction rows with an analysis type that belongs to the LABOR analysis group.

Analyzing Projects Using Accumulated Costs

This section lists the pages used to analyze projects by using accumulated costs.

Pages Used to Analyze Projects Using Accumulated Costs

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Review Assets	PC_AM_APPROVE	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Review Assets, Review Assets	Review and approve asset costs, and send assets to Asset Management tables. See Reviewing and Approving Assets.
Employees by Job Code	PC_JOBCODE_EMPL	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Employees by Job Code, Employees by Job Code	View a list of employees for specific job codes.
Commitment Control Budget Exceptions	KK_XCP_BUDGET	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Budget Exceptions, Budget Exceptions	Review projects costs that are related to Commitment Control budget exceptions.
Employee Costs by Activity	PROJ_RES_HR	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Employee Costs by Activity, Employee Costs by Activity	View employee costs by activity. Drill down to personal data for a selected employee ID.
Employee Costs by Project	PROJ_EMPL_INQ	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Employee Costs by Project, Employee Costs by Project	View employee costs by project. Drill down to personal data for a selected employee ID.
Inventory by Activity	PROJ_RES_IN	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Inventory by Activity, Inventory by Activity	View inventory costs by activity and drill down into PeopleSoft Enterprise Inventory. The system retrieves transactions from the Project Transaction table where the inventory item ID is not blank.
Invoices by Activity	PC_INV_WKSHT	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Invoices by Activity, Invoices by Activity	View invoices that are associated with an activity.
Journal Entries by Activity	PROJ_RES_GL	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Journal Entries by Activity, Journal Entries by Activity	View journal entries that are associated with an activity and drill down to General Ledger. The system retrieves transactions from the Project Transaction table where the journal ID is not blank.
Orders by Activity	PROJ_RES_OM	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Orders by Activity, Orders by Activity	View orders that are associated with an activity and drill down to PeopleSoft Enterprise Order Management. The system retrieves transactions from the Project Transaction table where the order number is not blank.
Purchase Orders by Activity	PROJ_RES_PO	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Purchase Orders by Activity, Purchase Orders by Activity	View purchase orders that are associated with an activity and drill down to PeopleSoft Enterprise Purchasing. The system retrieves transactions from the Project Transaction table where the purchase order ID is not blank.
Vouchers by Activity	PROJ_RES_AP	Project Costing, Review Costs, Accumulated Costs, Vouchers by Activity, Vouchers by Activity	View vouchers that are associated with an activity and drill down to PeopleSoft Enterprise Payables. The system retrieves transactions from the Project Transaction table where the voucher ID is not blank.

Calculating Percent Complete

This section discusses how to calculate project progress.

Page Used to Calculate Percent Complete

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Calculate Percent Complete	PC_PERCENT	Project Costing, Utilities, Calculate Percent Complete, Calculate Percent Complete	Specify run control parameters and run the Percent Complete Application Engine process (PC_PERCENT) to calculate project progress expressed as a percentage of the complete project.

Calculating Project Progress

Access the Calculate Percent Complete page.

The Percent Complete field displays a project's progress at various levels of a project, and it is updated by the Percent Complete process. This process runs automatically when you change activity durations from these pages:

Project Definitions - General Information page
Activity Definitions - General Information page
Project Activities page

When you save one of these pages, the Percent Complete process updates the Percent Complete field values that appear on these pages.

The methods for calculating percent complete are specified at the business unit level on the Project Costing Options page, and can be overridden at the project level on the Project Costing Definition page.