Budgets in Lifecycle Manager X give you a clear, interactive view of a client's projected IT spending. You can filter and customize what's included in the forecast to create a view that aligns with how you and your clients plan, discuss, and approve initiatives.

This article covers accessing the Budget page and using the available filters to tailor the budget to your needs.

Accessing a Client's Budget Forecast

1. In the top navigation bar, click Home to access the Client list.
    
2. Select a client with Lifecycle Manager X enabled by clicking their name. The Client's Profile page will open.
   
    

3. Click Budget from the Plan section of the navigation panel on the left.
   
    

Customizing the Budget Forecast

The controls at the top of the Budget page allow you to choose which data is included in the budget forecast.

• Filter Initiatives
  Control which initiative statuses are included in the forecast.
• Filter Asset
  Filter the asset types included in the budget.
• Contracts
  Toggle contract costs synced from your PSA.
• Include Only Billable Contracts
  Limit contract costs in the forecast to billable contracts only.
• Include Overdue
  Toggle items that are overdue in the budget.

Adjusting the forecast timeline

These settings control how the forecast is divided and displayed over time. You can choose whether the forecast is shown quarterly or yearly, how far into the future it extends, and where the timeline begins. These changes apply to the Budget table, chart, and PDF export.

• Periods to Show
  Controls how many periods (up to 12) are included in the forecast.
  This affects the number of columns shown in the Budget table and chart, and determines how many time periods are included in the Budget PDF.
• Reporting Period
  Define a reporting period, by month, quarter, or year.
  This affects the column headers in the Budget Forecast Table, the grouping in the chart, and the structure of the exported budget PDF.
• Generate Budget Forecast as of:
  Where the forecast timeline begins. Select the year and quarter or month you'd like the forecast to start from.
• Current fiscal year started:
  This label shows which month the fiscal year begins for the selected client. It determines how quarters and years are labeled in the forecast. 
  Clicking the label opens the client's Regional Settings page, where the fiscal year start can be changed.

After selecting the filters and settings you want, you can export the forecast as a Budget PDF to share with your client or include in a meeting.

How Initiative schedules affect the forecast

When an Initiative has a schedule range, Lifecycle Manager distributes its one-time costs across the months in that range. The monthly distribution rolls up into the quarter or year shown in the Budget.

You can override the generated distribution when the Initiative’s costs need to land in different periods. The override changes the forecast allocation without changing the Initiative’s schedule.

Recurring costs begin in the calendar month after the Initiative’s scheduled end date. They are not included during the scheduled period. A monthly recurring item repeats every month from that point; a yearly recurring item repeats every 12 months.

For example, a project scheduled from November through February with a $20,000 one-time budget and a $50/month recurring fee distributes the $20,000 across those four scheduled months. The ongoing $50/month fee starts in March, after the project’s scheduled end.

To include costs during the scheduled period, enter the total amount for that period as a one-time budget. Lifecycle Manager distributes that total across the scheduled months. Use recurring costs for ongoing fees that begin after the scheduled period.

For more information about setting an Initiative’s Month or Quarter schedule range, see About the Initiative Detail view.

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