Contents

Setting up Properties of an Hourly Related Expense (HRE) Driver

General

Date

Driver Basis

Driver Input

Hours

Hourly Expense Properties

In Planning Maestro, you can analyze your company’s data and create budgets and forecasts. These budgets can include Drivers: non-financial factors or variables (assumptions) involved in your company’s budgets. These factors or variables “drive” or directly influence operating expenses, revenue, and personnel in your company.

Hourly Related Expense (HRE) Drivers record Personnel costs budgeted by the hour, such as sick time, overtime, or vacation time. To review, add to, edit, or delete the budgeted amounts for HRE Drivers in Planning Maestro, use the Drivers application, which is in the Planning module.

This document shows you, a Planning Maestro user, how to set up the properties of an HRE Driver.

Setting up Properties for an Hourly Related Expense (HRE) Driver

To locate the Drivers application and create a new HRE Driver, see Managing Drivers. After adding the HRE Driver, click the Expand icon (  ) to open the Properties pane.

The Properties pane opens.

An Hourly Related Expense (HRE) Driver’s Properties pane contains the following fields:

General

Use the General section of the Properties pane to set up the name and description of this Input Driver.

• Name – If needed, click on this field to edit the line item’s name.

• Descriptions 1-4 – You can add up to four descriptions of this line item as reminders or extra information for yourself or other budget contributors. These notes do not appear in reports. To add a description, click on the space beside Description 1, Description 2, Description 3, or Description 4 and enter a description.

Date

Use the Date section of the Properties pane to set up the timing of this HRE Driver.

• Use Record Date Range – To use the date range of the records themselves to set the start date, end date, and Time Hierarchy of this HRE Driver, click on this toggle switch to switch it to the ON position.

• Time Hierarchy – This field only appears if you did not switch on the Use Record Date Range toggle switch above. The structure of your calendar view, or how the columns on the right side of the table represent periods, quarters, and years (for example, 2021-01 for January 2021).
• Start Date – This field only appears if you did not switch on the Use Record Date Range toggle switch above. Click on this field and enter the start date for this HRE Driver. You can also select the date from the calendar.
• End Date – This field only appears if you did not switch on the Use Record Date Range toggle switch above. Click on this field and enter the end date for this HRE Driver, or select the date from the calendar. You can also leave the date as Never Ends to let this expense continue indefinitely.

Driver Basis

Use the Driver Basis section to determine the nature or function of this HRE Driver.

• Driver Type – This field displays the Driver Type you selected (Hourly Related Expense).

Please Note: You can click on this field to open a dropdown menu and select a new Driver Type if needed. If you choose a new Driver Type, the Properties pane fields for this Driver change (thought they may keep some of the data you entered).

Driver Input

Use the Driver Input section to determine how this HRE Driver amount functions.

• Use Data Link – To use a Data Link and connect this HRE Driver to information from this application or another application, click on this toggle switch to turn it to the ON position.

Please Note: In this example of an HRE Driver for Overtime, you would create a Data Link to connect the Driver to Personnel line items that represent employees. To create a standard rate for Overtime, you would set up the Data Link to multiply the Regular Hourly Wage of the Personnel line item by 1.5 (or whatever rate you are using for Overtime pay).

 

Example of a Data Link for Overtime Hours (an employee’s regular hourly wages multiplied by 1.5):

For more information about creating Data Links, see Using Data Links.

• Allow User Input – This field only appears when you are not using a Data Link. To enable users to change dollar amounts per period for this HRE Driver when it is connected to a Personnel line item, click on this toggle switch to turn it to the ON position.

Please Note: Allowing user input gives users more freedom to edit amounts in the Personnel module. However, if you want to make line items connected to this HRE Driver more secure and un-editable by other users, leave this toggle switch in the OFF position.

• Amount – This field only appears when you are not using a Data Link. Enter the amount for this this HRE Driver in this field.
• Spread Method – This field only appears when you are not using a Data Link. Click on Even to open this dropdown menu and select a Spread Method for this HRE Driver.
• Increase/Decrease Method – Select 0 selected (Edit) to select or create an Increase/Decrease Method for this price.
• Recognition Schedule – Click on Immediate to open this dropdown menu and select a Recognition Schedule.

Hours

Use the Hours section to enter information about the hours related to this HRE Driver.

• Hourly Type – Click on this dropdown and select one of the options for the type or category of hours involved in this HRE Driver:
  • Overtime – Select this option if this Driver involves Overtime hours (any hours worked beyond 40 per week which have a higher hourly pay rate).
  • Shift Premium Time – Select this option if this Driver involves hours outside of regular work hours, such as night, weekend, or holiday hours.
  • Other – Select this option if this Driver does not include Overtime or Shift Premium hours.
• Use Data Link – To use a Data Link and connect this HRE Driver’s hourly information to information from another application (for example, to the Planned Hours for an individual or group in the Personnel application), click on this toggle switch to turn it to the ON position.

• Allow User Input – To enable users to edit hourly amounts for Personnel line items connected to this HRE Driver, click on this toggle switch to switch it to the ON position.

• HRE Hours – This field only appears if you are not using a Data Link for hours. Enter the number of hours involved in this HRE Driver in this field.

Example: If your company plans to have 120 hours of Overtime this year, enter 120 in this field.

• Spread Method – Click on Even to open this dropdown menu and select a Spread Method.
• Increase/Decrease Method – Select 0 selected (Edit) to select or create an Increase/Decrease Method for this price.
• Recognition Schedule – Click on Immediate to open this dropdown menu and select a Recognition Schedule for this HRE Driver.
• Hours GL Account – Click on this dropdown menu and select a GL Account for this HRE Driver’s hours. This GL Account is statistical and does not affect your P&L (Income Statement).

Hourly Expense Properties

Use the Hourly Expense Properties section to enter information about the payment related to this HRE Driver.

• Follow Pay Schedule – To set this HRE Driver to follow the Pay Schedule of whatever line item it is connected to through a Data Link, click this toggle switch to turn it to the ON position.
• To set this HRE Driver with its own payment schedule independent of whatever Personnel line items it is connected to, leave this toggle switch in the OFF

Example: An HRE Driver named Floating Holidays should be paid every quarter, no matter what Personnel line item it connects to. This HRE Driver should have the Follow Pay Schedule toggle switched turned OFF.

• Payment Schedule – Click on this dropdown menu and select a Payment Schedule.
• Hourly Expense GL Account – Click on this dropdown menu and select a GL Account for hourly expenses. The GL Account you select affects your P&L (Income Statement).
• Wage Calculation – Click on this dropdown menu and select one of the following options for how this HRE Driver affects wages.

Please Note: This wage calculation factors in whether the amount of this HRE is taxable or not, and how it relates to regular wages (usually just employee paychecks) and gross wages (usually, pay plus benefits).

• None – Select this option to keep this HRE Driver separate from regular and gross wages (to neither include it in regular or gross wages, or deduct it from regular or gross wages).
• Include in Regular Wages – Select this option to include this HRE Driver in the employee(s)’ regular wages (their base pay, or the cash amount they receive).

Example: Shift differential, paid time off, holiday, overtime (depending on how you set up your Personnel module).

• Deduct from Regular Wages – Select this option to deduct this HRE Driver from the employee(s)’ regular wages.

Example: Holidays or paid time off.

• Include in Gross Wages – Select this option to include this HRE Driver in the employee(s)’ gross wages (their total cost to your company, wages plus benefits).

Example: Overtime hours (depending on how you set up your Personnel module).

• Deduct from Gross Wages – Select this option to deduct this HRE Driver from the employee(s)’ gross wages.

Example: 401K contributions for the employee, Health Savings Account contributions.

• Included in Planned Hours – To include this HRE Driver in a Personnel line item’s Planned Hours, click on this toggle switch to turn it to the ON position.

Example: Holidays, vacation, sick time, personal time, or planned overtime hours.

• To add this HRE Driver as an addition to a Personnel line item’s Planned Hours, leave this toggle switch in the OFF position.

Example: Unexpected or unplanned overtime hours.

After you finish setting up the properties for this HRE Driver, the Driver is complete. To edit or delete this Driver, see Managing Drivers.