Budget versus actual
Accepted actual cost compared with a specified budget version. Approved changes and reporting cutoff determine the interpretation.
Industry solution · Written delivery
Construction & project businesses analytics
Project spend, purchasing commitments and financial reporting with a clear boundary between actuals and estimates.
Check My Data — FreeBusiness areas for this industry
Explore the relevant analytics areas
These are applicable areas to consider. Your agreed question and available data determine which ones are included in a project.
Need a different combination? Custom Analytics can be scoped around your requirements.
Operational decisions
Know what has been spent and what is still committed
Actual invoices, approved budgets and open purchase orders answer different questions. A project dashboard keeps those measures separate so an apparent budget balance does not conceal committed spending.
Start with project codes, purchase orders, supplier invoices and an accepted budget version. We check how receipts, partial invoices and cancelled commitments are recorded before combining them.
The purchasing example illustrates supplier reliability, open orders and category spend. It is a synthetic business-area report, not a certified construction cost assessment.
Useful questions and measures
Open commitments
Outstanding purchase-order amounts where invoiced and received quantities can be reconciled. Avoid counting the same cost as both actual and committed.
Billing and cash exposure
Invoice balances, payment timing and supplier spend. Accounting treatment and retention amounts require an agreed source and definition.
Interpretation and limits
Keep financial evidence separate from progress assumptions
Spend to date does not establish physical completion. A reliable progress comparison needs an agreed progress source and reporting method, rather than assuming that half the budget spent means half the work finished.
Forecast final cost also needs assumptions about remaining work, approved changes and expected commitments. Where those inputs are absent, we can scope a factual actual-and-commitment view and clearly exclude a completion forecast.
The dashboard is paired with written observations and source limitations. It helps project and finance teams investigate exceptions; it does not replace engineering certification, quantity surveying or contractual valuation.
Useful starting data
- Project master records, budgets and approved budget revisions
- Purchase orders, receipts and supplier invoice lines with project codes
- Customer invoices and payments if collection or cash questions are included
For the Fit Check, describe the columns, approximate volume and time period. Do not send production credentials or personal records.
A focused first delivery
Choose one decision, one reporting period and an agreed set of sources. Receive the scoped dashboard, written observations, source assumptions and a documented handover.
The Fit Check identifies whether the data is suitable and recommends a fixed next step. Project price, exclusions, delivery environment and timing are confirmed in writing before work begins.
View the existing fixed-price packagesBefore you begin
Can costs be compared across projects?
Yes, where project codes, cost categories and reporting periods are compatible. Different budget versions or scope changes need explicit context.
Can spending determine completion percentage?
No. Physical progress needs a separate agreed measurement basis. A financial dashboard should not substitute spending for certified progress.
Example project scope
A focused first project: actuals and open commitments
Select a budget version and confirm the reporting cutoff. Reconcile purchase orders, receipts and invoice lines so that amounts already recorded as actuals do not remain in the open-commitment total.
A management overview can summarise accepted project measures after those definitions are confirmed. The adjacent executive preview is a separate synthetic report and does not measure certified progress or forecast final construction cost.
The final scope specifies the question, accepted sources, excluded calculations and the output to be delivered. Any additional view is an agreed extension rather than an implied inclusion in every package.
Start with one business question
Start with your question and a description of your data. We confirm data fit and scope in writing.