Revenue Recognition

Revenue recognition based on revenue tracker

Overview

This is an extension of another Accountability function which automates the generation of accrued and deferred revenue transactions based on defined rules of when revenue should be recognized. This was developed in response to agencies wanting to recognize their revenue based on the timing schedule they have defined on the revenue tracker. Here’s a use case example: 

Let’s say the agency has created an estimate for a job that will be performed over a 5 month period starting in September 2020. 

  • This job is to be billed to the client in 2 separate installments, 50% up front and 50% at the completion of the job. 
  • There is $50,000 of revenue associated with the estimate and the agency wants to recognize the revenue in even monthly amounts of 20% ($10,000 per month).

The agency would set the Estimate Start Date to September 1 2020, then they would then open the Revenue tracker for the estimate and spread the revenue evenly across the 5 months from September 2020 to February 2021.

Let’s assume the agency billed 50% of the estimate on September 1. In the September accounting month, the billing would have caused 50% of the revenue ($25,000) to be recognized, but the agency wants only the 20% ($10,000) assigned to September in the revenue tracker to be recognized

Steps

  1. Navigate to Accounting>Revenue Tools>Revenue Recognition. Select the accounting month you are working on. This would normally be done towards the end of the month- end close when all client billing has been completed and we want to review/adjust the revenue recognized on all jobs. 
  2. Selecting To Revenue Tracker as the Recognition Method will display the following values for our example job:

    Estimated Revenue

    Revenue Tracker 

    to Date

    Billed 

    Revenue

    Revenue Tracker

    Less Billed

    Previously Accrued/

    (Deferred)

    Balance to Accrue/

    (Defer)

    $50,000

    $10,000

    $25,000

    $15,000

    ($0)

    ($15,000)

  3. When you click Create Accruals/Deferrals, a Deferred Revenue transaction of $15,000 would be generated for this job.

Tip:  You don’t have to do this one job at a time. You can select multiple jobs to have Accountability and Accountability will generate all of the accruals/deferrals in one click.

Learn more about Accountability's Revenue Tracker functionality here.