A key decision which must be determined prior to setting up the Cost Accounting COA data is whether the Grant, Project or Job is reimbursable or non-reimbursable. This information is critical to Major Program setup and impacts the children tables within the Cost Accounting module. There are many reasons to utilize the reimbursement functionality within Advantage Financial:
Reimbursement seeks revenue for money that was spent and the reimbursement is usually defined up front for a Program. In turn, setup can take place prior to expenditures in an effort to simplify recording reimbursements.
Delayed reimbursement hurts cash flow and loses interest
Prompt reimbursement improves cash flow
Sites can use Cost Accounting without taking the additional steps to automate reimbursement. The Cost Accounting COA codes can be used for setup, budgeting and reporting. The calculations for reimbursement would be performed outside Advantage Financial. Setup for non-reimbursable programs entails the following simple Cost Accounting COA elements:
Needed: Major Program, Program, Program Period Code pages
Optional: Phase, Program/Phase pages, Rollup Codes
Optional: Non-Reimbursable Budget Structure
Below is a pictorial overview of the Cost Accounting COA elements used for both Reimbursable and Non-Reimbursable setup. The distinction of how Advantage Financial can be used for each scenario is described throughout this document.