Forecasts

The Forecasts are designed to plan and analyze future project costs effectively. This report makes use of detailed estimates and team rates to provide a comprehensive view of projected expenses.

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It’s a handy tool that boosts financial decision-making and helps navigate project budgeting and cost management.

Key benefits:

• Сost projections: By using estimates with the current team rates, you can create forecasts that help predict project costs.

• Enhanced budget management: You can set budgets for upcoming projects and monitor projected costs against these budgets, allowing for proactive adjustments and financial control.

• Informed decision-making: With clear insights into future costs, you can make informed decisions regarding project timelines, resource allocation, and potential adjustments to project scope.

Creating a forecast

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1. Access the "Forecasts" page within the Cost Tracker app interface.

2. Click the "Create forecast" button. This action will open the "Create forecast" modal.

3. Define forecast parameters:

• Forecast name: Add a descriptive name for the forecast to facilitate identification and management.

• Scope: Select Jira filter with your project work items to be included in the forecast.

• Default forecasted rate: Input the default hourly rate to be applied to assignees who do not have a specific rate defined within the team page in the Cost Tracker app.

• Estimate field: Select the Jira field that contains the estimated time for the work items. The dropdown will display fields with time-based formats (days, hours, minutes). The app. exclusively supports these formats for cost calculation.

4. Generate forecast: After configuring the necessary parameters, click the "Create" button. The application will then calculate the forecasted costs based on the defined assignee rates (or the default rate) and the estimated time for the selected Jira work items. Upon completion, you will be redirected to the detailed forecast report.

Understanding the forecast report

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Once you've hit that "Create" button, you'll land on a page with the work items and forecasted costs. Here's a rundown of what you'll typically find:

• The grid: This is the heart of the report! You'll see a table with columns providing details about each Jira work item included in your forecast: type, key, summary, assignee, status, estimate, rate, and forecasted costs.

  • Estimate: This column displays the initial time estimate for the work item, based on the Jira field you selected when creating the forecast.

  • Forecast rate: This shows the hourly rate that's been applied to the assignee for this task (e.g., "$16.00"). This rate might come from the team's page or the default rate you set.

  • Forecast cost: This is the calculated estimated cost for this specific work item. It's usually the "Original Estimate" multiplied by the "Forecast Rate." You might even see a little info icon that explains exactly how this cost is being calculated when you hover over it!

  • Total forecast: Keep your eye on the top right corner! You'll see a number labeled "Total forecast." This is the grand total of all the estimated costs for all the tasks included in this report.

Interacting with the Report:

This isn't just a static list! You can usually interact with this report in a few handy ways:

• Search bar: Need to find a specific work item in your forecast? Just type in a keyword (like the task summary or issue key) into the search bar, and the list will filter.

• Sorting: click on the column headers (like "Summary" or "Forecast Cost") to sort the work items by that column.

• "Edit forecast" button: You can adjust the forecast settings, like the scope or the default rate.

• Editing estimate or rate: You can directly edit the "Estimate" and "Forecast Rate" columns right here in the table. This allows you to make quick adjustments if things change.