Deltek Costpoint Contract Management Module and Project Setup Checklist
deltek costpoint contract management module
Also searched as
- deltek costpoint project setup checklist
- costpoint new project setup steps
- costpoint contract setup walkthrough
Short answer
Setting up a contract in Costpoint is about getting the structure and rules right before the first charge: the project hierarchy, organisation, funding and ceiling, billing and revenue method, rates and labor access. Work through the checklist below in order and verify with a test timesheet and billing preview before announcing the project open.
Applies to: Deltek Costpoint 7.x and 8.x with Projects, Billing and Timesheet modules; screen names vary by release
New contract and project checklist
- 1Contract review: contract type (cost-plus, fixed price, time and materials), clauses affecting billing, funding, ceilings and key dates.
- 2Project structure: parent project, subprojects and the work breakdown levels you need to charge and bill against.
- 3Organisation and accounts: assign the responsible organisation and the right account groups so costs map to the correct ledger accounts and indirect pools.
- 4Funding and value: set funded amount, total value or ceiling and period of performance.
- 5Billing and revenue: choose the billing format, billing and revenue method, fee or retention, and invoice terms.
- 6Rates and labor categories: set billing rates and labor categories where the contract has them.
- 7Labor access: authorise employees to charge via the project's labor charging setup so timesheets accept the project.
- 8Customer and contacts: attach the correct customer, bill-to and remit details.
- 9Test: submit a test timesheet and run a billing preview, then clean up test data per your policy.
- 10Sign-off: contracts, finance and project management confirm and the project is released for charging.
Why structure comes first
Changing the project hierarchy after charges exist is painful, because posted cost lives at specific levels. Decide the charge levels with project managers before creating records: the lowest level that people charge to, the levels that carry funding, and the levels you will report and bill on.
Align the structure with how the contract is invoiced and reported. If the customer wants billing by task, build tasks. If the contract has a single funded line, extra levels simply add keying errors for timesheet users.
Rules that drive billing and revenue
Billing and revenue behaviour comes from setup, not from the invoice screen. Contract type decides whether you bill cost plus fee, fixed milestones or rates times hours. Revenue recognition method decides when revenue appears. Getting these wrong shows up weeks later as unbillable cost or misstated revenue.
For government work, indirect rates and fee must follow the contract and your disclosed practices. Coordinate with your indirect rate setup so the project picks up the right pools. See the page on setting up indirect rate pools for how that side is organised.
Labor access, controls and the test run
Many 'cannot charge this project' tickets are access problems, not project problems: the employee is not authorised, the project is not open for the period, or the account is not valid for labor. Authorise labor deliberately and keep it tight on restricted or classified work.
Finish with a controlled test. A test timesheet proves charging works, a billing preview proves the invoice looks as the contract requires. Fix issues before real charges land, because rework after posting is expensive and visible to auditors.
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Common pitfalls
- !Creating the hierarchy before agreeing charge levels with project managers.
- !Choosing the wrong contract type or billing method, which only surfaces at first invoice.
- !Leaving labor access open to everyone on a restricted project.
- !Skipping a test timesheet and billing preview.
- !Entering funding that does not match the signed contract.
How an ERP-grounded AI assistant handles this
Setup checklists are exactly what a grounded assistant checks quickly: ERPray can compare new projects against your standard, reading funding, billing method, organisation and labor access from Costpoint and listing gaps. It is read-only by default and does not change records. For contractors who cannot send data to public AI services, it runs on your own hardware.
Frequently asked questions
What is the first step in setting up a project in Costpoint?
Review the contract and decide the project structure and charge levels with the project manager. Structure is hardest to change after charges post, so settle contract type, hierarchy, funding and billing approach before creating records.
Why can employees not charge my new Costpoint project?
Typically the project is not open for the period, labor access is not authorised for those employees, or the account setup does not allow labor. Check status, labor charging authorisation and account groups before looking elsewhere.
Do I need a billing preview before the first invoice?
It is strongly advisable. A preview shows whether the contract type, rates, fee and format produce what the customer expects, so you correct setup before any invoice is issued and posted.
Who should sign off a new project setup?
At least contracts, finance and the project manager. Contracts confirms terms, finance confirms billing, revenue and indirect treatment, and the project manager confirms the structure people will actually charge to.
Related
How to Process a Contract Modification in Deltek Costpoint
A contract modification in Costpoint is a controlled change to the contract and project records: funded amount, contract value or ceiling, period of performance and sometimes billing terms. Record it against the correct project and contract with the effective date, update funding before charges exceed the old limit, keep the modification document as evidence, and verify billing limits afterward.
How-toHow to Set Up Indirect Rate Pools in Deltek Costpoint
Indirect rate pools in Costpoint group related indirect costs, such as fringe, overhead, G&A, or material handling, so they can be allocated to direct cost bases using a defined rate. Pools and their bases are configured under the Indirect Rate Structure area, with pool tiers sequenced so that lower-level pools like fringe allocate into higher-level pools like overhead before G&A is calculated.
Error fixCostpoint Timesheet: Employee Cannot Charge to a Project
When Costpoint rejects a charge line on a timesheet, one of a short list of validations has failed: the project or task is not open for charging, the account or organization on the line is not valid for that project, the employee is not set up to charge it, or the timesheet date falls outside an open period. Work through those checks in order and the cause is almost always found in minutes.
Error fixDeltek Costpoint Not Working: Outage, Login and Mobile App Troubleshooting
First decide if it is an outage or a local problem: check Deltek's cloud status page if you are hosted by Deltek, or your own servers if on-premises, then test another user and another browser. Most Costpoint issues are login or session problems, browser or network changes, or a mobile app pointed at the wrong server. The mobile app pairs with a QR code or server URL generated by your administrator.
How-toHow to Edit Favorites, Change Your Password and Delete Lines in Deltek Costpoint
In Costpoint you manage favorites from the navigation pane (add a screen to Favorites, then reorder or remove it there), change your password from the login screen or your user options when Costpoint itself authenticates you, and delete lines by selecting the row in the grid, using the delete-record or delete-line toolbar action, and saving. Exact labels shift slightly between Costpoint 7 and 8, and passwords are managed in your identity provider when SSO is on.
How-toWhat Is the Latest Version of Deltek Costpoint?
Costpoint 8.x is the current generation of the web product, delivered as a series of releases such as 8.0 and 8.1 with regular updates, and Deltek publishes the authoritative current number on its support portal. The core bundle is the base licensed set of modules, and content management integration is usually done through document links or connectors to a separate repository such as SharePoint.
AI for ERPAI for Deltek Costpoint in government contract accounting
AI on Deltek Costpoint for timesheets, indirect rates, and incurred cost, grounded on real data and deployed on-prem to keep DCAA-relevant data in house.
AI for ERPAI for Government Contractor ERP Under DCAA Scrutiny
AI for government contractor ERP under DCAA scrutiny: draft indirect rate variance narratives, flag unallowable costs, and build audit trails, run on infrastructure you control.
Stuck on Deltek Costpoint?
Talk to engineers who work inside Deltek Costpoint every week, and who build private AI that answers these questions from your own ERP data.
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