Retainers Module
- Josh Farina
Introduction
The retainers module is where you configure and maintain your retainers in the Aneto EVM system.
A retainer, in a business context, refers to a type of agreement or arrangement where a client pays a service provider or professional a recurring fee, usually on a monthly or periodic basis. This fee serves to retain the provider's services or to ensure the provider's availability when needed. The specifics of a retainer can vary, but common characteristics include:
Prepayment for Services: Retainers often involve the client paying upfront for future services. This payment acts as a guarantee for a certain amount of work or time allocation from the service provider.
Ongoing Relationship: Retainers usually signify a long-term relationship between the client and the service provider. It establishes an understanding that the provider will offer services to the client over an extended period.
Availability and Accessibility: In exchange for the retainer fee, the service provider agrees to be available to the client for work as specified in the agreement. This might include being on-call or prioritizing the client’s work.
Scope of Work: The agreement typically outlines the scope of work, which specifies what services are included. This can vary from general availability for consultation to specific tasks or project work.
Billing and Time Allocation: Depending on the agreement, the retainer might cover all required work, or it might be used against an hourly rate or a part of the total project cost. Any work beyond the scope of the retainer might be billed separately.
Mutual Benefits: For clients, retainers ensure regular access to specialized services without the need to hire a full-time employee. For service providers, they provide a predictable income and client base.
Retainers are common in various industries, especially in legal services, consulting, marketing, and freelancing. They can be beneficial in situations where ongoing work is expected but the exact volume or timing of the work is not predictable.
How to access
To access this module simply click on the “Reainers” menu item on the left hand side panel.
Features of the Retainers Module
In this module you will be able to:
List Retainers
Filter Retainers
Delete Retainers
Edit Retainers
Create new Retainer
Configuration options
These are the aspects you can configure for a Retainer:
Property | Description | Options |
|---|---|---|
Retainer icon OPTIONAL | Set the right retainer icon for your new retainer. This is important because it helps differentiate projects in the reports |
|
Retainer name MANDATORY | This is the name field for the new retainer |
|
Company MANDATORY | Select the company that this retainer belongs to |
|
Status | Set the retainer to Active or Inactive. This determines if it is shown on the retainers list |
|
Duration Format MANDATORY | Choose between visualising the durations of the retainers in hours or days |
|
Start Date | This date determines the date that the EVM app will use to pull in worklogs from Jira. This is a very important field and should be used carefully. If you set this field to the beginning of time, the initial import might take considerable time to execute. |
|
End Date | This is an optional field to determine when the retainer will end. |
|
Hourly Rate | All hours tracked under this retainer will be billed at the same rate which is set here |
|
Hour Allowance | This value determines how many hours can be spent for this retainer per perio ( Weekly / Monthly) |
|
Period | Determines if the retainer is reported on each week or month. |
|
Money Format MANDATORY | Choose between exact amount, thousands or millions format. |
|
Enter JQL MANDATORY | This determines the scope of your retainer. |
|
Or select Jira filter | If you already have a Jira filter that determines the scope, then you can select it here. |
|
Type | Retainers can be of 3 different types: Regular: This retainer has a fixed amount of hours per week / month. Any hours not used can be rolled-over to the next week / month or discarted. T&M: In this type of retainer, there is no fixed amount of hours. You invoice the client exactly what was worked on that week/ month. Block amount: In this type of retainer, you set a fixed amount of hours for that week/month. Any excess hours can be billed a the same or increased rate or you can discard them |
|
Managers | Determines the manager or managers of the retainer |
|
User Access | Determines who can access the retainer and under which permissions |
|
Notes | Free text field to add additional information on the retainer |
|
