Setting up a Contract in BigChange

BigChange offers a comprehensive solution for managing contracts, allowing you to store and organise all related documents in one place. This includes everything from scanned agreements to financial documents. The BigChange system simplifies business processes by enabling scheduled invoicing and easy access to emails or PDF downloads of documents.

This article will guide you through setting up and managing contracts within BigChange.

Before setting up a contract for a customer in BigChange, your Site Administrator should first complete several administrative tasks.

• Please refer to the separate article on Contracts Admin in BigChange.

Setting up a new contract.

• Navigate to the CRM [Top menu] to start.
• Select a contact you would like to create a contract for and select edit to open their record.
  1. Select the Financial tab.
  2. Select the Contracts tab.
  3. Select + Add

General Tab

Depending on which radio box you select further options will change.

1. Invoice creation - This option allows you to choose between:

• • Automatically create invoices periodically - If this option is selected options 2 - 4 below will remain.

• • Manually create invoices ad hoc - If this option is selected options 2 - 4 will dissappear and be replaced with an invoice creation options, where you are able to manually add financial lines. 

1. Pricing - This option allows you to select pricing methods that align with contract terms.
   • Contract value from lines below - options 3 & 4 will remain

• • Contract value from job generated line items - this will bring up some additional Job filter options. These options allow you to generate line items from jobs. For example, you can use this to only generate an invoice for all 'Complete' jobs using the Jobs Complete tick box.

1. Invoicing - This option allows you to choose whether:
   • Line items represent the values of each invoice. This means that all financial entries on the invoice determine its total value, regardless of whether you invoice periodically, such as with a monthly invoice.
   • Line items represent the contract total value and are aggregated per invoice - This means that the total contract value is divided over the billing period. For example, if the contract is valued at £70,000 and you invoice monthly over 36 months, each invoice will amount to £1,944. Please refer to the separate article for more details. Aggregated Invoicing.
2. Line item behaviour - This options allow for global or contact-specific line items and invoicing to single or multiple destinations.

Detail Tab

The details tab is where you will find any 'Contact Custom Fields' that have been setup in Admin settings.

These fields can be added to contracts to capture additional information that is not covered by the standard fields provided by BigChange.

To create and manage custom fields in BigChange, you typically need administrative access. The process involves defining the field type (e.g., text, number, date), setting any necessary validation rules, and deciding where the field should appear within the contract interface.

These custom fields enhance the flexibility and adaptability of the BigChange platform, allowing businesses to better align the software with their operational requirements.

Invoicing Periods tab

In BigChange, setting up invoicing periods is crucial for managing contracts effectively. You cannot save details from the first two tabs until at least one invoicing period is set, however you are able to setup multiple invoicing periods.

This guide will walk you through adding invoicing periods and managing contract line items.

Adding Invoicing Periods

• Begin by selecting "Add" to set a period for the contract.

• This action will display options for adding contract line items.

Adding Contract Line Items

• Contract line items can be added similarly to invoices in BigChange.
• Use the following options to add line items:
  • Add item: Adds a blank line item for new information as free text.
  • Add predefined item: Utilises options already input into the system via Admin settings → Settings → Financial → Predefined invoicing items.
  • Add stock: Uses stock options already input into the system.

• The '+' buttons on the right of line items allow adding keywords into descriptions.

Importing Line Items

• For large numbers of line items, use the Import line items icon.
• Please refer to the seperate article on Importing Contracts into Bigchange.

Setting Recurrence

• To recur an invoice on a regular basis automatically (weekly, monthly, 6 monthly or annually for example)
• Select 'Recurrence' and complete it as needed.

• For regularly recurring jobs, set up a recurrence pattern in Admin settings. Please see Recurrence Patterns article for more details.
• Example: Selecting 'office clean' from the dropdown auto-populates additional information, with fields greyed out as they are part of a pattern.

Invoice options

1. Start Date - Start date of invoiced period.
2. Invoice template - You can select a custom invoice template. (Please refer to article on Templates for more information)
3. Payment Terms - For example '30 days'
4. Bank Account - Select a Bank account setup in Admin setting (Please refer to article on Bank Accounts for more information)
5. Notes - Any notes to be added to the invoice can be added here and a keyword in Templates can be used when creating an invoice template. (Please refer to article on Templates for more information)

  6.  Internal Notes - These are internal office notes about the contract invoice.

• Select save to save you Period 1

Managing Multiple Invoicing Periods

• Add additional periods for price changes or additional terms by repeating the process.
• The General tab will indicate the period shown, e.g., 1 of 2.
• View all invoicing periods by selecting the eye icon.

Invoices will automatically be created in the system 24 hours in advance of start date, of the date of invoice.

Exploring Additional Invoicing Options

• For more invoicing options, refer to sections on Aggregated invoicing.

Jobs tab

Now that the Contract has been created, jobs should be created against it, thus ensuring that the correct financial links are established between the job and the contract and that the agreed contract terms are applied to the jobs.

Creating New Jobs

• Within the Contract, select the Jobs tab.
• Scroll down and select the New job icon.

• In the New job window, the Contract field will be pre-filled with the correct Contract reference number.

• Set up a recurrence if required (for example if this is a 6 monthly service for the 3 years of the contract) Please see separate article on Job Recurrences.
• Complete the rest of the form and save the job.

All jobs attributed to the contract will be displayed in a list, with a symbol in the far-right column indicating they are part of a recurrence.

Financial tab

Once a contract form has been created, provided the start date is 24 hours in advance, an invoice will automatically be created displaying the invoice line item description, along with either the minimum payment, or the after minimum payment value.

Financial List View

Contract invoices will also be listed in the Financial Documents List View and by using the filters you are able to view by:

• Contact & Non contract
• Contract only
• Non contract only

Where you see this icon next to an invoice in the list view, it indicates that the invoice was raised against a contract. The filter on the left-hand side allows you to filter invoices that relate to contracts

Sending or Downloading Invoices

• Select the relevant invoice.
• Choose the File option.
• Select either Download or Email.

Sending out invoices in bulk.

For more information on the Send all function please refer to the separate article on Using the Send All Fuction.

Stock & equipment tab

Attributing Stock and Equipment

1. Navigate to the Stock & equipment tab.
2. Scroll down and select the Add stock icon.
3. In the popup window, use the Model search field to select the relevant stock or equipment item.
4. Select the stock item to add to contract.

Notes  & Attachments tab

The Notes and Attachments tabs contain any notes, images, or documents related to the contract. These tabs help in maintaining comprehensive records for each contract.

Conclusion

Managing jobs, financials, stock, and equipment within BigChange contracts is essential for ensuring accurate and efficient contract management. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can effectively attribute jobs, handle financials, and manage stock and equipment within your contracts. For further assistance, refer to the BigChange Help Centre or contact support.