Projects
Projects are where work happens. They connect companies to time entries, track budgets in real-time, and form the basis for invoicing.
Project Basics
Every project belongs to a company and tracks:
- Budget - Hours or dollars allocated
- Billing rate - How much you charge
- Team - Who can log time
- Status - Active, on hold, completed
Creating a Project
Select a company
Navigate to the company or start from Projects list.
Click New Project
Or press N from the Projects page.
Configure billing
Choose project type, set budget, assign rate.
Add team members
Select who can log time to this project.
Project Types
Time & Materials
Bill for actual hours worked. Best for:
- Ongoing support
- Discovery phases
- Unclear scope
Budget: 100 hours
Rate: $150/hour
Company pays: Actual hours × $150Fixed Fee
Set price regardless of hours. Best for:
- Defined deliverables
- Website builds
- Known scope
Budget: $15,000 fixed
Internal budget: 100 hours
You keep: $15,000 - (actual hours × your cost)For fixed fee projects, set an internal hour budget to track profitability. If you budgeted 100 hours but spend 150, you’ll know immediately.
Retainer
Monthly recurring allocation. Best for:
- Ongoing companies
- Support agreements
- Marketing retainers
Monthly allocation: 20 hours
Rate: $150/hour
Rollover: Optional (unused hours carry forward)Budgets
Setting Budgets
Budgets can be:
- Hours - “100 hours for this project”
- Dollars - “$15,000 total budget”
- Unlimited - No cap (use carefully)
Budget Alerts
Vantage alerts you at:
- 75% - Yellow warning
- 90% - Orange alert
- 100% - Red, project over budget
Budget alerts go to project managers and account owners. Configure notification preferences in Settings.
Real-Time Tracking
As time is logged, dashboards update instantly:
- Hours consumed vs remaining
- Dollars spent vs budget
- Projected completion date
- Profitability forecast
Milestones
Break projects into phases:
| Milestone | Due Date | Budget |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery | Jan 15 | 20 hrs |
| Design | Feb 1 | 40 hrs |
| Development | Mar 1 | 80 hrs |
| Launch | Mar 15 | 20 hrs |
Milestones help with:
- Company communication
- Team planning
- Progress tracking
- Partial invoicing
Team Assignment
Adding Team Members
- Open project settings
- Go to Team tab
- Add members by name or email
- Set their role (optional)
Project Roles
- Manager - Full access, can edit project
- Member - Can log time, view project
- Viewer - Read-only access
Rate Overrides
Override the default rate per team member:
Project rate: $150/hour
Senior developer: $175/hour (override)
Junior developer: $100/hour (override)Project Templates
Save time with templates:
- Create a project configured how you like
- Click Actions → Save as Template
- Name the template
- Use it for future similar projects
Templates save:
- Default budget
- Milestone structure
- Team roles
- Custom fields
Project Status
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Active | Work in progress |
| On Hold | Paused, no time logging |
| Completed | Done, archived |
| Cancelled | Stopped, may have unbilled time |
Completed projects remain visible in reports but are hidden from active project lists.
Cloning Projects
Need a similar project?
- Open the source project
- Click Actions → Clone
- Choose what to copy (milestones, team, budget)
- Adjust as needed
Next Steps
- Tickets - Managing work within projects
- Time Tracking - Logging time to projects
- Invoicing - Billing for project work