You can create three types of projects in Scoro:
- One-off projects
- Retainers
- Internal projects
Use the internal project type to manage your internal projects and initiatives and separate them from client work. Unlike one-off projects and retainers, which support both billable and non-billable time, the tasks and time entries on an internal project are always non-billable, as such projects don’t generate revenue. Using the right project type helps you ensure accurate reporting and analytics around billable time.
This article will walk you through an internal project setup.
We have separate articles about creating one-off projects and retainer management in Scoro.
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1. Creating a new internal project
Since internal projects don’t bring revenue and can’t be linked to clients, you can only create them from scratch; they can’t be created from a quote.
You can create a new internal project from scratch in two ways:
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From the project list – click the + New button.
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From the menu – click the Quick actions (+) button and select New project.
Whichever approach you take, the project modify view will open, which consists of two tabs: Project settings and Budget settings. Let’s walk through the details you can set in each tab!
Note! Project members, phases, milestones, and tasks can be added after the project is created.
1.1. Project settings
In the Project settings tab, you can add all the general project settings and data.
You can use the Use project template dropdown field to create the project from a template. Once you’ve selected a template, it will override any details you added beforehand - that’s why we recommend starting with using the template and modifying the project details afterwards.
Note! While you can’t create templates solely for internal projects, you can use templates for other project types to pre-fill the details. Any client links that were pre-filled from the template will be removed once you select the Internal project type.
Set the project type to Internal. Since internal projects cannot be linked to contacts, the Client field will disappear.
Select the project manager. You can add other members and Customer Portal users to your project from the project detailed view after the project is created.
Enable the Members only toggle if you want the project to be accessible only by the project members, Customer Portal users, and site administrators. If you don’t tick that box, the project can be accessed by all users with the right to view other projects. This right can be granted or limited by the site administrator with the help of permission sets.
Lastly, set the project start and due dates and customize the color of the project icon.
Set the project category to Personal to make it a personal project and ensure it won’t be shown on any reports.
If project tags are used on your site, you can expand the Project tags section below the project start and due date pickers and tick the necessary tag(s) for your internal project.
You can manage your project tags under Settings > Site settings > Tags and relations > Projects.
Now, let’s move on to the project’s Budget settings tab!
1.2. Budget settings
In the budget settings tab, you can enter the planned hours for the entire internal project to track the hours and budget spent throughout the project’s duration. Since internal projects don’t generate revenue, the planned hours are non-billable.
You can also add the estimated costs for bills, expenses, and labor to track the actual results against the budgeted numbers.
When all the project details are as needed, click the Create project button to finish creating your internal project. You’ll be redirected to the project detailed view, where you can add the project and Customer Portal members, phases, tasks, and other details.
2. Viewing internal projects
In the project list, internal projects will be shown at the top of the list by default. You can filter the project list as needed – for example, filter out only internal projects, etc.
Since internal projects are non-billable and don’t bring revenue, the revenue-related columns in the project list will show N/A as values.
Click on the internal project name or icon to open the project detailed view. Internal projects have an ‘Internal’ label in the project header.
Learn more about using the summary bar to track the project’s success.
3. Modifying or deleting an internal project
Tasks, phases, milestones, and task bundles can be added to an internal project after it has been created. The process is the same as for one-off projects. Learn more about modifying and deleting projects in Scoro.