| 04:21pm Sep 24, 2002 PST (#1 of 6)
We are currently working on getting on the GSA schedule, so that we would be eligible to work on government contracts. I wanted to know if there were any other C&P users who have government clients and, if so, have you run into any problems with billing? The Government makes it sound like they are very particular as to how invoices must be formatted, etc., and I just wanted to make sure that C&P has the capability to bill government clients without having to do a lot of customization to the program. Thanks for any help you can offer.
Chris Kirk
Controller
Kircher Marketing Communications | Advertising & Design | Interactive Media
04:22pm Sep 24, 2002 PST (#2 of 6)
Whenever we had specific formatting requirements mandated by clients (not supported in C&P) we used a Word document formatted precisely to spec. It took no time at all after the initial template was set-up. Of course it was entered into C&P as well. (We would enter the data into C&P first, then print to clipboard, open the doc up in word, and cut & paste wherever possible.) It never caused us heartburn to create two documents. Of course those invoices were a small percentage of overall billing. Part of our controls was to present both copies to the final person for approval, so nothing fell through the cracks.
Roxanne Cowan
Rutherford Bolen Group Integrated Marketing
04:23pm Sep 24, 2002 PST (#3 of 6)
Yes, we have government clients. They are very particular with there invoices. What we do is break it down in the task description on the invoices for them. We put how many hours worked and at what rate for every task on the invoice. We also send them copies of our suppliers' invoices as back up. That seems to work fine for them.
Terri Yuen
Office Coordinator
Malahat Group International
A Palmer Jarvis DDB Company
The DDB Worldwide Communication Group Inc.
Victoria, British Columbia Canada V8W 1T4
11:31am Sep 25, 2002 PST (#4 of 6)
We've worked on a couple of Government contracts. They like a lot of detail. Usually, their billing will be broken down by function by staff hours times hourly rate. Outside charges are billed at cost. C&P really handles all the necessary billing and backup reporting. FYI: Come audit time, make sure you comply with any vendor bidding (for printing, color seps, etc.) and have time sheet documentation.
Pat Hardesty
Malone Advertising, Inc
VP Operations
11:42am Sep 25, 2002 PST (#5 of 6)
We work with government clients but are not on the GSA schedule (too expensive and time-consuming a proposition). As long as we include the purchase order number and any other reference numbers they request on our bills we don't have a problem getting paid. They also do EFT -- Electronic Fund Transfer -- and you have to fill out a different form for each agency (maybe not if you're on the GSA schedule, I don't know). With certain agencies it is important to stay on top of your receivables since government invoices get lost in "black holes" more often than with other clients. We have never had a problem with the actual "formatting" of an invoice not being acceptable. Hope this helps!
Kay Rosburg, V.P.
Dever Designs
02:37pm Sep 27, 2002 PST (#6 of 6)
Just FYI...billing the government by listing the job function times the staff hours is only applicable when you are working on a time and materials project. We don't do this hourly type of work but deal with government agencies on a per project fee basis. Then, our government invoices look exactly the same as our other clients' invoices except for the inclusion of all their p.o. and reference numbers.
Kay Rosburg, V.P.
Dever Designs
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