Consultant work

Consultants carry a practice, delivery role, bill rate, cost rate and weekly capacity. Time entries name the team member, client and engagement, with a work date, hours and billable flag. Expenses name the team member and engagement, amount, category, date and receipt link. This keeps work evidence close to the engagement that consumes it.

The manager can inspect submitted time and expenses separately. Billable hours and nonbillable hours are calculated from the time entry, while billable expense amount is calculated on the expense. The consultant record rolls up total and billable hours and shows utilization. Together these fields support a capacity conversation grounded in recorded work rather than a separate staffing spreadsheet.

• Capacity. Keep the consultant’s practice, rates and weekly capacity on the staff record.
• Time. Link each dated entry to the team member, client and engagement.
• Expense. Record category, amount and receipt link against the engagement receiving the cost.

• Rate ownership. Decide who maintains consultant bill and cost rates.
• Time coding. Require the right client and engagement on each time entry.
• Expense evidence. Agree when a receipt link and category are needed before review.

Agree a representative implementation for rehearsal. Use the same client and engagement across delivery, service review and billing. Keep the person who enters a record distinct from the person who makes the business decision when the team requires that separation. Make the ownership rule clear before a busy billing period, because a status alone does not explain who should take the next action.

Ask a consultant to log a day of billable implementation work and a travel expense for the same engagement. Check that the time entry shows the intended client, team member and hours, and the expense shows the amount, category and receipt. Submit both for review, then have the manager inspect their respective queues. Compare the consultant’s recorded hours with weekly capacity and inspect the engagement’s logged hours and project expense total.

The reviewer should open the source record behind each amount and compare it with the engagement. If a correction is needed, keep the earlier outcome visible and explain the new one in the appropriate decision or operation record. A manager should be able to identify the client, the responsible person and the next action without reconstructing the history from messages.

• Consultant Hours Awaiting Approval — Inspect submitted time with its team member, date and engagement.
• Project Expenses Awaiting Approval — Check submitted costs and receipt links before deciding their next status.

Start with Record delivery and use implementation planning to rehearse the handoff with your team.