Please help understanding billable approach in ERP next in v15 (like ERPNext for Services Business) specifically in optimizing work in creating items (service), activity types. It seems that it is somehow duplicated if timesheets based approach. So the ERPnext workflow v15 + HR :
1. Activity Type (used in Timesheets)
working with Timesheets, “Activity Type” is a specific Doctype used to categorize billable/non-billable work.
- Go to:
Activity Cost
list via the Awesome Bar - Our entries:
Wheel Alignment
Brake Repair
2. Activity Cost (used in Timesheets)
If you’re working with Timesheets, “Activity Cost” is a specific Doctype used to set up billable/non-billable for Employee.
Set up billable rates and costs $$ for participating employees
Michael Clarke for Brake Repair
Michael Clarke for Wheel Alignment
3. Create Timesheet
set up employee. Set up Activities → save → submit
Time Sheets
Brake Repair 06-07-2025 15:03:08 2 PROJ-0004: Toyota Camry VIN: 4T1BF1FK8HU123456
Wheel Alignment 06-06-2025 15:03:30 2 PROJ-0004: Toyota Camry VIN: 4T1BF1FK8HU123456
4. Create Sales Invoice from Timesheet
The ERPnext UI suggests that we need to select 1 item while creating Invoice from Timesheet.
We select 1 item (from our items)
So then sales invoice has 1 consolidated item with correct Total Hours and Total Amount.
But it doesnt have the split by activity (like Brake Repair, Wheel Allignment
Problems with such approach
- Customer always would like to see the split of real work in invoice
- ERPnext invoice is not inheriting it from Activity costs from Timesheets
- We need potentially to run triple record sets (Item (Brake Repair, Wheel Repair ) → price) (Activity Type = Brake Repair, Wheel Repair etc), (Activity Costs (per employee) again Brake Repair, Wheel Repair … ) and monitor name and pricing discrepancies in 3 doctypes (although we understand flexibility)
- we should make invoice split manually every time by retyping Items instead of using split from timesheets
Question:
is this correct understanding that there is no automated process of getting split by activity from Timesheet → Sales Invoice