I am creating Projects, attaching a budget with multiple accounts. Then journaling Actuals against the project using Project Code, Department and Account Code.
I then want to export those journal entries, so I can report the actuals in an external Project Tool.
However I am not sure how best to handle Staff Commitments. Since staff costs are the biggest project cost, I want to make a staff commitment, then gradually make accural reversals to transfer the upfront staff commitment into actuals.
I know some ERP systems do this via Purchase Orders, but I am not sure how to link the PO to a project account code rather than the default cost centre?
Should I manage this through the GL? Perhaps by linking the commitment and reversal to a special cost centre? But that route confuses me, how do I determine which journal entry was which without extensive lookups? I am hoping to make the export as simple as possible?
Any advice welcome. 
POs are appropriate for external staff/contractors and can already be tagged to the Project independently of Cost Center. For internal staff, keep the future staff allocation as a non-GL commitment, and only put genuine period-end staff accruals in the GL. Build the project export from actual GL + outstanding commitments rather than posting all commitments into the GL.
On the PO item row, set both Project and Expense Account; Cost Center is a separate dimension. For internal staff, maintain the future allocation in a commitment register or your external project tool, then reduce it as costs are recognised. Accruals cover work already performed but not yet recorded through payroll. Export project costs from the GL alongside the remaining commitments, avoiding double counting.
I think keeping the project code and account code on each transaction would make the export much easier to manage. For staff commitments, I’d also want a clear reference on the original commitment and each reversal so the actuals can be traced without having to search through unrelated journal entries. A consistent reference or document ID could make the reporting process much cleaner.
Hi @Jaggeroth
If I have understood your question properly - just use another category for the committment journals then these will not be exported as per your requirements
Hope it helps
@BatchNepal Thanks for the reply.
I decided to go the route of using Purchase Orders to record Staff Commitments, using an Internal Supplier and linking the line items to a “Commitments” item group. And I was able to easily create a report that linked any payments back to the commitment by checking those categories.
Cheers
Keep commitment and staff costs separate in reports, rather than just using a cost centre. Use a consistent naming convention for commitment journals and reversals to make exporting easier. Ensure commitment tracking is distinct from expense postings to avoid double-counting staff costs during project reconciliation. The key is to ensure the external project tool can consistently identify commitments, reversals, and actuals.