Version 12.6 - Release Notes - Synergist Browser Interface

Synergist v12.6 Release Notes November 2020 1 | P a g e

Version 12.6 - Release Notes

Synergist Browser Interface

November 2020

Synergist v12.6 requires 4D Server v18

Please note: These release notes relate to the Synergist browser interface only.

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Contents 
   
UI & DESIGN ..................................................................................... 5 
Option to hide the left-hand menu ............................................................................. 5 
FREELANCERS .................................................................................. 6 
Automatically creating freelancer purchase orders / invoices ............................................. 6 
Set-up required ................................................................................................... 13 
INVOICING & BILLING PLANS ............................................................... 17 
Notes & comments support ..................................................................................... 17 
FM exchange rate displayed when creating a sales invoice .............................................. 18 
Exchange rate change on draft invoice ...................................................................... 18 
Invoice list - handler filter...................................................................................... 19 
Batch invoicing ................................................................................................... 20 
Multi-job billing plan............................................................................................. 20 
KANBAN BOARDS ............................................................................. 21 
Editing a Kanban entry .......................................................................................... 21 
Changing the owner on Kanban cards ........................................................................ 22 
Kanban alert ...................................................................................................... 22 
EXPENSES ..................................................................................... 23 
Foreign-currency expense sheets ............................................................................. 23 
JOBS & PHASES .............................................................................. 27 
Add multiple phases to a job via phase-type list ........................................................... 27 
Thermometer drop-down ....................................................................................... 28 
Hovers added to the Schedule tab on Jobs & Phases ...................................................... 28 
GANTT CHARTS .............................................................................. 29 
Ability to edit dates inline ...................................................................................... 29 
CALENDAR BOOKINGS ....................................................................... 30 
Time & bookings information hover .......................................................................... 30 
PURCHASING .................................................................................. 31 

   
 
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Zero value purchase invoices .................................................................................. 31 
Supplier prices .................................................................................................... 31 
REPORTS ...................................................................................... 32 
Print and download options for charts ....................................................................... 32 
Run now functionality for scheduled reports ............................................................... 33 
Costs & Quotes – additional fields ............................................................................. 34 
Missing timesheets report – additional field ................................................................. 34 
ACCOUNTS LINKS ............................................................................ 35 
Xero import feature – enhancements ......................................................................... 35 
Accounts link via API for Sage Business Cloud Accounting (Previously called Sage One)............ 35 
MISCELLANEOUS ............................................................................. 36 
Utilities – Re-calc turnover ..................................................................................... 36 
Re-calc turnover.................................................................................................. 36 
Description fields in all FM tables are now mandatory .................................................... 37 
Option to add all stages on a Job or Phase .................................................................. 37 
New custom field types ......................................................................................... 38 
Company settings ................................................................................................ 38 
File maintenance tables ........................................................................................ 39 
 
 
   

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UI & DESIGN

Option to hide the left-hand menu

To optimize Synergist screen space, click on the icon to view/hide the left-hand

menu. This is particularly useful when accessing wide areas such as Calendar bookings

and Billing plan screens.

Example:

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FREELANCERS

Automatically creating freelancer purchase orders / invoices

When working with freelancers, it is important to track the work done, typically via

timesheets, leading to the creation of a purchase invoice to record the actual cost of the

freelancer against the jobs they have worked on.

This new feature automates the process, enabling timesheets to be associated with a

freelancer purchase order/purchase invoice. There are two main recommended methods

for achieving this and this feature supports both.

Create a special internal job to house all freelancer purchase orders

In this scenario, the freelancer time recorded against jobs would normally have an

associated resource level cost. This is achieved by selecting ‘Resource level costing’ on the

staff record and setting a cost rate that reflects the freelancer’s cost rate. In this case, you

would need to set both ‘Cost rate’ and ‘Freelancer PO cost rate’ (same value).

Using this set up:

• On internal jobs, purchase orders will be created using the Freelancer PO cost rate

• On associated jobs, the actual cost of freelancer timesheets will be recorded using

the defined resource level costing cost rate

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Create purchase orders on the jobs the freelancer is working on

In this scenario, the freelancer’s time recorded against jobs needs to have an associated

cost of ZERO otherwise the costs on the job relating to the freelancer will be double

counted.

This is typically done by selecting ‘Resource level costing’ and setting a cost rate for the

freelancer to ZERO. The cost of timesheets associated with the purchase order is defined

by the Freelancer PO cost rate.

Note: This feature does not handle a different rate for freelancer overtime. If an overtime

rate for freelancers has been negotiated, any adjustments to their purchase orders will

need to be done manually.

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Automatically creating purchase orders

Freelancer time will be recorded in the normal way by entering timesheets. Freelancers

can do this themselves if they have access to Synergist. Otherwise, a member of staff can

be delegated to enter timesheets for them.

Once timesheets have been entered and approved, purchase orders can be created (based

on the timesheets submitted) using the new freelancer PO cost rate described above.

Select ‘Posted timesheets’ from the main left-hand menu

Select ‘freelancer timesheets’ to process

This will list all freelancer timesheets that have not yet been allocated to a purchase order.

Note: A freelancer timesheet is any timesheet posted for a staff resource that has been

marked as ‘Freelancer’ (previously called ‘Sub-contractor’).

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Select the timesheets you wish to process into purchase orders

You can select timesheets across multiple jobs for multiple freelancers. A purchase order

will be created for each freelancer job/phase. The purchase orders will then be

automatically joined together as consolidated purchase orders – one for each Freelancer.

Actions button

Select either:

• ‘Create purchase orders’ or

• ‘Create purchase orders on a single phase – internal job’

If the action is successful, the system will report the number of purchase orders created.

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Accessing the purchase orders

The purchase orders can be accessed from the main purchasing list by searching for

‘Freelancer timesheets’.

Consolidated purchase orders

If multiple purchase orders are created for a freelancer, these will be consolidated.

Finalizing the purchase

The consolidated PO may be printed out and sent to the Freelancer for approval.

Once the consolidated PO has been approved, the user can select the invoices tab of the

consolidated PO and generate a purchase invoice. This can then be posted to the linked

accounts system for payment.

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Manually creating a freelancer purchase order

You can also manually create a freelancer purchase order. This can be done on the actual

job the freelancer has worked on or on an internal job – depending on your processes. See

above for the different methods available.

Select Get Timesheets

This will create PO lines for each timesheet brought in.

If the Purchase order is on an internal job, the system will bring in timesheets from all the

jobs the freelancer has worked on. If the job is a normal external client job, then only

timesheets for this particular job are brought in. A date range is provided so the user can

bring in timesheets for a single month’s work.

Creating the purchase order cost

The system will bring in the freelancer’s timesheets for the specified period. These will be

shown in the Timesheets tab. In the Lines tab, a line will be created for each of the

timesheets selected for this purchase order. The unit cost is the Freelancer PO rate

described above.

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Lines tab

One line is created automatically for each timesheet.

Timesheets tab

Selected timesheets are displayed. If the user removes a timesheet, its related line

(shown above) is also removed.

Note: In Synergist, each timesheet has a related cost rate. However, for freelancers these

will normally be set to zero if purchase orders are being raised against the job the

freelancer has worked on (rather than an internal job). This way the freelancer cost is not

double counted.

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Set-up required

Company settings

‘Own PO numbers’ switched off (unticked).

This is a requirement since a batch of purchase orders are created in the background with

no user intervention.

Freelancer user

Create a new ‘Freelancer’ user or select an existing user. Make sure the user has an

expense account and staff record for each company they have access to.

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Creating/editing the Staff record for a freelancer user

• Set the resource to use ‘Resource level costing’

• Make sure the cost rates are all zero

• Currency for time costing should be blank or ’-Base currency-’

• Tick the checkbox ‘Freelancer’

• Set the Freelancer PO cost rate

• If planning to raise all purchases on an internal job, set a resource level cost rate

(see above for details)

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Expense account setup for user

• Expense account must have a default supply type

• Suggest you create a new supply type called ‘Freelancers’

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Existing freelancer timesheets

If you are already creating timesheets for freelancers, you will have already paid the

freelancer for most of the timesheets currently on the system. You will need to mark these

older timesheets as being paid. The simplest way of doing this is to raise a purchase order

on an internal job. You will need to create one purchase order for each freelancer that has

existing timesheets. See ‘Manually creating a freelancer purchase order’ detailed above.

When selecting timesheets using the ‘Get timesheets’ option via the Actions button, select

an appropriate date range. This should be from before the freelancer started working for

the company to the last paid timesheet. Once the purchase order has been approved, a

purchase write-off should be created from the ‘Purchase invoices’ menu and the purchase

order allocated to the write-off document.

This way the next time you list ‘Freelancer timesheets to process’, only the unpaid

timesheets will be listed.

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INVOICING & BILLING PLANS

Notes & comments support

Invoice notes and Internal comments are now included on invoice approval emails and in

the invoice export.

Invoice approval alert

Invoice export

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FM exchange rate displayed when creating a sales invoice

When creating a currency sales invoice, the Job currency and FM exchange rate appear in

a window with the options to:

• Change the currency

• Alter the exchange rate

• Apply the latest FM exchange rate

Exchange rate change on draft invoice

To change the exchange rate on a draft invoice, click on the pencil icon towards the right

of the displayed exchange rate. A window will open, allowing the invoice exchange rate to

be changed.

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Invoice list - handler filter

Handler filter added to the ‘Invoice list’ filter and ‘Draft invoice list’.

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Batch invoicing

Batch invoicing, previously only available from the job/phase lists and client card, is now

available in the following areas:

• Project jobs tab

• Project phases tab

• Campaign jobs tab

• Campaign phases tab

This is particularly useful for users who want to create a multi-job invoice for an entire

project based on billing plans.

Multi-job billing plan

This is a new option under ‘Preferences’. Previously, the ‘Planned to recognise’ figure could

be displayed in the billing plans display. This figure has now been renamed to ‘BP

recognised’.

An additional option, ‘Recognised’, is now available. This represents the total recognised

for invoices raised against the plan

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KANBAN BOARDS

Editing a Kanban entry

Each Kanban card has an ‘Edit’ button towards the top right-hand corner. Click on the

‘Edit’ button to make revisions to the activity.

Kanban card edits can be made to the following fields:

• Activity type

• Subject

• Details

• Start date and time

• End date and time

• Activity owner (see below)

Note: You can also delete a Kanban entry from this view. Deleting a Kanban entry will

also delete the activity record it relates to.

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Changing the owner on Kanban cards

To change the owner on a Kanban card:

• Click on the avatar in the top left corner

• Select the new owner from the drop-down list

Kanban alert

The activity immediate alert feature will now send an alert on change of Kanban status.

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EXPENSES

Foreign-currency expense sheets

Expenses could already be entered in a foreign currency. However, the resulting purchase

expense sheets and related purchase invoices were always created in the base currency

(typically Sterling – GBP). This was an issue for companies whose staff worked abroad and

preferred to be paid in the currency where they lived. These employees would also expect

submitted expenses not to be affected by fluctuations in exchange rates.

To solve this issue, Synergist now allows for expense sheets to be saved in foreign

currencies. Once processed, these expense sheets are converted into currency purchase

invoices which can be posted to any linked accounts system that supports foreign currency

accounts.

Initial set up

To implement this feature, Synergist expense accounts need to be set up for foreign

currencies and have the default currency set as the currency the user wishes to be paid in.

Select your user’s expense account from the Supplier list

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Navigate to the Financial tab

• Make sure the account is set as Multi-currency

• Set the default currency

• Tick the new option ‘Post expenses in default currency’

Creating a currency expense sheet

• Create a new expense sheet in the conventional way

• Notice the Reimbursement amount is now showing in Euros

• The currency is set to the user’s default currency

• The current currency rate (in this case Euros to Sterling) is displayed

• The rate can be adjusted at this point in the process if required

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Add an expense line

This will now default to Euros where previously it would have been in the base currency

(typically Sterling).

Creating an expense line for a different currency

The user might then wish to enter another expense line. Imagine if they had travelled to

the USA and had a hotel receipt in US Dollars.

The user could still enter the expenses in Euros if they wanted to (on the left-hand side).

However, it could be more convenient to enter the expense in US Dollars – to match their

receipt.

The exchange rate shown is the current exchange rate between US Dollars and the base

currency (in this case Sterling). The system first converts the dollar amount to its

equivalent in Sterling, and then converts that base currency value to Euros. This way the

system will create a Euro invoice for the accounts system and still track the cost of this

expense against the job in base currency (Sterling).

Example:

$100 = £66.66

£66.66 = €80

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Expense sheet

This has resulted in an expense sheet for a total of €280.

Once approved and posted, an expense purchase invoice for €280 is created. This can

then be posted to the linked accounts system for payment.

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JOBS & PHASES

Add multiple phases to a job via phase-type list

It is now possible to quickly create a set of phases based on phase types.

From a job or an opportunity record:

• Select ‘Add multiple new phases’

• Select from a list of phase types - one phase will be created for every phase type

selected

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Thermometer drop-down

User interface improvements to the thermometer drop-down list on jobs & phases.

Hovers added to the Schedule tab on Jobs & Phases

This feature presents key information to the user without them having to open the record.

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GANTT CHARTS

Ability to edit dates inline

Note: Selecting a new date inline will only change the dates if it is aligned with your

business rules.

Example:

If your company settings dictate your job dates to be ‘Stage driven’, selecting a new date

for the job start/end date will have no effect. To change job dates, you need to amend

stage dates.

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CALENDAR BOOKINGS

Time & bookings information hover

When creating or editing a booking, the user can hover over the charge-code information

button and the total estimated for the job-phase will be displayed. The values correspond

to the information found in the Time & bookings estimate view.

This popup also appears in ‘MyCalendar’ and ‘Weekly timesheet’ – to the right of the

charge code.

Note: The values displayed are for the job-phase/charge code – not just the user. This

enables the person booking into the calendar to see the full picture of the estimate and

remaining time without having to open up the job in a separate tab.

Estimate Time & bookings

These figures appear in the above hover.

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PURCHASING

Zero value purchase invoices

You can now post a PI that contains a zero-value analysis line. Zero-value lines don't get

sent to the postings table.

Supplier prices

Referencing the materials table

When creating supplier prices, you can create your own price codes (as before) or use the

materials table (new feature). This links the supplier price back to the materials record in

File Maintenance. You can then access your supplier prices from within FM by selecting the

material record. The material cost in File Maintenance is not synchronised to the material

cost in supplier prices. You may set the supplier price for the material to any value you

want it to be.

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REPORTS

Print and download options for charts

Available in the ‘Dashboard’, ‘Saved reports’ and ‘Data viewer’, click on the icon to

reveal options to print, download or view charts in full screen.

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Run now functionality for scheduled reports

‘Run’ buttons have been added to each line in the reports table, enabling the immediate running of

individual reports. The ‘Run’ buttons are only visible when there is an email address associated with

the report.

This feature is useful when setting up a scheduled report and wishing to run the report once as a

test run.

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Costs & Quotes – additional fields

‘Completed date’ and ‘Final invoiced date’ columns have been added to the end of the

‘Costs & quotes’ report when exported as a CSV.

Missing timesheets report – additional field

A ‘Staff team’ column has been added to the end of the Missing timesheets report when

exported as a CSV. Please note that this column is not included in the PDF version.

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ACCOUNTS LINKS

Xero import feature – enhancements

• A new facility to split a line allows the allocation of multiple purchase orders

• Part/Final switch provided for purchase lines

• Upload sales invoice PDFs to Xero as part of an invoice batch post

o Only supported when S3 attachments are used (i.e. cloud)

Each time a non-copy invoice is PDF'd, the file is uploaded to the site's S3

bucket using a file name of SI_<uuid>.pdf

<uuid> is the UUID of the [Invoice Header] record

o When posting to Xero or QBO, relevant sales invoice PDFs will also be sent if

they exist

Accounts link via API for Sage Business Cloud Accounting (Previously called

Sage One)

Accounts link for posting Sales & Purchase transactions.

Note: Sage’s API allows invoice lines to be assigned a nominal code but it does not allow

the assignment of a cost centre, department or project. Sage BCA calls these ‘Analysis

types’.

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MISCELLANEOUS

Utilities – Re-calc turnover

Re-calc turnover

Select clients and/or suppliers. Then enter a start date. The system will calculate the

turnover figure for all clients and suppliers for the current company. The totals will be

displayed on the client/supplier cards. This process is typically done once a year to re-set

the turnover figure for the year.

Note: Reports and dashboards do not generally use this figure. The turnover is re-

calculated based on the start/end date of the report specified.

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Description fields in all FM tables are now mandatory

Example: File Maintenance > Activity types

Option to add all stages on a Job or Phase

When adding stages to a Job or Phase, click on the ‘-All-‘ option at the top of the list if you

wish to select all the available stages.

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New custom field types

• Text area field

• Time field

Example of new custom fields added to a job card:

Company settings

‘IBAN’ and ‘BIC/Swift’ fields have been added to the Financial information panel.

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File maintenance tables

• All tables now have sortable column headings on main lists

• Exchange rate currency symbols are now mandatory