Milestones Overview

Milestones are essential components of the Savings Management System, allowing users to track and manage savings over time.

By breaking down a savings project into smaller, structured sub-projects, milestones provide a more efficient way to monitor progress.

This guide covers:

• How milestones work

• How they are calculated

• The differences between automated and custom milestone builders

• How to edit milestones

• How to mark milestones as complete

How Do Milestones Work?

Milestones sit under a parent savings record, allowing you to divide a savings project into smaller, manageable sub-projects. You can:

• Create milestones when setting up the savings record

• Add milestones later by navigating to the Milestones tab within the parent savings record

Why Use Milestones?

• Organized Tracking – Consolidates multiple savings records under one parent project

• Better Progress Monitoring – Allows users to track savings in phases rather than managing separate projects

• Improved Reporting – Ensures all savings related to a single project are grouped for easier analysis

💡 Tip: If you’re tracking savings on a year-long contract, you can create:

• 12 milestones (one for each month)

• 4 milestones (one for each quarter if measured quarterly)

Realizing & Completing Savings

Until marked as complete, savings values remain in a projected state. Once completed, they are considered realized savings.

To realize savings, navigate to the Milestones tab within the Savings Project and mark a milestone as complete.

Creating Milestones

Automated Milestone Builder

The Automated Milestone Builder generates milestones automatically based on user inputs.

Required Inputs:

• Savings Start Date – The start date for the first milestone

• Frequency of Milestones – Options: Monthly, Quarterly, Bi-Annually, Annually

• Number of Milestones – The total number of milestones to be generated

• Total Baseline Spend – The total budget for the project

• Projected Cost Reduction (Across All Milestones) – Expected reduction in costs over the project duration

• Projected Cost Avoidance (Across All Milestones) – Anticipated cost avoidance over the project duration

📌 How It Works:

• The system automatically distributes the baseline spend and projected savings evenly across each milestone.

• Milestones are assigned start and end dates based on the selected frequency.

Custom Milestone Builder

The Custom Milestone Builder provides manual control over each milestone.

Steps to Create Custom Milestones:

1. Specify the Number of Milestones – Define how many milestones are required.

2. Enter Details Manually – Provide information for each milestone, including:

   • Start and End Dates

   • Baseline Spend

   • Projected Cost Reduction

   • Cost Avoidance

Editing Milestones

Milestones can be edited to adjust their details as needed.

Steps to Edit a Milestone:

1. Navigate to the Milestones tab within the parent savings record

2. Locate the milestone to edit from the table

3. Click on the milestone to update:

   • Start/End Dates

   • Baseline Spend

   • Projected Cost Reduction

   • Cost Avoidance

Marking Milestones as Complete

To finalize a milestone and realize its savings, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Milestones Tab

   • Open the Savings Project and go to the Milestones section

2. Select the Milestone

   • Locate the milestone you want to complete

3. Click ‘Mark As Complete’

   • This will open a new confirmation popup

4. Amend Realized Savings (Optional)

   • If needed, adjust the realized savings amount

5. Confirm Completion

   • Click "Confirm Milestone Completion" to finalize

Milestone Analysis & Reporting

Once milestones are completed, visual analysis on dashboards is automatically updated.

📌 The system provides insights into the delta between:

• Projected Savings

• Pipeline Savings

• Realized Savings

By effectively using milestones, organizations can track savings progress, improve financial planning, and maintain accurate savings records.