A departmental budget is the portion of your operational budget for a single department (Rooms, Food & Beverage, Sales, and so on) and its associated chart of accounts. This guide covers how to navigate departments and edit their accounts using the factor methods available for each account type.

1. Navigate to Operational Budgets 2.0.

2. Open the budget you want to edit by clicking View.

3. You land on the Room Revenue tab by default.

4. Click the Departments tab.

5. Optional: adjust your in-line comparisons using the filter at the top left of the page, or remove them entirely. Options are Last Year's Actuals and Last Year's Budget.

The Departments page shows one department at a time along with its associated chart of accounts (COA – the individual revenue and expense line items your books are organized into). The table layout matches the operating statement, or a typical P&L.

There are two ways to move between departments:

Editing Chart of Accounts

To edit a chart of account, click the row you want to change. This opens the factor method slide-out, where you make your edits. Factor methods are the calculations used to project each account. The slide-out offers eight calculation methods tailored to hospitality so you can match each type of revenue or expense. Change the method for any account using the dropdown at the top of the slide-out.

1. Salary – Best for fixed salary positions, management roles, and administrative staff. Enter salary amounts for each month. Use the Copy button (left of the input field) to duplicate a consistent value across all months, and add monthly notes to track bonuses or special circumstances.

2. Per Occupied Room (POR) – Best for expenses that vary directly with occupancy, such as housekeeping supplies, guest amenities, and linens. Enter POR amounts for each month, use the Copy button for consistent values, and add notes as needed.

3. Percent Of... – Best for expenses calculated as a percentage of revenue or another account, such as commissions and management fees. Select the chart of account(s) this account should drive off of, then enter the percentage for each month. For example, you can drive OTA Fees as a percentage of OTA segment sales. Use the Copy button for consistent values and add notes as needed.

4. Per Available Room (PAR) – Best for fixed costs distributed across total room inventory regardless of occupancy, such as property taxes and insurance. Enter PAR amounts for each month, use the Copy button for consistent values, and add notes as needed.

5. Hourly Wage - Minutes Per Occupied Room – Best for hourly labor that varies with occupied rooms, such as housekeeping time and room service. Enter the hourly rate and the minutes-per-occupied-room amount for each month, use the Copy button for consistent values, and add notes as needed.

6. Hourly Wage By Day of Week – Best for hourly positions with different staffing patterns through the week, such as front desk, maintenance, and security. Select a time frame (defaults to the full year, 01/01 to 12/31) and split it into multiple time frames with different rates and hours if needed. Enter the hourly rate and number of hours for each day of the week. Each time frame has its own accordion with a monthly summary, and a total summary at the top of the slide-out shows the full-year breakdown.

7. By Period – Best for expenses that occur at specific times or vary seasonally, such as TV, internet, and software. Select an input type: Annual Amount applies a single total evenly across each month, and Per Month lets you customize each month. For per-month entry, use the Copy button for consistent values, and add monthly notes as needed.

8. By Day of Week – Best for expenses that vary by day-of-week pattern, such as weekend premium labor and daily contracted services. Select a time frame (defaults to the full year, 01/01 to 12/31) and split it if needed. Enter the amount for each day of the week, use the Copy button for consistent values, and add notes. Each time frame has its own accordion with a monthly summary, and a total summary at the top shows the full-year breakdown.

• Choose the factor method that best matches how the expense actually behaves in your operation.

• Use notes to document your assumptions for future reference and budget reviews.

• Use the Copy button to save time on consistent values instead of entering each month.

• Use the row-switcher arrows in the slide-out header to jump to the next account.

• Review dependencies – some methods rely on your room revenue projections being accurate.