How do you link IT capacity to budget?
You link IT capacity to budget by valuing assignments at the daily cost: planned workload × daily cost gives the forecast cost per project, team, and business unit. Actual time then lets you compare with budget, feed showback, and document the capitalizable share (CAPEX) and the operating share (OPEX).
Capacity planning for the IT CFO and finance controller
Link team workload to budget, showback, and capitalization.
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Main challenges
- Knowing the real cost of IT projects beyond contractor invoices.
- Justifying the Run / Build split.
- Documenting the share of time eligible for capitalization.
- Charging back or displaying IT cost per business unit.
What finance expects from a tool
- Assignments valued at the internal daily cost and at contractor daily rates.
- Forecast and actual budget tracking per project.
- Showback per business unit, to make IT cost visible (Workload does not invoice: it does not handle chargeback).
- Timesheets that document the CAPEX / OPEX split.
IT CFO and finance controller indicators
| Indicator | Definition |
|---|---|
| Forecast vs actual cost | Gap between planned cost (workload × daily cost) and actual cost (logged time). |
| Run / Build split | Share of cost spent on operations versus projects. |
| Capitalizable share (CAPEX) | Proportion of project time eligible for capitalization. |
| IT cost per business unit | Cost of resources consumed by each business unit (showback). |
Typical workflow with Workload
- Enter member costs (salary or rates) and contractor daily rates.
- Plan assignments: forecast cost is computed per project.
- Sync actual time to get the actual cost.
- Produce showback per business unit and budget tracking.
- Track the CAPEX / OPEX split, planned and actual, ahead of closing.
FAQ
What is the difference between showback and chargeback?
Showback informs business units of the IT cost they consume; chargeback bills it back through internal entries. Workload covers showback, not invoicing.
Are assignments enough to justify capitalization?
They give the forecast; actual logged time documents the capitalizable share. Accounting rules remain those of your company.
How do you value a contractor versus an employee?
Employees at the fully loaded daily cost, contractors at the billed daily rate.
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