Standard procedures for contractor setup, work review, and project-scoped payment records. Use this guide to complete each stage consistently and keep testing separate from live operations.
Each route identifies the screens, decisions, and controls assigned to that role.
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Administrator routeProject → Contractor → Contract → Work Review → Payment Run → Payment Register
DNA in practice · Empowerment
Clear responsibilities enable each role to act independently while maintaining one controlled operating process.
The operating sequence
Standard contractor-to-payment cycle
Complete the sequence in order. Each approved step provides the controlled input for the next.
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01
Create or select the project
Use Sandbox for training and formula tests. Use an operational project for real work.
Projects
02
Create the contractor
Assign the contractor’s default project before adding a contract.
Contractors
03
Assign the contract terms
Record labor, overtime, T&T, mileage, and applicable allowances.
Contracts
04
Submit worked time
The work entry inherits its project from the contractor record.
Work Entries
05
Review and approve
Verify dates, hours, project, supporting notes, and calculated components.
Work Review
06
Preview, approve, and record payment
Confirm the preview before marking a run paid. Sandbox simulations never move money.
Payments
Controlled testing
Use Sandbox for controlled testing
Use project SANDBOX for fictitious contractors, training, and formula verification.
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✓
Safe to simulate
Create contractors and contracts, submit time, review work, and complete a recorded test run.
!
No money moves
Payment execution is disabled for Sandbox. Use a clear simulation reference when marking a test run paid.
∑
Watch “All Projects”
Project filters isolate Sandbox. Combined “All Projects” views may still include its recorded activity.
DNA in practice · Integrity
Use clear TEST names, maintain project separation, and preserve the audit history. Accurate records require clarity and consistency.
1 Sandbox is visibly labeled Sandbox / Simulation.2 Its description confirms that real payment execution and external actions are disabled.
Dashboard checkpoint
Filter before reading project KPIs
Select Sandbox · SANDBOX in Project Allocation before interpreting project-specific hours, accruals, or cash paid. A visible Sandbox label is your confirmation that you are not reading an operational project.
Detailed walkthrough
Complete contractor setup before contract assignment
Project ownership starts on the contractor record. Every new time entry inherits that project before the assigned contract is evaluated.
Confirm the contractor’s default project before work begins. The person creating the record owns the accuracy of that assignment.
01
Create the contractor profile
Open Contractors and choose New Contractor.
Enter the display name, legal name, code, email, and specialty.
In Operations, select the contractor’s Default Project.
For practice, choose SANDBOX — Sandbox and use obviously fictitious contact data.
Set compliance and payment eligibility deliberately; never enter full banking identifiers into notes.
Why this mattersThe selected default project becomes the controlled project on later work entries. Changing the contract does not silently move prior work between projects.
1 Use an unmistakable TEST name.2 Confirm Sandbox in the Operations section before saving.
1 Regular and OT terms are explicit.2 T&T follows labor hours in this example.
02
Assign the payment rules
Open Contracts, then create a contract or duplicate a suitable existing template.
Select the contractor and enter the contract identity, dates, cycle, and currency.
Verify regular rate, OT rule, multiplier or fixed OT rate, and standard hours.
Set the T&T rule and rate. If it follows labor, confirm the checkbox and any caps.
Record each applicable allowance separately: lodging, travel, per diem, mileage, meal, and equipment.
Before savingZero means no value will be generated for that component. Do not assume a copied contract preserved every allowance—compare each field.
03
Post and review worked time
The work-entry screen stores work facts. It does not calculate payroll.
1 Filter by contractor and contract to isolate the cycle.2 Compare hours and claims day by day before opening Payment Runs.
ContractorSubmits each shift and checks My Shifts for its status.ReviewerConfirms date, inherited project, contract, hours, claims, and supporting notes.AdministratorUses only approved entries when creating the project-scoped payment preview.
DNA in practice · Collaborative Excellence
Contractor, reviewer, and administrator each verify the information they own, creating one dependable record across the full cycle.
Calculation guide
Verify the calculation before recording payment
Every component is calculated from the assigned contract and combined in the payment preview.
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DNA in practice · Value Creation
Accurate, traceable calculations protect operational and financial value for every stakeholder.
Labor+Overtime+T&T+Mileage+Allowances= Gross
Interactive example
Rebuild the September 21 Sandbox calculation
Regular$400.00
Overtime$150.00
T&T$200.00
Claims & allowances$325.40
Day total$1,075.40
$400.00 + $150.00 + $200.00 + $325.40
Day 1 · Sep 21$1,075.408 regular · 2 OT · 10 T&T · 120 miles · allowances
+
Day 2 · Sep 22$1,028.6010 regular · 1 OT · 11 T&T · 80 miles · allowances
=
Corrected run #5$2,104.00Recorded paid · simulation only
1 The corrected preview includes mileage and totals $2,104.2 The earlier $1,970 preview remains void for audit history; it was not overwritten.
Draft
Open and inspect the itemized preview. Fix source records and recreate the preview if the math is wrong.
Approved preview
Approval confirms review readiness. It still does not mean money has moved.
Paid
Record the date, method, reference, and notes only after the real-world payment—or an explicit Sandbox simulation—is complete.
Void
Preserve an incorrect or superseded run as void. Never disguise a correction by editing audit history.
Administration
Badge management
Badge templates and artwork remain part of the administrative workflow and are not changed by project-scoped payments.
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Module safeguardContractor, contract, and badge records continue to use their existing management screens. The project-scoped workflow adds context; it does not replace those modules.
Use Badge Templates only to manage the reusable design, wording, status, and front/back artwork.
Use Issue Badge for the holder-specific assignment.
For a contractor-linked badge, select the contractor first; identity and photo are pulled from that profile.
Choose the badge project deliberately. Badge assignment does not change the contractor’s default project.
Preview the badge and public QR page before printing.
Existing module protectedThe Stage 24 project and payment work did not replace Badge Management or its artwork records.
1 Template identity and status.2 Front and back artwork are managed independently.
Reference desk
Troubleshooting and glossary
Start with the record that supplies the missing context, then move forward through the cycle.
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Payment preview shows no entries
Confirm the work entries are approved, inside the selected date range, and assigned to the same project selected for the run. Paid, rejected, submitted, or already-attached entries are not candidates for a new preview.
A work entry has the wrong project
Check the contractor’s controlled default project. The work entry inherits its project from the contractor when the entry is created—before contract terms are applied. Do not use the contract to “correct” project ownership.
The total is lower than expected
Open the contract and verify every component: regular rate, OT rule and rate, T&T rule and hours, mileage rate, and each allowance. Recreate the draft preview after correcting the source. Void the obsolete run if it must remain in audit history.
A record says “Missing Project” or “Legacy / Unassigned”
Treat it as an exception, not a valid operating project. Assign the contractor to the correct controlled project before creating new work. Do not include unresolved legacy entries in a live project payroll.
Sandbox activity appears in a combined total
Use a specific project filter for operational review. “All Projects” can aggregate Sandbox records; the Sandbox flag prevents real payment execution, but it does not erase its test records from combined reporting.
DNA in practice · Proactive Innovation
Correct the source record, document the exception, and use what was learned to strengthen the operating control.
Default projectThe contractor-level project inherited by new work entries.Payment previewAn itemized calculation built from approved work and contract terms.T&TTravel time, calculated according to the contract rule and rate.Approved previewA reviewed package ready for the payment-recording step; not proof that money moved.Payment registerThe audit view of draft, approved, paid, and voided runs.SandboxThe dedicated simulation project with real payment execution disabled.
Continuous improvement
Share your feedback
Tell us what was useful, unclear, or missing. Specific examples help us improve both the manual and the operating process.
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