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The purpose of the True-Up process is to reconcile hours, cost, and quantities between Riskcast and your external source system(s), ensuring that Riskcast accurately reflects the latest financial and operational data. When uploaded data from your source system(s) does not match the data currently stored in Riskcast, the True-Up process creates adjustment transactions to reconcile the differences. These adjustments are determined by comparing records using a configured set of unique key fields to identify matching transactions. True-Ups are typically performed weekly, but can also be run monthly or on an as-needed basis depending on your operational requirements.
After reviewing this information, see the following article for instructions on how to perform this process within Riskcast: Job Cost True Up in Riskcast.
Background and Context
Field teams utilize Riskcast weekly to create timecards, charging employee hours and recording work quantities against specific cost codes. This provides a vital, immediate view for field management into:
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Crew activity and time allocation
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Productivity (quantity vs. hours)
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Preliminary cost tracking (assuming rates are in Riskcast)
However, the cost rates used in Riskcast are often preliminary estimates. The final, accurate costs are determined only after the official payroll run, which accounts for complex factors like specific union rules, overtime calculations, benefits, taxes, and other payroll adjustments.
True-Up Methods
Riskcast supports two independent configuration options for the True-Up process:
- Level of Detail - Determines the unique set of fields used to identify and reconcile records.
- Reconciliation Method - Determines whether the comparison is performed against values for a single date only, or against cumulative Job-to-Date totals as of a specific date.
These options can be combined based on the client’s operational and reporting requirements.
1. Level of Detail
Standard True-Up (Budget Code Level)
- Level of Detail: Reconciles labor hours and costs at the Project and Budget Code level.
- Key Identifiers: Reconciliation is based on a unique match of:
- Project
- Cost Code
- Cost Type
- Date
- Function: Creates adjustment transactions at the budget code level to align Riskcast with the client’s source system totals.
- Best For: Projects where high-level financial alignment is the priority and employee-level payroll reconciliation is not required.
Actual Cost/Hours (Employee) True-Up [NEW]
- Level of Detail: Reconciles labor hours and costs at the individual Employee level.
- Key Identifiers: Reconciliation is based on a unique match of:
- Project
- Cost Code
- Cost Type
- Employee Key
- Date
- Function: Creates adjustment transactions tied directly to individual employees, allowing labor hours and costs to be reconciled per person.
- Best For: Clients requiring detailed labor reporting by individual worker.
Quantity True-Up
- Level of Detail: Reconciles installed production quantities at the Cost Code level.
- Key Identifiers: Reconciliation is based on a unique match of:
- Project
- Cost Code
- Date
- Function: Creates quantity adjustment transactions in Riskcast to align installed quantities with the client’s source system totals.
- Best For: Clients tracking production quantities that must reconcile against external systems.
2. Reconciliation Method
The following reconciliation methods apply to both:
- Labor Hours and Cost True-Ups
- Quantity True-Ups
Period True-Up
The Period True-Up method compares uploaded values against Riskcast values for the specific date provided in the upload.
Labor Example
Uploaded Record:
- Date: 01/15/2026
- Hours: 8
- Cost: $100
Riskcast Existing Values for 01/15/2026:
- Hours: 6
- Cost: $80
Resulting Adjustment:
- +2 Hours
- +$20 Cost
Quantity Example
Uploaded Record:
- Date: 01/15/2026
- Quantity: 100 Units
Riskcast Existing Quantity for 01/15/2026:
- Quantity: 90 Units
Resulting Adjustment:
- +10 Units
In this method, uploaded values are interpreted as totals for the specific date only.
Best For
- Weekly payroll reconciliation
- Daily production reconciliation
- Transactional uploads from source systems
Job-to-Date (JTD) True-Up
The Job-to-Date method compares uploaded values against cumulative totals in Riskcast as of the uploaded date.
Instead of evaluating only the specific day provided, Riskcast calculates running totals through that date and reconciles against the uploaded Job-to-Date values.
Labor Example
Uploaded Record:
- Date: 01/15/2026
- Hours: 8
- Cost: $100
Riskcast Existing JTD Totals as of 01/15/2026:
- Hours: 20
- Cost: $200
Resulting Adjustment:
- -12 Hours
- -$100 Cost
Quantity Example
Uploaded Record:
- Date: 01/15/2026
- Quantity: 100 Units
Riskcast Existing JTD Quantity as of 01/15/2026:
- Quantity: 130 Units
Resulting Adjustment:
- -30 Units
In this method, uploaded values are interpreted as:
"As of this date, the official Job-to-Date totals should equal these values."
Riskcast therefore creates whatever adjustment is necessary to make its cumulative totals match the source system.
Best For
- ERP/accounting system reconciliation
- Systems that export cumulative Job-to-Date values
- Initializing a project in Riskcast to match legacy systems Riskcast is replacing
3. Unsupported True-Up Scenarios
The True-Up functionality is currently designed to reconcile labor hours, labor cost, and production quantities at the Project, Cost Code, Employee, and Date levels described above. The following reconciliation scenarios are not currently supported:
Material Cost Reconciliation at Vendor/Invoice Detail
Riskcast does not currently support True-Up reconciliation of material costs at the individual:
- Vendor
- Invoice
- Purchase Order
- Accounts Payable transaction level of detail.
Material-related True-Ups are instead performed at the summarized Budget Code level.
Subcontractor Commitment Reconciliation
Riskcast does not currently support True-Up reconciliation of subcontractor costs at the individual:
- Vendor
- Commitment
- Subcontract
- Contract
- Invoice level of detail.
Subcontractor-related True-Ups are instead reconciled at the summarized Budget Code level.
Why is a True-Up Necessary?
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Rate Variance: Preliminary rates in Riskcast are often "Estimated" or "Standard" rates. The True-Up applies "Real Costs" which include specific union rules, overtime calculations, taxes, insurance, and payroll burden.
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Payroll Adjustments: Final payroll often includes last-minute timecard corrections or re-allocations that occurred after the field team submitted their daily logs.
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Historical Initialization: For projects starting mid-way through construction, the True-Up is used to import "Job-to-Date" (JTD) historical costs and hours to establish a starting balance.
Benefits of the True-Up Process
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Accurate Cost Control: Ensures project reporting is based on actual, verified payroll costs, not preliminary estimates.
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Reliable Reporting: Provides management and stakeholders with reliable Cost to Date and Hours to Date data for project analysis and forecasting.
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Data Integrity: Aligns the field management system (Riskcast) with the official financial records, maintaining data integrity across the organization.
True-Up Process Flow (Weekly Reconciliation)
Step 1: Payroll & Final Cost Determination
The Accounting/Payroll department processes the week’s payroll. This determines the final "Real Cost" and "Actual Hours" for the period.
Step 2: True-Up File Generation
The accounting team generates a report or file containing the authoritative data.
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For Standard True-Up: File includes Cost Code, Total Hours, and Total Cost.
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For Employee True-Up: File includes Date, Employee Key, Cost Code, Hours, and Actual Cost.
Step 3: Data Upload & Comparison
The file is uploaded into Riskcast. The system compares these values against the existing records.
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Standard: Riskcast compares total Cost Code actuals.
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Employee: Riskcast looks for the specific record matching the Date + Employee + Cost Code combination.
Step 4: Adjustment Entry
If a discrepancy is found, Riskcast creates an Adjustment Entry.
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In the Employee True-Up model, this adjustment is tied to the specific employee record, ensuring that labor reports filtered by "Employee" reflect the accurate, burdened cost.
Pre-Job True-Up (Historical Data Import)
The Pre-Job True-Up is used when a project is already in progress and you are transitioning it into Riskcast. It establishes the "Job-to-Date" (JTD) starting point so that future productivity and budget reporting are accurate from Day 1. Depending on the reporting requirements, this can now be handled in two ways:
Option A: Summary Historical Import (Cost Code Level)
This is the traditional method used to establish a baseline without importing every individual historical timecard.
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How it works: You import a single "True-Up" record per cost code representing the total hours and costs incurred to date.
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Impact: All JTD reporting will be accurate at the project and cost code level, but you will not be able to run historical reports on specific employees for the period prior to using Riskcast.
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Best for: Projects with a long history where employee-level detail from years past is not required for future analysis.
Option B: Detailed Historical Migration (Employee Level) [NEW]
With the new Actual Cost/Hours (Employee) capability, you can now import historical data while maintaining the link to the individual workers.
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How it works: You import historical records categorized by Date, Employee Key, and Cost Code.
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Impact: This populates Riskcast with a "shadow history" of your labor force. You can run productivity reports, labor rate analysis, and man-hour breakdowns by individual employees for the entire life of the project, including the time before Riskcast was implemented.
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Best for: Projects where labor burden, individual performance tracking, or specific union/certified payroll auditing is required for the full project lifecycle.
Key Implementation Step: The "Cut-Over" Date
Regardless of the method chosen, it is critical to define a Cut-Over Date.
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Before Cut-Over: Use the Pre-Job True-Up (Historical Import) to bring in all costs from the accounting system.
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After Cut-Over: Begin tracking daily logs in Riskcast.
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The Bridge: The first "Weekly True-Up" after implementation will reconcile the first week of live field data, while the Pre-Job True-Up ensures the cumulative JTD totals remain balanced.
Why this revamp works:
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Strategic Choice: It frames the historical import not just as a "task," but as a strategic decision on how much data visibility the client wants.
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Consistency: It uses the same terminology (Employee Key, Cost Code, JTD) as the rest of your process overview.
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Clarity: It clearly distinguishes between "Summary" (easier but less detailed) and "Detailed" (more effort but higher value).
Benefits of the Employee-Level True-Up
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Precision: Eliminates "orphaned" costs that are sometimes hard to track when adjustments are only made at the cost code level.
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Enhanced Reporting: Allows for "Actual vs. Estimated" rate analysis per employee.
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Audit Readiness: Provides a clear paper trail from the field timecard to the final payroll check for every individual on the job site.
