Unifier employs a rules engine to help control costs as they roll up to the Cost Sheet. Your administrator creates rules to work with the rules engine. For example, your administrator might create a rule that enforces a budget limit on contracts so that invoices do not exceed the contract amounts.
When a cost exceeds a rule, it triggers a "rule exception," and Unifier displays a message window warning you of the exception. The window shows the level of the rule, an identifier, the rule that was exceeded, the current value of the field, and the value that triggered the rule exception.
Rule exceptions can be triggered by:
- Adding or copying a line item on the Cost Sheet
- Copying data from one column to another on the Cost Sheet
- Entering data directly into a cell on the Cost Sheet
- An email action that sends cost data to the sheet
- An integration transaction that sends cost data to the sheet
- I Step and S Step business process auto-creation
- A business process record that rolls up cost data to the sheet
Some users can override a rule violation. These users are specified when the administrator creates the rule. These users can choose to override the exception, or accept it.
If you override the rule exception, Unifier sends your user information and any comments you include to the audit log. If notification was specified when the rule was created, those users who were designated will be notified by email of the override.
If you accept the rule exception (click Cancel), you will stay on the current step.
Note: Unifier does not display the rule exception warning if the cost data comes from an email action, an integration transaction. If you have override control, Unifier will assume that you want to override the rule and sends information to the audit log.
When your Administrator creates a rule template:
- If the checkbox Include positive pendings in calculation is selected, then Unifier adds the positive pending values when calculating the Limit Expression.
- If the checkbox Include positive pendings in calculation is selected, then Unifier adds the negative pending values when calculating the Data Expression.
Note: Your Administrator can check both options or either one, when creating a rule template.
The rule is implemented during runtime (as a cost type BP is routed in its workflow or is Finish Edited) and according to your choices.