Automate Labor Cost Calculations with Financial Manager
(Timesheets + Financial Manager)
Finance and PMs see what a project costs on any day, not six weeks after it ships, with no payroll data in Jira.
1. Install Financial Manager
Install from the Atlassian Marketplace. Setting up Financial Manager
2. Configure blended labor rates
Under Financial Manager → Rate Tables, set rates by role, team, or individual. Use blended rates for CapEx (e.g. "Senior Engineer = $85/hr") rather than actual compensation. Defining Global Cost Rates · Setting Project Cost Rates
3. Create a Tempo project
Build it from Jira spaces that contain your Timesheets worklogs to act as the container for all worklogs and cost calculations. Creating a Tempo project · Video walkthrough
4. Generate project cost reports
Under Financial Manager → Reports, view actual costs by project, account category, or team, and compare against budgets if configured. Creating Financial Manager Reports
5. Set up budget monitoring
For projects with defined CapEx budgets, track actual vs. budget in real time instead of discovering overruns at month-end. Adding a Budget · Video: adding a budget
6. Read the CapEx/OpEx comparison panel
The Tempo project's Overview tab shows hours and costs split into Capitalized, Operational, and Uncategorized, updated in real time. Click a figure to drill to the account level; the Uncategorized bucket is your data quality check. Tracking CapEx/OpEx Accounts · Comparing CapEx and OpEx Accounts · Viewing CapEx/OpEx Worklogs and Costs · Video: tracking CapEx and OpEx
7. Replace the spreadsheet
Run the FM cost report for the same period as your manual spreadsheet, reconcile any discrepancies, then retire the spreadsheet and use FM's export for future planning.
You'll know it's working when Finance accepts the account-tagged data without rebuilding it and the monthly CapEx close shrinks (one team cut reconciliation from three days to about two hours).
Build CapEx/OpEx Investment Dashboards with Custom Charts
(Timesheets + Custom Charts)
Finance and PM leadership read live CapEx/OpEx dashboards directly, ending the "send me the latest numbers" cycle.
1. Install Custom Charts for Jira
Install from the Atlassian Marketplace if it isn't already in place. Getting started with Custom Charts · Video: building a gadget · Video: customizing reports
2. Build a CapEx vs. OpEx Hours by Account chart
Set Source to your project or board, Chart by to Account, then in Calculate switch Count to Sum and select Time Spent. Set Chart Type to Pie or Bar. Account dimensions need no JQL. Account-Level Charts · Custom Charts + Timesheets video
3. Build a Cost Category Trend by Month chart
Set Chart by to Account, choose Sum → Time Spent, then in Display Options set Time Unit to Months and Chart Type to Tile or Line. Range: This quarter or Last 6 months. Reveals seasonal patterns (many R&D teams spike CapEx in Q4).
4. Build a Team-Level Investment Allocation chart
Set Chart by to Worklog Author or Tempo Team, filter by Account Category using JQL, choose Sum → Time Spent, and display as a Stacked Bar Chart. Surfaces teams that consistently log to the wrong category.
5. Embed the views in a shared dashboard
Create a dedicated "R&D Investment" dashboard with all three charts and share read access with Finance stakeholders. Shared Dashboards Overview
You'll know it's working when Finance uses the dashboard instead of asking for a spreadsheet (one CFO now pulls it up directly).