Financial Management

Description

Financial management (as opposed to cost management) is the component of the Project Plan concerned with estimating, obtaining and managing the funds required for the delivery of real property projects throughout all phases of the National Project Management System (NPMS).

Objective

To ensure that project funding is obtained quickly and effectively managed throughout all phases of the NPMS.

Real Property context

Real property projects are funded by either Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) or by other government departments (OGD) and agencies. Project leaders in consultation with project managers are responsible to obtain project funding sufficient to cover the estimated scope, prior to providing any services. For real property under the custodianship of PSPC, PSPC obtains its funding from the Treasury Board (TB) through an annual process of identifying either forecasted programs of work (multiple projects) or through a TB submission for a proposed large or complex (major) project. Based on the dollar thresholds and delegated departmental authority, some projects require TB approval of funding where the limits may be set at the contract levels. Project funding is obtained under an expenditure authority for planning and design (EA P&D) based on a general scope of work and an indicative estimate. This allows projects to be initiated to further develop a more defined scope of work and a substantive estimate of costs. Once the substantive estimate has been finalized, an expenditure authority for implementation (EA imp.) is sought. The financial management component of the Project Plan requires the project leader or project manager to:

provide estimates and cash flow forecasts to the client for the project identification stage activities and services
provide estimates and cash flow forecasts for the project to the client for the project's duration
assist the client with the preparation of EA P&D and EA imp. submissions (or OGD equivalents) obtain funding from clients before commencing work
utilize SIGMA business rules for the budgeting, forecasting and reporting of project expenditures
complete time sheets and update project milestones in SIGMA for billing purposes
certify services rendered from consultants and contractors engaged on the project
authorize payment of invoices
ensure all potential requests for project scope changes are reviewed for impact on cost, schedule and quality - and appropriately approved.