Contracts with Customers

Overview

You can create and maintain contracts with customers. Unlike terms of sales, contracts contain data on a specific existing legal document.
There are no direct connections between specific contracts and agreements, meaning that documents related to different agreements may be registered within one contract and vice versa.

Enabling Contracts with Customers

To enable contracts with customers:
  1. Go to Master data and settings > Sales (under Master data and sections).
  2. Click Wholesale.
  3. Select the Contracts with customers checkbox.

Creating New Contracts with Customers

Creating General Contracts with Customers

To create a contract with a customer:
  1. Go to Sales > Customers.
  2. Select a customer, click Generate > Contract. The system will automatically create and fill key fields, such as Customer, Counterparty, Company, Contact person, and other.
3. In the Status field, select Not approved.
4. In the Description field, enter the contract name.
5. Select a Company account and a Customer account.
6. Select a Business unit and a Sales person who is responsible for the contract.
7. Click the AR/AP settings tab and select an AR/AP item:
  • Contract for debt and prepayment. Prepayment and Payment by invoice will be assigned and cleared on the Contract level.
  • Order for debt and prepayment. Prepayment will be automatically assigned and cleared on the Order level, and Payment by invoice will be assigned and cleared on the Invoice level.
  • Invoice for debt, Contract for prepayment. Prepayment will be automatically assigned and cleared on the Contract level, and Payment by invoice will be assigned and cleared on the Invoice level.
  • Invoice for debt, Order for prepayment. Prepayment will be automatically assigned and cleared on the Order level, and Payment by invoice will be assigned and cleared on the Invoice level.
  • Invoice for debt, Payment for prepayment. Prepayment and Payment by invoice will be assigned and cleared on the Invoice level.
8. Select the default Currency for AR/AP transactions under the contract.
9. If the contract currency differs from the functional currency, select the Foreign currency transaction checkbox.
10. Select the VAT taxation option:
  • If you select the Determined by the specified value checkbox, you can select a single VAT taxation option for all the transactions under the contract.
  • If you select the Determined in orders and invoices checkbox, you can disable autofilling of the default value.
11. Specify a VAT rate for payments.
12. Click the Accounting information tab and select an AR/AP accounting group, Cash flow item, and Line of business.
13. Click Save.

Setting up Fixed Contracts with Fulfillment Schedules

  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers.
  2. Open the required contract and click the AR/AP settings tab.
  3. Select the Contract amount is fixed checkbox and enter the contract amount.
  4. In the Order fulfillment schedule is defined by field, select Sales order / Customer invoice OR Contract with customer.
  5. Save the document.
6. Click the Not specified hyperlink.
7. In the Contract schedule, add a new line and fill the schedule of Payments and Shipment (delivery).
8. Click Save.
The system automatically controls whether the information is complete by totals.

Approving Contracts with Customers

Signing Contracts with Customers

  1. Print out the contract.
  2. Send the contract to the customer and receive their confirmation/feedback using the Business Interactions functionality.
  3. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers and open the required contract.
  4. Update the information based on the customer's feedback and attach a signed copy of the contract.
  5. Click Save.

Activating Contracts with Customers

  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers and open the required contract.
  2. Fill the Number and Dated fields in accordance with the hard copy.
  3. Set the Valid status.
  4. Specify a validity period.
  5. Attach the signed copy.
  6. Click Save.

Performing Contract Follow-up Activities

Initiating Follow-up Activities

  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers and open the required contract.
  2. Generate a Duty based on the document.
  3. In the Duty field, specify a working name.
  4. Assign the task to a responsible user in the database.
  5. Set the Priority and specify a Due date.
  6. In the Subject field, describe actions to take.
  7. Click Start and close.

Completing Follow-up Activities

  1. Go to Quick menu > My Tasks.
  2. Open a Task related to the contract.
  3. In the Results field, describe the task results or the current progress.
  4. Enter the completion date.
  5. Click Completed.

Monitoring Contracts with Customers

Monitoring Order Receipts

  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers.
  2. Open a required contract.
  3. Go to the Documents tab.
  4. Review the list of documents.
  5. Find a Sales order.

Monitoring Contract Validity Dates

  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers.
  2. In the Validity period field, set a filter.
  3. Review the list of Contracts.
  4. Find expiring contracts.

Requesting Contract Renewal

  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers and open the required contract.
  2. Generate a Duty based on the document.
  3. In the Duty field, specify a working name.
  4. Assign the task to a responsible user in the database.
  5. Set the Priority and specify a Due date.
  6. In the Subject field, describe actions to take.
  7. Click Start and close.

Closing Contracts

  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers and open the required contract.
  2. Set the Closed status.

Setting up Credit Limits and Late Payment Control

To set up credit limits for contracts:
  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers.
  2. Open the required contract and click the AR/AP settings tab.
  3. Select the Credit limit checkbox and enter the credit limit. The system will not let you post a sales order, goods issue, or customer invoice for this customer if the credit limit is exceeded.
To enable late payment control for contracts:
  1. Go to Sales > Contracts with customers.
  2. Open the required contract and click the AR/AP settings tab.
  3. Select the Late payment control checkbox. The system will not let you post a sales order, goods issue, or customer invoice for this customer if the customer has an overdue debt.

Setting up Shipment Restrictions in Contracts

You can block shipments to customers who are in a certain Customer segment. If the customer is included in the Delivery block segments, the customer card displays this information.
Some users have system rights to skip this automatic control and unblock these transactions. Find those users with the enabled special system role Sale to partners included in the delivery block segments.
To prohibit shipments to customers in a certain Customer segment, enable this in the settings first:
  1. Go to Master data and settings > Sales.
  2. Select the Delivery block checkbox.
To create a delivery block segment:
  1. Go to CRM and Marketing > Customer segments.
  2. Click the Delivery block segments tab.
  3. Click Create.
  4. In the Description field, enter the name of the segment.
  5. In the Generation method field, select Generate manually.
  6. In Details, specify the blocking reason.
  7. Click Save.
8. To add customers to the segment, click Reports > Segment content.
9. Click Add to segment and select the required customer.
10. Add as many customers as you need.
If the customer is included in the Delivery block segment, the customer card displays this information. You can also see this information on the Main tab of the following system documents: sales quotation, sales order, and customer invoice.
To unblock the sales orders for shipping, ask the user with extended system rights to set the For completion status for this order.