End-User Guide - Setting up a quote and funding it with the calculator
This guide walks you through Stage 4 of the RDLA process: creating and managing a Quote and - the main event - funding that Quote using the calculator. You do not need any Salesforce experience; just follow the screens and the on-screen labels shown in this guide.
Golden rule for the calculator
Type your amounts, then click the 'Calculate...' button for each funder section - and finally click 'Save Funding Allocations' at the bottom.
Whenever you add, remove, or edit a funder row in the Faculty RPF Account, Area, Library, Center and Institute, or Other sections, the section totals do not update until you click that section's 'Calculate ... Funding' button.
Nothing is saved to the Quote until you click 'Save Funding Allocations'. You can close the window at any time before then without changing anything.
1. Creating & managing a Quote
A Quote records how much a database will cost and how that cost will be split across funding sources. This tool lets you see the existing Quotes for a database, create a brand-new Quote, or clone an existing one as a starting point.
Screen 1 - "Quote Management Screen"
You'll see the existing Quotes for the database (view only). From here you can:
- Clone an existing Quote - select a Quote in the list and click Next. You'll then edit the copied details and choose which fund sources to bring over.
- Create a new Quote - tick the Add New Quote box, then fill in the New Quote details that appear.
- Edit an existing Quote directly - open its record from Salesforce (not done in this tool).
New Quote details
Field | What to enter | Required |
|---|
Quote Amount | The total dollar amount of the quote. | No |
Quote Status | Choose a status from the dropdown. | No |
Quote Type | Choose the type of quote. | No |
Quote Type Other | If Type is "Other," describe it here. | No |
Quote Start Date | When the quote period begins. | No |
Quote End Date | When the quote period ends. | No |
Faculty Funding Notice Deadline | Deadline for the faculty funding notice, if any. | No |
Special Terms | Any special terms to note. | No |
Description | A free-text description of the quote. | No |
Screen 2 - "Edit Clone Screen" (only when cloning)
If you chose to clone, the copied values appear pre-filled under the heading "Edit the new (cloned) Quote." Change anything you need. Here the key dates and amount are required:
Field | What to enter | Required |
|---|
Quote Amount | Total dollar amount (copied from the source quote). | Yes |
Quote Start Date | Start of the quote period. | Yes |
Quote End Date | End of the quote period. | Yes |
Quote Status / Type / Type Other | Adjust as needed. | No |
Faculty Funding Notice Deadline | Adjust as needed. | No |
Special Terms / Description | Adjust as needed. | No |
Under "Fund Source Uses," all fund sources from the source quote are copied over by default. Tick the rows you want to OMIT from the clone. (If the source quote has no fund sources, you'll simply see a note saying so.) Click Create Cloned Quote to finish.
Finishing
A success message confirms the new Quote was created. Click Finish to open the new Quote record in a new tab.
Walkthrough
2. Funding the Quote with the Calculator
This is the heart of Stage 4. The calculator lets you split a Quote's total amount across several kinds of funding sources, see how much is funded versus remaining, and then save those allocations to the Quote as "Fund Source Use" records.
Remember the golden rule here
You must click the 'Calculate...' button to see the totals update for each funder section.
The plain College Funding and Dean Funding amounts update on their own, but the multi-funder sections (Faculty RPF Account, Area, Library, Center and Institute, Other) only recalculate when you click their 'Calculate ... Funding' button.
Then click 'Save Funding Allocations' at the bottom to write everything to the Quote.
Reading the "Quote Funding Status" panel
At the top (and again at the bottom) of the calculator, a status panel shows the running numbers:
- Total Quote Amount - the full amount you're trying to fund.
- Calculated Amount Funded / Amount Remaining - dollars allocated vs. still needed.
- Calculated Percent Funded / Percent Remaining - the same, as percentages.
A color-coded message tells you where you stand:
- Green - "You have fully funded the Quote Amount." (Quote Amount Remaining: $0.00)
- Red - "You have allocated less funds than the Quote Amount." (shows the Quote Amount Deficit)
- Orange - "You have allocated more funds than the Quote Amount." (shows the Quote Amount Overage)
Aim for green. If you're red or orange, adjust the funder amounts and re-Calculate until the numbers balance.
The funding sections
The calculator groups funding into these sections, in order. Enter only the ones that apply:
Section | How it works | Calc |
|---|
College Funding | A single College Funding Amount / Percent. Updates automatically. | - |
Dean Funding | A single Dean Funding Amount / Percent. Updates automatically. | - |
Faculty RPF Account Funding | One or more funder rows. Needs 'Calculate Faculty RPF Account Funding'. | - |
Area Funding | One or more funder rows. Needs 'Calculate Area Funding'. | - |
Library Funding | One or more funder rows. Needs 'Calculate Library Funding'. | - |
Center and Institute Funding | One or more funder rows. Needs 'Calculate Center and Institute Funding'. | - |
Other Funding | One or more funder rows. Needs 'Calculate Other Funding'. | - |
Adding funders in a multi-funder section
Each of the funder sections (Faculty RPF Account, Area, Library, Center and Institute, Other) works the same way. For every funder you want to add, create a row and fill in:
- Fund Source - select the specific fund source (e.g. "Area Fund Source").
- Amount - the dollars this source contributes, or enter the Percent instead - the calculator fills in the other for you.
Add as many rows as you need; you can also edit or remove rows. The section then shows its "Anticipated Total" amount and percentage, the number of funders, and the anticipated amount per individual funder.
Don't forget to Calculate the section
After you add, remove, or edit funder rows, click that section's 'Calculate ... Funding' button so its totals and the overall Quote Funding Status refresh. If you skip this, the numbers you see will be out of date.
Tip when editing an existing funder row: if you change the Amount, also update (or clear) that row's Percent - otherwise the calculator may recalculate the amount from the old percent.
Saving your work
When the numbers look right, scroll to the bottom and click the 'Save Funding Allocations' button. This will:
- Create Fund Source Use records associated with the Quote record, and
- Return you to the Quote record.
A confirmation screen reads: "The Fund Source Use records were saved to [Quote]. Click Finish to return to the Quote record or close out of this screen."
When you reopen the calculator later, your saved fund sources pull back in, so you can review and change allocations before the Quote is converted to a Contract (Stage 4). And remember: closing the window before you Save leaves the Quote unchanged - nothing is lost or altered.
Behind the scenes - what the calculator works out for you
When you click a section's Calculate button (or Save), a helper does the math automatically: for each funder row it works out the amount and percent (whether you typed an amount or a percent), then adds up the section's total amount, total percentage, and number of funders, and refreshes the figures on screen. When you Save, it also gathers the non-zero rows and turns them into the Fund Source Use records on the Quote. You don't interact with this directly - it just keeps the totals and saved records accurate.
Walkthrough
3. What happens if a Quote is deleted
If a Quote is ever deleted, the system automatically cleans up after it: any Fund Source Use records tied to that Quote (the allocations you created in the calculator) are removed at the same time, so no orphaned funding records are left behind. This happens on its own - there is no screen or step for you to complete.
Closing tip: Work top to bottom - set the Quote Amount first, then allocate funders section by section, Calculate each one, watch the status panel turn green, and Save. You're then ready for Stage 4, converting the Quote to a Contract.