What it is
A contract or statement of work records the agreed commercial terms for a client — what you will deliver, for how long, and for how much. The contracts register holds them all, with a headline band that totals how many contracts you carry and how much value sits in active ones, then a table of each contract by client, value, term and status.
You use the register to keep commercial agreements visible rather than buried in inboxes and drives. It tells you what is active, what is nearing its end and needs renewal, and how much committed value underpins the book. When a signed quote becomes a deal, the contract is where its terms live for the life of the engagement.
When to use it
- A signed quote needs to be recorded as a committed contract
- You want the total value of active agreements across the book
- A contract is nearing its end date and may need renewal
- You need to confirm the term agreed with a particular client
- You are reporting committed value to the business
How it works
Step by step.
- 1
Open the contracts register
Go to the contracts view. The band at the top totals contract count and active value; the table lists each one.
- 2
Add a contract
Record a new contract or statement of work — its title, the client, the value and the term.
- 3
Set the term and status
Capture the start and end dates and set the status so active, pending and ended agreements are distinct.
- 4
Track active value
Read the active-value figure in the header to know how much committed work the book carries.
- 5
Watch for renewals
Scan the table for contracts nearing their end date and start the renewal conversation before they lapse.
Worked example
Follow it through.
The scenario
Meridian Retail’s signed quote for store cleaning becomes a twelve-month contract.
- 1 Open the contracts register.
- 2 Add a contract titled Meridian Retail — store cleaning, against Meridian Retail.
- 3 Set the value at 240,000 AUD and the term from 1 Jul to 30 Jun.
- 4 Set the status to active.
- 5 Confirm the active-value figure in the header rises by 240,000 AUD.
The result
Meridian Retail’s cleaning contract sits in the register as active, worth 240,000 AUD over twelve months, and lifts the book’s committed value.
Tips & notes
Good to know.
- Record a contract the moment a quote is signed — the gap between signature and a tracked agreement is where terms get forgotten.
- The active-value figure is your committed-revenue read; keep statuses current so it stays true.
- Sort by end date to surface renewals early; a lapsed contract is harder to reprice than a renewed one.
- A statement of work and a contract share the same register — use the title to make the type obvious.
When you’re done
A single register of every contract and statement of work, with committed value and renewal timing visible at a glance.