Per-Piece Budget Report
Overview
The Per-Piece Budget Report is a financial analysis tool that provides comprehensive visibility into how per-piece billing and hourly costs are distributed across the client organizational hierarchy. This report aggregates billed artwork costs and supporting services by Corporation, Business Unit (BigB), and Division, enabling management to analyze spending patterns and pricing effectiveness across different client segments.
The report distinguishes between per-piece costs (artworks billed on a fixed-price-per-item basis) and hourly costs (project management and brand design work), providing a complete picture of client investment. It further breaks down per-piece spending between original artwork creation and alterations (modifications to existing artwork), and separates primary packaging artwork from IFU (Instructions For Use) inserts.
Location: Navigate to Reports from the main navigation menu, then click Per-Piece Budget Report in the PROJECTS section.
URL: /reports/perpiecebudgetreport.aspx
Access Level: Administrator and Super Administrator roles only
Business Value
For Company Leadership
The Per-Piece Budget Report provides executives with critical pricing and profitability insights:
- Pricing Strategy Validation - Compare average per-piece costs across different client divisions to identify pricing inconsistencies or opportunities
- Client Segmentation Analysis - Understand which corporate structures generate the most revenue and where spending concentrates
- Cost Model Effectiveness - See the balance between per-piece and hourly billing to evaluate whether the pricing model serves each client segment appropriately
- Alteration Cost Tracking - Monitor alteration spending as a percentage of original artwork costs to identify clients that may benefit from different service approaches
For Account Management
Account directors and managers use this report to:
- Client Budget Planning - Understand historical per-piece spending to forecast future budget needs and support PO planning discussions
- Pricing Negotiations - Access average per-piece costs by complexity and type to support rate card discussions with clients
- Service Mix Analysis - See how client spend distributes between per-piece work, design services, and project management
- Performance Benchmarking - Compare spending patterns across similar client divisions to identify best practices and outliers
For Operations and Finance
Operations and finance teams benefit from:
- Revenue Recognition - View billed revenue breakdowns for financial reporting and analysis
- Pricing Accuracy Verification - Ensure per-piece pricing delivers expected revenue across different artwork types
- Resource Allocation Insights - Understand where design and project management investments concentrate relative to artwork volume
- Margin Analysis Foundation - Combined with cost data, enables profitability analysis by client segment
Business Benefits
- Supports Data-Driven Pricing Decisions - By showing average per-piece costs and spend distribution, the report enables management to identify pricing opportunities and ensure rates remain competitive while profitable.
- Enables Client Portfolio Optimization - The hierarchical view reveals which client segments generate the most revenue and where to focus business development efforts.
- Identifies Alteration Cost Patterns - Separate tracking of alteration costs helps identify clients with high change volumes who may benefit from different engagement models or process improvements.
- Clarifies Service Mix by Client - The breakdown between per-piece, design, and PM costs reveals how service delivery varies across client segments, supporting resource planning.
- Facilitates Year-Over-Year Comparisons - Running the report for different periods enables trend analysis to understand how client relationships evolve over time.
- Streamlines Executive Reporting - The grid format with built-in totals and export capabilities supports quick generation of management dashboards.
- Separates IFU from Packaging Costs - The distinction between primary packaging artwork and IFU (Instructions For Use) inserts provides visibility into regulated content costs, which often have different pricing dynamics.
Usage Scenarios
Scenario 1: Annual Pricing Review
Role: Finance Director
As part of annual budget planning, the finance director needs to evaluate current per-piece pricing against delivered costs. They run the report for the full previous fiscal year, reviewing average prices by division. Divisions with unusually low average prices are flagged for pricing adjustment discussions with account teams. The total per-piece versus hourly split informs rate card revision decisions.
Scenario 2: Client Business Review Preparation
Role: Account Director
Before a quarterly business review with a major corporate client, the account director runs the report filtered to show only that corporation's divisions. The report reveals which business units consumed the most artwork services and shows the breakdown between original artwork and alterations. High alteration ratios in certain divisions prompt discussion about upstream process improvements to reduce change cycles.
Scenario 3: New Client Pricing Development
Role: Business Development Manager
When developing a proposal for a new client in a similar industry, the business development manager runs the report to analyze spending patterns from comparable existing clients. The average per-piece costs and typical hourly service ratios inform the proposed rate structure. The artwork count data helps estimate realistic project volumes.
Scenario 4: Monthly Management Dashboard
Role: Operations Manager
At month-end, the operations manager builds a dashboard summarizing key financial metrics. They run the Per-Piece Budget Report for the month, export the data, and extract key metrics: total per-piece revenue, total hourly revenue, and overall average price per artwork. These feed into the monthly operations scorecard.
Scenario 5: IFU Pricing Analysis
Role: Regulatory Account Manager
A client heavily focused on pharmaceutical or medical device packaging has significant IFU (Instructions For Use) insert work. The account manager uses this report to separately analyze IFU spending versus primary packaging artwork. Since IFU content is typically text-heavy regulated material with different production characteristics, separate analysis informs specialized pricing approaches.
Scenario 6: Alteration Trend Monitoring
Role: Quality Manager
The quality manager tracks alteration costs as a leading indicator of client process maturity. By comparing alteration spending (PA Alt + IFU Alt) to original artwork spending over time, they identify clients where alteration ratios are increasing, suggesting potential quality or communication issues requiring attention.
Industry Context
Per-Piece Pricing in Creative Services
Per-piece pricing (also called per-item or fixed-fee pricing) is a common model in packaging and production art services:
Why Agencies Use Per-Piece Pricing
- Predictable Client Costs: Clients can budget based on planned artwork counts rather than uncertain hourly estimates
- Operational Efficiency Incentive: Agencies are motivated to develop efficient production processes
- Volume Discounts: High-volume clients can negotiate lower per-piece rates
- Simplified Billing: Reduces billing complexity compared to tracking every hour
Complementary Hourly Services
Most agencies combine per-piece artwork pricing with hourly rates for:
- Project Management: Coordination, client communication, and workflow oversight
- Brand Design/Creative: Conceptual work, brand development, and creative strategy
- Specialized Services: Photography, illustration, and other creative services
IFU and Regulated Content
In pharmaceutical, medical device, and consumer product industries, Instructions For Use (IFU) and insert materials are often treated separately because:
- Regulatory Requirements: IFU content must comply with FDA, EU MDR, or other regulations
- Change Control: Modifications require formal change management processes
- Translation Complexity: Multi-language requirements add production complexity
- Legal Review: Content may require legal and regulatory approval cycles
Separating IFU costs from primary packaging helps agencies understand the true cost of regulatory compliance work.
Client Hierarchy Analysis
Enterprise clients typically organize under multi-level corporate structures:
- Corporation: Top-level parent company
- BigB (Business Unit): Major business divisions or brands
- Division: Specific product lines or market segments
Understanding spend distribution across this hierarchy enables:
- Strategic Account Management: Focus resources on highest-value segments
- Pricing Optimization: Tailor pricing to different division characteristics
- Expansion Planning: Identify underserved divisions with growth potential
Key Features
Filter Controls
| Control | Purpose |
|---|---|
| From | Beginning of the reporting period (year/month format) |
| To | End of the reporting period (year/month format) |
| Build | Generate the report with selected parameters |
Report Grid Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Division | Combined display: Corporation - BigB - Division |
| Artworks Spent | Total dollars for original artwork (PA + IFU combined) |
| PA Spent | Original packaging artwork dollars (excluding IFU) |
| IFU Spent | Original IFU insert artwork dollars |
| PA Alt Spent | Packaging artwork alteration dollars |
| IFU Alt Spent | IFU insert alteration dollars |
| A Count | Count of original artworks in the period |
| Avg Price | Average dollars per original artwork |
| Total PP Spent | Total per-piece spending (original + alterations) |
| Brand/Design | Brand design and creative hourly dollars |
| PM | Project management hourly dollars |
| Total Hourly Spent | Combined hourly spending (Design + PM) |
| Total Spent | Complete spending (per-piece + hourly) |
Grid Capabilities
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Column Sorting | Click column headers to sort ascending/descending |
| Column Filtering | Filter rows by typing in column filter boxes |
| Search Panel | Global search across all columns |
| Column Chooser | Show/hide columns based on analysis needs |
| Column Resizing | Adjust column widths for optimal viewing |
| Column Reordering | Drag columns to preferred positions |
| Excel Export | Export report data to Excel for further analysis |
Summary
The Per-Piece Budget Report is an essential financial analysis tool that provides comprehensive visibility into how client investments distribute across the organizational hierarchy and between per-piece and hourly billing models. By aggregating billed time data into a clear divisional breakdown, the report enables management to analyze pricing effectiveness, identify spending patterns, and support strategic decisions about client relationships.
Key Capabilities:
- Hierarchical View: See spending by Corporation, Business Unit, and Division
- Billing Model Analysis: Separate per-piece costs from hourly design and PM costs
- Artwork Type Breakdown: Distinguish packaging artwork from IFU insert content
- Alteration Tracking: Separate original artwork costs from modification costs
- Volume Metrics: Count artworks and calculate average per-piece prices
- Interactive Analysis: Sort, filter, search, and export report data
- Period Flexibility: Analyze any date range for trend analysis
Business Impact:
- Supports pricing strategy development with average cost visibility
- Enables client portfolio analysis by spending concentration
- Identifies alteration cost patterns for process improvement
- Clarifies service mix for resource allocation decisions
- Provides foundation for margin analysis when combined with cost data
- Streamlines executive reporting with export capabilities
The report transforms billing data into actionable business intelligence, supporting the organization's mission to deliver creative services profitably while maintaining competitive, transparent pricing with clients.