Setting Up Retainers

Retainers provide predictable monthly revenue for your clients. This guide walks you through creating, managing, and understanding retainers in Rize.

What is a Retainer?

A retainer is a fixed payment arrangement where a client pays a set amount for a specific billing period (typically monthly). Retainers ensure consistent revenue recognition, even on days when no work is performed.

Key Concepts

• Budget Amount: The total retainer payment for the billing period
• Billing Period: The time frame covered (monthly, yearly, or one-time)
• Daily Revenue: The retainer amount divided by the number of days in the period
• Hours Included: (For hybrid billing) The number of hours covered by the retainer before overage rates apply

Creating a Retainer

Automatic Creation

When you set a client's billing type to Retainer or Hybrid, Rize automatically creates a retainer for the current month.

1. Navigate to the client you want to configure
2. Click "Edit Client" or open the client settings
3. Select "Retainer" or "Hybrid" from the Billing Type dropdown
4. Enter the retainer amount
5. (For Hybrid only) Enter the hours included and overage hourly rate
6. Save the client

Rize automatically:

• Creates a retainer for the current month
• Sets the start date to the first day of the current month
• Sets the end date to the last day of the current month
• Sets the status to "Active"

Image placeholder description: A screenshot of the client edit form showing the automatic retainer creation process. The image should show:

• The billing type set to "Retainer" or "Hybrid"
• The retainer amount field filled in
• A success message or visual indicator showing that a retainer was created
• Maybe a preview of the retainer details (start date, end date, amount)
• A link or button to view the created retainer

Manual Creation

You can also create retainers manually for specific date ranges or to set up future retainers.

1. Navigate to the client's detail page
2. Go to the "Retainers" section or tab
3. Click "Create Retainer" or "New Retainer"
4. Fill in the retainer details:
   • Billing Period: Monthly, Yearly, or One-time
   • Start Date: First day of the billing period
   • End Date: Last day of the billing period
   • Budget Amount: Total retainer payment
   • Hours Included: (Optional, for hybrid) Number of hours included
5. Click "Save" or "Create Retainer"

Image placeholder description: A screenshot of the retainer creation form. The image should show:

• A form with fields for:
  • Billing period dropdown (monthly/yearly/one-time)
  • Start date picker
  • End date picker
  • Budget amount input
  • Hours included input (optional)
• A calculated preview showing daily revenue
• Save/Create button
• Cancel button
• Maybe validation messages or help text

Retainer Details

Billing Periods

Retainers can be set up for different billing periods:

• Monthly: Most common, covers one calendar month
• Yearly: Covers a full year
• One-time: Covers a custom date range

The billing period determines how the budget amount is allocated across days.

Daily Revenue Calculation

Rize calculates daily revenue by dividing the budget amount by the number of days in the billing period:

Daily Revenue = Budget Amount ÷ Number of Days in Period

Example: A $3,000 monthly retainer in a 30-day month

• Daily Revenue = $3,000 ÷ 30 = $100/day

This daily amount is recognized as revenue each day, regardless of whether time entries exist.

Image placeholder description: A visual diagram or screenshot showing the daily revenue calculation. The image should show:

• A retainer with a budget amount (e.g., $3,000)
• The billing period (e.g., 30 days)
• A calculation showing: $3,000 ÷ 30 = $100/day
• A calendar view or daily breakdown showing $100 allocated to each day
• Visual representation of how the retainer amount is distributed

Hybrid Retainers: Overage Calculation

For hybrid retainers, overage is calculated at the end of the billing period:

1. Sum total billable hours for the period
2. Calculate overage hours = max(total_hours - hours_included, 0)
3. Calculate overage revenue = overage_hours × overage_hourly_rate
4. Allocate overage revenue proportionally across days based on hours worked each day

Example:

• Retainer: $2,000/month, 20 hours included
• Overage rate: $150/hour
• Hours worked: 30 hours
• Overage: 30 - 20 = 10 hours
• Overage revenue: 10 × $150 = $1,500
• Daily overage allocation: Proportional to hours worked each day

Image placeholder description: A detailed breakdown showing hybrid retainer overage calculation. The image should show:

• Retainer details (amount, hours included, overage rate)
• Total hours worked in the period
• Overage hours calculation (total - included)
• Overage revenue calculation (overage hours × rate)
• Daily breakdown showing:
  • Base daily revenue
  • Overage allocation per day (proportional to hours)
  • Total daily revenue (base + overage)
• Visual indicators showing which days contributed to overage

Managing Retainers

Viewing Retainers

You can view all retainers for a client from the client's detail page:

1. Navigate to the client
2. Open the "Retainers" section or tab
3. See a list of all retainers (active, paused, and historical)

The retainer list shows:

• Billing period and date range
• Budget amount
• Status (Active, Paused, Deleted)
• Daily revenue amount
• Hours included (for hybrid retainers)

Image placeholder description: A screenshot of the retainers list/table. The image should show:

• A table or list view with columns for:
  • Billing period
  • Date range (start - end)
  • Budget amount
  • Daily revenue
  • Status badge (Active/Paused)
  • Hours included (if applicable)
• Multiple retainers showing different statuses
• Actions menu or buttons for each retainer (Edit, Pause, Delete)
• Maybe filters for status or date range

Editing a Retainer

You can edit active retainers to update amounts, dates, or other details:

1. Navigate to the retainer list
2. Click "Edit" on the retainer you want to modify
3. Update the fields you want to change
4. Save your changes

info

When you edit a retainer, Rize automatically recalculates daily stats for the affected date range to ensure accuracy.

Image placeholder description: A screenshot of the retainer edit form. The image should show:

• The same form as creation but with existing values populated
• An info message explaining that stats will be recalculated
• Save and Cancel buttons
• Maybe a preview of how changes will affect daily revenue

Pausing a Retainer

Pausing a retainer stops revenue recognition without deleting historical data:

1. Navigate to the retainer list
2. Click "Pause" on the retainer
3. Confirm the action

Paused retainers:

• Stop generating daily revenue
• Preserve historical data
• Can be reactivated later

warning

Pausing a retainer affects revenue recognition from the pause date forward. Historical revenue remains unchanged.

Image placeholder description: A screenshot showing the pause retainer action. The image should show:

• A retainer in the list with a "Pause" button or action
• A confirmation dialog explaining what pausing means
• Visual indication of the retainer's status changing from Active to Paused
• Maybe a warning about revenue recognition stopping

Reactivating a Retainer

You can reactivate a paused retainer:

1. Navigate to the retainer list
2. Find the paused retainer
3. Click "Reactivate" or "Resume"
4. Confirm the action

Reactivated retainers resume daily revenue recognition from the reactivation date.

Deleting a Retainer

Deleting a retainer removes it from the system:

1. Navigate to the retainer list
2. Click "Delete" on the retainer
3. Confirm the deletion

danger

Deleting a retainer removes it permanently and may affect historical profitability calculations. Consider pausing instead if you want to preserve data.

Retainer Statuses

Retainers can have three statuses:

• Active: Currently generating daily revenue
• Paused: Temporarily stopped, can be reactivated
• Deleted: Removed from the system

Only active retainers contribute to daily revenue calculations.

Multiple Retainers

A client can have multiple retainers, but only one active retainer should cover any given date. Rize prevents overlapping active retainers for the same date range.

If you need to change retainer amounts mid-period:

1. Pause the current retainer
2. Create a new retainer for the remaining period
3. Or edit the existing retainer's end date and create a new one

Image placeholder description: A visual timeline or calendar view showing multiple retainers. The image should show:

• A timeline or calendar view
• Multiple retainers with different date ranges
• Visual indication of which retainers are active vs paused
• Clear date ranges for each retainer
• Maybe a visual warning if there are overlapping active retainers

Retainer Revenue Recognition

Daily Recognition

Retainer revenue is recognized daily, even on days with no time entries:

• Each day in the billing period receives an equal share of the budget amount
• Revenue appears in daily profitability statistics
• This ensures consistent revenue recognition regardless of work patterns

Automatic Updates

Rize automatically updates profitability statistics when:

• A retainer is created
• A retainer is updated (amount, dates, etc.)
• A retainer status changes (active/paused/deleted)
• Daily background jobs run to ensure accuracy

You don't need to manually trigger calculations—Rize handles this automatically.

Best Practices

1. Set up retainers at the start of each billing period to ensure accurate revenue recognition
2. Review retainer status regularly to ensure active retainers are current
3. Use hybrid retainers when clients may exceed included hours
4. Pause rather than delete if you need to temporarily stop a retainer
5. Monitor overage for hybrid retainers to understand client usage patterns

Next Steps

• Learn about How Revenue is Calculated for retainers
• Understand Profitability Metrics to track your financial performance
• View Profitability Reports to see retainer revenue in action