Rate cards and contract pricing
A rate card sets default hourly rates for each role: Senior Consultant €150 / hour, Service Desk Analyst €85 / hour, and so on. Rate cards are the fallback used when no contract rate applies.
How the right rate is picked
When DigitalCore values logged hours, it looks for the most specific rate first.
| Order | Source | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Contract rate matching this engagement | Rate set on the contract for this specific engagement. |
| 2 | Contract rate | General rate on the linked contract for this role. |
| 3 | Rate card default | Your organisation default rate for the role. |
| 4 | Any rate card | Fallback if no default is set. |
A rate set in a contract beats the rate card. A rate set for a specific engagement beats a general contract rate. This way you can keep one internal rate card while honouring custom rates for individual customers.
Contract SLA terms
SLA terms define the performance you commit to and what happens if you miss. Each term has:
- The KPI it applies to.
- The limit value (minimum or maximum).
- An operator: greater than or less than.
- A penalty type: fixed, percentage, or tiered.
Penalty types:
- Fixed: a flat amount per occurrence (for example, €5,000).
- Percentage: a share of contract value (for example, 2% of monthly value).
- Tiered: bigger amounts for more serious misses (below 99.5% = €1,000; below 99% = €5,000; below 98% = €15,000).
How rates and terms flow through
- Rates value every recorded hour and post the labour cost in finance.
- SLA terms check every KPI actual. If a limit is crossed, the penalty is calculated and posted in finance.
No manual calculation, no spreadsheets out of step.
Related
- Library: manage rate cards and roles.
- Contracts: set up contract terms.
- Automatic costs and penalties: the rules in detail.