Implementation
Start with your finance process. Build around your team.
CloudBudget or an agreed implementation partner performs the implementation services described below. Responsibilities, deliverables and dependencies are defined in the project scope. Your finance team and Salesforce administrator participate in input decisions, user acceptance testing and acceptance.
A clear sequence from discovery to go-live
An illustrative 10-week implementation, with activities overlapping as decisions and data become ready.
Approximately 8–12 weeks is a planning reference, not a guaranteed commitment. Actual duration depends on scope, source-data readiness and complexity. Deliverables and responsibilities are agreed in the project scope.
Scroll across the timeline to see all ten weeks. Phase names stay visible.
| Implementation phase | W1 | W2 | W3 | W4 | W5 | W6 | W7 | W8 | W9 | W10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01Discover & Design | W1–W2 | |||||||||
| 02Configure Planning | W2–W4 | |||||||||
| 03Integrate & Reconcile | W3–W6 | |||||||||
| 04Reports & Validation | W5–W7 | |||||||||
| 05Training & Go-Live | W7–W9 | |||||||||
| 06Stabilization & Handover | W9–W10 | |||||||||
Discover & Design
Turn the finance process into an agreed design.
- Review templates, dimensions and budget ownership.
- Agree source data, access, responsibilities and scope.
Typical deliverableScoping workbook and model-design decisions
Configure Planning
Build the model that budget owners will use.
- Configure versions, dimensions and Budget Manager views.
- Set calculations, allocations, permissions and approval rules.
Typical deliverableReviewable planning model and permissions matrix
Integrate & Reconcile
Connect the agreed sources and check the numbers.
- Map master data, accounting actuals and workforce inputs.
- Agree refresh cadence, monitoring and reconciliation owners.
Typical deliverableMapped and reconciled sample data flow
Reports & Validation
Validate the workflow and the information it produces.
- Build and reconcile budget-versus-actual reports.
- Run user acceptance tests, record issues and retest.
Typical deliverableValidated reports and acceptance-test record
Training & Go-Live
Prepare users and administrators for the first cycle.
- Train finance, budget owners and Salesforce administrators.
- Validate production configuration and readiness checks.
Typical deliverableTraining and an agreed go-live checklist
Stabilization & Handover
Establish ownership of the ongoing process.
- Review first-cycle questions and agreed follow-up actions.
- Hand over administration guidance and support responsibilities.
Typical deliverableAdmin runbook, handover and follow-up plan
Discovery and scoping
Turn the current process into clear configuration decisions.
Review how your team prepares, approves and revises budgets. Define budget lines, dimensions, scenarios and how actuals will be reconciled.
Finance identifies reports and decision owners; your Salesforce administrator defines source data, access and permissions. The implementation team records decisions, open questions and responsibilities.
- Budget templates and representative source workbooks.
- Accounts, fiscal periods and planning dimensions with their hierarchy.
- Sample reports showing required rows, columns and comparisons.
- Accounting and workforce data sources, owners and access requirements.
- User responsibilities: who enters, reviews, approves and maintains the model.
Configuration and integration
Build around an agreed model and data flow.
Configure Budget Manager views, versions, dimensions, roles and approvals. Map master data and actuals, with an agreed refresh cadence and monitoring owner.
Build calculations, allocations, imports and reports against agreed examples. Explicitly scope payroll rules, external integrations and exceptions to distinguish standard configuration from custom work.
Testing and reconciliation
Have finance check both the process and the numbers.
Test with representative data as configuration becomes available. Finance reconciles actuals and report totals; budget owners test entry, submission, review and revision.
Check scenarios, imports/exports, calculations, allocations and permissions, including workforce access. Record issues and retest fixes before accepting the production configuration.
Training and go-live
Prepare the people who will run the budget cycle.
Train finance administrators to maintain the model and budget owners to use it. Include Salesforce administrators and report users as needed, with agreed documentation and handover.
Move tested configuration to production and validate master data, actuals, reports and processing jobs. Agree readiness checks and first-cycle support. Duration, effort and cost are established in the project proposal from the confirmed scope and customer inputs.
Platform, integrations & implementation partners
Salesforce provides the platform. Discuss the integration scope for your Salesforce environment. Implementation starts with your finance process and team.
- Salesforce platform
- Integration ecosystem
- Integration ecosystem
Implementation partners
Your next step
Start with a practical look at your finance process.
Tell us about your budget cycle, accounting sources and reporting priorities so we can discuss the next steps.