Budget Management
Control travel spending with budgets, cost centers, and configurable enforcement rules
Budget Management
Budget Management in Rahal gives companies complete control over travel spending. You can set spending limits, track usage in real-time, and automatically enforce approval workflows when budgets are exceeded.
Why Use Budgets?
Without budget controls, travel spending can quickly spiral out of control. Rahal's budget system helps you:
- Control spending by setting limits per user or across teams
- Track usage with real-time visibility into who's spending what
- Automate approvals when spending exceeds defined thresholds
- Preserve unused funds with configurable rollover policies
- Organize costs using hierarchical cost centers for reporting
How Budgets Work
The budget system follows a straightforward flow:
- Create Cost Centers - Define your organizational structure (departments, projects, teams)
- Create Budgets - Set spending limits, periods, and enforcement rules
- Assign to Roles or Users - Connect budgets to groups or individuals
- Users Book Travel - System checks budget at checkout
- Enforcement Applied - Based on settings (allow, warn, require approval, or block)
Key Concepts
Allocation Types
Per User vs Shared Pool - how budget amounts are distributed
Budget Periods
Monthly, quarterly, and yearly budget cycles
Rollover Policies
What happens to unused budget at the end of a period
Enforcement Modes
Control what happens when budgets are exceeded
Budget Resolution
How the system determines which budget applies to a user
Consumption Lifecycle
How spending moves through pending, spent, and refunded states
Getting Started
1. Set Up Cost Centers
Create a cost center hierarchy that mirrors your organization structure. Cost centers are required before creating budgets.
2. Create Your First Budget
Define spending limits, choose a period type, and configure enforcement rules.
3. Assign to Users
Connect budgets to roles (for bulk assignment) or individual users (for overrides).
4. Configure Company Settings
Set global defaults for budget behavior across your company.
Budget Resolution Hierarchy
When a user makes a booking, the system determines their effective budget using this priority:
| Priority | Source | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Highest) | User Override | Budget assigned directly to the user |
| 2 | Role Assignment | Budget assigned to the user's company role |
| 3 (Lowest) | None | No budget applies - unrestricted spending |
User-level budget assignments always take precedence over role-level assignments. This allows you to set general budgets for roles while making exceptions for specific users.
Quick Reference
| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| Per User | Each user gets their own budget allocation |
| Shared Pool | All users share one budget pool |
| Period | Time cycle (monthly, quarterly, yearly) when budget resets |
| Rollover | Unused budget carrying to the next period |
| Enforcement | What happens when budget is exceeded |
| Cost Center | Organizational unit for budget categorization |
Documentation Sections
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Concepts | Deep dive into how budgets work |
| Admin Guide | Step-by-step configuration guides |
| User Guide | How budgets appear to travelers |
| Reference | Complete field and setting definitions |
| Troubleshooting | Common issues and solutions |