This article is intended for IT professionals at large firms.
TonicDM provides a quick and flexible way to automatically create and update projects.
Implementing this system requires an accounting or ERP system that can automatically send an email each time a new project is created.
Deltek Vision®, Deltek Vantagepoint® and Microsoft Dynamics® include this as a standard feature.
Setting this up in Deltek Ajera® will consume one Ajera® license.
BST® requires customization (contact BST® for a quote).
Unanet A/E® (Clearview) has a pre-configured Action for TonicDM available in their Marketplace.
Creating projects manually takes only a couple of minutes, so smaller customers who generate only a few project numbers per week (for example customers using Quickbooks®) perform project creation manually.
If your organization has created its own system for initiating new projects (for example using PowerShell®), it will be relatively simple to extend that system to also create and update projects in TonicDM.
Method
TonicDM allows you to send us new or updated project information by email. When we receive a correctly formatted email our system will immediately create or update that project in your TonicDM account.
The email must be sent to a specific email address at TonicDM. Contact TonicDM Support for your organization's unique email address.
The subject and body of the email must be formatted in a specific way. There are two options: "Single Project" format and "Multi Project" format. TonicDM accepts either format, but in general Single Project format works best for Vision® and Multi Project format works best for Ajera®. See below for instructions.
Once you have implemented this system you can turn off the ability for staff to manually create projects. Please contact TonicDM Support about this.
Also Notifying the Project Team
Many firms already send an email to relevant staff members when a new project is created. It's possible you could simply add the special TonicDM email address to the list of recipients and adjust the wording in the email body to match TonicDM's requirements, and then that existing staff notification email would also create the project in TonicDM.
Note: People in the To field will become Executives on the team. People in the CC field will be added as team members.
How To Create Projects in TonicDM via Email
Put the special email address in either the To or CC field.
Put "New Project" in the subject.
Single Project format (works best for Vision® and Vantagepoint®) use the following template for the body.
Project Number: your firm's project number
Project (Long) Name: the full official name of the project
Project (Short) Name: the friendly name used by staff in the office
Office: for firms with multiple offices: the name of your office managing this project (it must match a "location" in TonicDM)
Locked: Yes (if not present, the default is No)
Project Type: one of Marketing, Production, Overhead, Test
Executives: person1@company.com person2@company.com
Multi Project format (works best for Ajera®) use the following template for the body.
Project Number | Project (Long) Name | Project (Short) Name | Office | Executives | ... |
your firm's project number | the full official name of the project | the friendly name used by staff in the office | the office managing this project |
| |
your firm's project number | the full official name of the project | the friendly name used by staff in the office | the office managing this project |
|
All fields in the body are optional, except Project (Long) Name
You can add additional text to the subject of the email (as long as it begins with "New Project"), and you can add additional text into the body of the email (as long as the lines shown above exist). This allows you to craft a single email that is suitable to be sent to the project team and TonicDM.
A Note on Specifying Executives and Staff
Deltek® Vision® can't add email addresses to the body of the email.
In order to add Executives to the project put the person/role in the "To" field of the email alert.
In order to add staff as team members, put their role in the "CC" field of the email alert.
Deltek® Ajera® can't add people to the To/CC of the email based on their project role, however a formula can be written in the Widget Base to create a column which includes the email address of the Project Manager and Principal in Charge (separated by a space). This column can be named Executives: and it will be included in the [Row Data].
Example Email (Single Project format)
To: exec.one@our-firm.com, exec.two@our-firm.com
CC: person.three@our-firm.com, special@tonicdm.com
Subject: New Project: Springfield Bank
Body:
Hi Team,
The project you requested has been created!
Project Number: 18-021
Project (Long) Name: Bank of the South Processing Center, Springfield
This is the friendly name. Please let accounting know if you want it changed.
Project (Short) Name: Springfield Bank
How To Update Projects
Updating projects uses the same technique as New Project above. This is typically used when your project numbering changes between project phases and you want to change the project number in TonicDM so the data to remain with the project. You can also change projects between Active and Inactive, and add/remove team members and executives.
Put the special email address in either the To or CC field.
Put "Change Project" in the subject.
Single Project format (works best for Vision® Vantagepoint®) use the following template for the body.
Existing Project Number: your firm's existing project number
Project Number: the updated project number
Project (Long) Name: the updated official name
Project (Short) Name: the updated friendly name
Office: the updated office
Status: either Active or Inactive (Dormant is interpreted as Inactive)
Locked: Yes (if not present, the default is No)
Project Type: one of Marketing, Production, Overhead, Test
Add Executives: person1@company.com person2@company.com
Add Staff: person3@company.com person4@company.com
Multi Project format (works best for Ajera®) use the following template for the body.
Note: the column headings do not end with a :
Existing Project Number | Project Number | Project (Long) Name | Project (Short) Name | Office | ... |
your firm's existing project number | your firm's new project number | the new official name of the project | the new friendly name | updated office managing this project |
|
your firm's existing project number | your firm's new project number | the new official name of the project | the new friendly name | updated office managing this project |
|
All fields in the body are optional, except Existing Project Number which is required in order to know which project in TonicDM to change.
Depreciated: Opportunities / Marketing Projects
The subject of the email must begin with “New Marketing #”.
The following lines should appear in the body:
Marketing Number: the number your firm uses for the opportunity
Opportunity Name: the full name of the opportunity project [required]
Office: for firms with multiple offices: the name of your office managing this project (it must match a "location" in TonicDM)
example:
Marketing Number: 18-021M
Opportunity Name: Southern Medical, Springfield
Office: San Francisco