This article explains how sale and slab dates are recorded in G.J. Software and how the system locks these dates for official reporting.
Understanding the difference between an Event Date and a Reported Date is essential for accurate business tracking and financial consistency.
The Difference Between Event Dates and Reported Dates
There are two types of dates tracked for every major milestone:
Event Date (Sale/Slab Date): This is the actual day the event occurred (e.g., the day a deposit hit Xero or a slab was poured).
Reported Date: This is the date used for official G.J. Gardner reporting, rankings, and financial locking. This date ensures our reports remain stable and consistent even if someone goes back and edits an old date in Xero.
Sale Date Triggers
A sale is automatically recorded in the system when the first of any of these conditions are met:
An overpayment is recorded against the job in Xero.
A contract date is added and saved in the Job Details.
The first payment of a claim / draw is made in Xero.
Slab Date Triggers
Slab dates use a "first trigger wins" approach. The system will record the slab date based on whichever of these events occurs first:
Critical Path Stage Completion: The day all tasks are marked as Done in the schedule stage designated as "Slab."
Council Permit Date: If this option is enabled in your office system variables.
First Cost Centre Completion: The completion date of a specific cost centre task in the schedule nominated in your system variables.
Claim / Draw Threshold: When 15% of the total contract value is claimed.
Note: A slab date will never trigger if the contract amount is less than $25,000.
The 7th of the Month Cutoff
The reporting window runs from the 1st to the 7th of each month. After it closes, the system "locks" the previous month's data, creating a stable snapshot for reporting purposes. Any sales or slabs entered or corrected after the 7th are handled by the reporting rules below.
The Reporting Rules
The system applies these rules automatically to determine the official Reported Date for any new sale or slab.
Visualising the Reporting Windows
Rather than a simple timeline, the system uses a "Gate" logic on the 7th of each month. Use the matrix below to see where your sale will land based on when you enter the data.
If the Sale happened... | And you enter it... | The Reported Date will be... |
Last Month | On or before the 7th | The actual Sale Date (Last Month) |
Two+ Months Ago | On or before the 7th | The last day of Last Month |
Anytime in the Past | After the 7th | Today's Date (Current Month) |
This Month | Anytime | The actual Sale Date (This Month) |
A Future Month | On or before the 7th | The last day of Last Month |
A Future Month | After the 7th | Today's Date (Current Month) |
If you are entering data ON OR BEFORE the 7th of the month:
Rule 1 (Current Sales)
If the event date is in the previous month or the current month, the system uses the actual event date. (Future-dated sales are handled separately — see Rule 5.)
Rule 2 (Late/Backdated Sales):
If the event date is before the previous month, the system uses the last day of the previous month. This ensures the sale is captured in the most recent open reporting period.
If you are entering data AFTER the 7th of the month:
Rule 3 (Late/Backdated Sales)
If the event date is before the current month, the system uses the current date. Since the previous month is already locked, this ensures you get credit for the sale in the current active month.
Rule 4 (Current Month Sales)
If the event date is in the current month, the system uses the actual event date.
Rule 5 (Future-Dated Sales) — Sale Dates Only
Occasionally a deposit is entered in Xero with a date in a future month. So the sale is still counted in the correct period, the system handles this automatically:
Entered on or before the 7th: the Reported Date is set to the last day of the previous month (the month currently being closed).
Entered after the 7th: the Reported Date is set to today's date.
Once set, this Reported Date is locked, so later changes to the date in Xero will not move it. This rule applies to Sale Dates only; Slab Dates are not affected.
Why This Matters
These reported dates are used to calculate Continuing Franchise Fees (CFF) and performance rankings. Once a reported date is locked, changing the underlying event date will not change the reported date. This ensures that once a month is "closed," our historical data remains accurate and reliable for everyone in the network. It also prevents a sale from being deferred by entering a deposit with a future date — the deposit is recognised as a sale in the correct period.
Managing System Configuration and Visibility
The system provides several ways to monitor and adjust how these dates are handled for your office.
Adjusting Slab Triggers
You can choose which slab triggers are active for your office by navigating to Setup > System Variables > Jobs. From here, you can enable or disable the specific triggers (such as Council Permit or Cost Centre completion) that best reflect your local build process.
Tracking Dates in G.J. Software
Both the Event Date and the Reported Date are visible in the Jobs List and Contracts Manager. Franchisor users can also find them within the Billing tab of any individual job. For faster tracking, these dates are available as filters in your jobs list, allowing you to quickly see which sales or slabs have been officially recorded for a specific period. The dates available are:
Sales Date
Reported Sales Date
Slab Date
Reported Slab Date