Ready to show the real value behind every step of your workflows? With Puzzle’s Process Costing features, you can finally bring hard numbers into your process maps and prove the true impact of your work.
These powerful features allow you to assign costs to individual steps and monitor the overall financial outlook of your processes—providing immediate visibility into where resources are allocated and how your operations result in measurable outcomes. Whether you're planning a system rollout, justifying tech investments, building client proposals, or reducing operational costs, Process Costing transforms your workflows into data-driven, value-backed assets.
Stop guessing — start making confident, cost-backed decisions that move your business forward.
Here’s how Process Costing helps you work smarter:
📈 Prove ROI, Not Just Process Flow: Quantify the exact time, resource, and financial impact behind your processes, turning operational improvements into clear, data-backed results.
🪬 Uncover Hidden Costs and Inefficiencies: Step-by-step cost breakdowns reveal the actions, roles, or tools driving your expenses—helping you target and eliminate bottlenecks or waste.
⚖️ Compare and Optimize with Real Financial Data: Test different process versions or improvements and compare total costs to identify the most efficient, cost-effective option.
🎯 Build Stronger, Value-Focused Proposals: Present stakeholders and clients with transparent, measurable cost data that strengthens your recommendations and accelerates decision-making.
🎥 Process Costing Walkthrough
See how to use Puzzle’s cost features to track ROI and show real value in every proposal:
Part 1: Step Cost Calculator — Measure the Cost of Each Step
The Step Cost Calculator lets you assign specific costs to individual process steps based on time, frequency, and role rates. Puzzle automatically calculates labor hours and costs, giving you precision and clarity at every step.
Benefits of the Step Cost Calculator
💡 Track Step Costs with Precision: Get exact costs per step using time, frequency, and role rates.
📊 Prove the Financial Impact of Your Work: Show stakeholders the real dollar value behind every action.
🔍 Spot Inefficiencies Fast: Identify resource-heavy steps and target improvements.
🎯 Make Data-Driven Presentations: Back your process maps with hard numbers that build trust.
How to Use the Step Cost Calculator
1️⃣ Enable the Feature
1️⃣ Enable the Feature
⚙️ Go to Workspace Settings > Step Sidebar Configuration.
🟢 Toggle ON Step Cost Calculator.
💾 Save your settings.
💡 Already see the Process Cost Calculator on your steps? You can skip this step and move straight to Step 2.
2️⃣ Add Cost Details to Each Step
2️⃣ Add Cost Details to Each Step
👉 Click on any step in your workflow
🕒 Enter the following:
Time to Complete (how long the step takes in minutes)
Frequency (how often the step occurs: per run, monthly, etc.)
Assigned Role (linked to an hourly rate in Team Canvas)
⚠️ All three inputs are required for accurate cost calculations.
⚠️ Accurate role rates are required for reliable cost calculations. If your roles and rates aren’t set up yet, follow this guide to plan and organize your Team Canvas →
3️⃣ Review Automatic Calculations
3️⃣ Review Automatic Calculations
💵 Once time, frequency, and the responsible role’s hourly rate are set, Puzzle will automatically calculate:
Labor hours per run
Monthly labor hours
Annual labor hours
Cost per run
Monthly cost of the step
Annual cost of the step
Part 2: Process Costing Sidebar — Total Cost Summary
The Process Costing Sidebar provides a summary of your entire workflow’s total cost, combining all individual step costs into one clear, comprehensive view.
Benefits of the Process Costing Sidebar
💸 Total Process Costs at a Glance: See your full workflow cost across all the roles that contribute to the manual parts of the process
📊 Compare and Optimize Versions: Test process changes and instantly analyze financial impact.
🤝 Strengthen ROI Conversations: Share clear cost data to guide client and stakeholder decisions.
🎯 Simplify Cost Tracking for Complex Workflows: Easily manage large, multi-step processes with built-in visibility.
How to Use the Process Costing Sidebar
1️⃣ Accessing the Process Costing Sidebar
1️⃣ Accessing the Process Costing Sidebar
🟢 Go to your desired workflow section in your Puzzle canvas.
👉 Click on the $ icon located in the left-hand toolbar to open the Process Costing Sidebar.
2️⃣ Viewing Total Process Cost
2️⃣ Viewing Total Process Cost
💲 As you input costs in your steps, the sidebar automatically sums the total cost for your process.
💰 Adjust steps and instantly see how these changes affect the total, ideal for live workshops or process optimizations.
💡 Use this live summary to compare process variations, track improvements, and guide confident, data-driven discussions with clients or teams.
Best Practices for Process Costing
💰 Keep Hourly Rates Accurate: Regularly update role rates in the Team Canvas to ensure reliable cost calculations.
⏱ Review Time and Frequency Inputs: Keep your time and frequency estimates up to date for precise cost tracking.
🎯 Target High-Cost Steps First: Focus your process improvements on steps that drive the highest expenses.
📝 Compare Process Versions Easily: Duplicate workflows to quickly evaluate total cost differences between process options.
🔄 Refresh for Real-Time Accuracy: If cost calculations don’t update immediately, refresh your workspace to apply changes and view the latest totals.
Conclusion
Process Costing is about unlocking better decisions with real data. Puzzle gives you the tools to understand the true financial impact of your workflows, so you can optimize processes, reduce unnecessary costs, and present value with confidence.
With step-level precision and full process visibility, you’ll always be ready to back your recommendations with clear, measurable results.
Start using Puzzle’s Process Cost features today—and turn your processes into strategic, ROI-driven tools for your business!