How to Configure Activity (ABC) in iDempiere

The Activity window in iDempiere enables organizations to define and manage Activity-Based Costing (ABC) activities, allowing accurate allocation and tracking of operational costs by business process, workflow, or service activity.

Introduction

The Activity window in iDempiere is used to create and maintain business activities that support Activity-Based Costing (ABC). An activity represents a specific operational task or process, such as receiving inventory, order fulfillment, production support, or customer service. By assigning costs to these activities, organizations can accurately measure the resources consumed by each business process. This approach provides greater visibility into operational expenses, improves cost allocation accuracy, and helps management make informed decisions based on the true cost of business operations.

Navigation

Access the Activity configuration from the iDempiere main menu:

Menu → Performance Analysis and Accounting → Accounting Rules → Activity (ABC)

Step-by-Step Configuration

Step 1: Open the Activity Window

The window displays all existing Activity records. Review the list to ensure the Activity you intend to create does not already exist before proceeding.

Step 2: Create a New Activity Record

Click: New Record (+)

The form opens in edit mode. Complete the fields as described below.

Field Definitions

• Search Key / Value — Unique short code used to identify the Activity in transactions, reports, and cost allocations. Keep this concise and consistent with your naming convention.
• Name — Descriptive name of the Activity displayed in forms, cost reports, and accounting entries.
• Description — Detailed explanation of what the Activity represents, its scope, and which department or process owns it.
• Organization — Defines the organisation to which the Activity belongs. Use * to share across all organisations within the tenant.
• Active — Controls whether the Activity is available for selection in transactions. Inactive Activities are hidden from lookup lists.
• Summary Level — Used to mark that record as summary record.

Step 3: Configure Goods Receiving Activity

Enter the following values to create the Goods Receiving activity:

Field	Value
Organization	*
Search Key	GDS-RECV
Name	Goods Receiving
Description	All activities involved in receiving goods from suppliers at the warehouse dock, including unloading, counting, and initial quality inspection.
Active	Yes

Purpose

Goods Receiving captures all costs associated with receiving supplier shipments. In a retail warehouse, this includes the labour cost of unloading trucks, dock equipment usage, and the time spent verifying delivery notes against purchase orders. By tagging goods receipt journal entries with this Activity, the business can calculate the true per-shipment cost and benchmark it against volume to identify efficiency improvements.

Step 4: Configure Order Picking Activity

Enter the following values to create the Order Picking activity:

Field	Value
Organization	*
Search Key	ORD-PICK
Name	Order Picking
Description	Warehouse activities related to locating, picking, and staging products for outbound sales order fulfilment, including both store replenishment orders and direct-to-customer orders.
Active	Yes

Purpose

Order Picking is typically one of the highest-cost warehouse activities in retail operations. Assigning picking costs to this Activity enables management to compare the cost per order line across different fulfilment channels — store replenishment versus e-commerce fulfilment — and justify investments in pick-assist technology such as barcode scanners or pick-to-light systems.

Step 8: Save the Activity Record

After entering all field values for each Activity, click: Save (floppy-disk icon or Alt + S)

The Activity record is saved and assigned a system-generated Activity ID. The Activity is immediately available for selection in cost allocation rules, accounting fact entries, and ABC reporting. Repeat Steps 2 through 8 for each additional Activity required by the business.

Note – After saving, the Search Key cannot be changed if the Activity has been referenced in posted accounting entries. Define and confirm your Search Key naming convention before going live.

Best Practices

• Define Activities at a level of granularity that is meaningful for management decisions. Too broad (one Activity for all warehouse work) loses insight; too granular (a separate Activity for every task) creates maintenance overhead.
• Agree on the Activity list with both the finance team and operations managers before configuration. ABC reporting is only valuable if the cost categories reflect how the business actually measures performance.