I read that Showback leaves a bill on the table for analysis; chargeback leaves the same bill but requires a payment.   I'm assuming that I can choose the Showback path and later move to the Chargeback solution at a later time?   Are there any disadvantages of doing this?

Well, did you ever get a response for this question?  If yes, it would be good to share.  If "no", then we need to get someone involved.

What do you guys think?  Are there any disadvantages of doing this?  Essentially, going to Showback first, and then switching to chargeback a later time.

@Cheryl Wille

Hi Paolo. I implemented the Showback model with the assumption that I can switch to Chargeback at a later time. I didn't get an official word on it, but I figured I can adapt later as needed.  Thanks for the follow up!

Hey Cheryl, 

You are absolutely correct! You have the ability to seamlessly switch between chargeback, showback or a hybrid of the two any time that it suits your business needs. 

If anything, I would say this is the path most customers go down. Establish a firm showback cadence, and then scale into chargeback later on. 

Happy to talk through the technical nuances of this when this becomes part of your road-map! Also, I know we have had some calls together before (and another one tomorrow), so don't hesitate to reach out directly if there is anything products and engineering can do to make your Apptio journey easier! We are here to help!

Best, 

Jared 

I definitely believe that if you have the opportunity to have a period of Showback before switching over to Chargeback, that's the right way to go.  I think that goes a long way to having a smoother transition.    When you don't have that luxury you just have to brace yourself for a bit of a bumpy ride.

You build out your showback model first and report it to the Opco's(BU's) just to get them aware of what is coming. As your model matures and you get comfortable with the data, you can switch to an actual chargeback. The chargeback can then drive Opco's to take action on the areas of IT spend that are of greatest concern to them. 

Thank you to all that replied to my inquiry.  We implemented the Bill of IT Showback which provides a great deal of insight to the BUs and provides a defensible chargeback.  For now, the data is extracted from Bill of IT and used in our accounting tools.