Tracking Time is not everybody’s favorite part of the job. If not done well, it can be rather inconvenient. It can be time consuming and people might feel like Big Brother is watching them. Not good on either accounts.

But it doesn’t have to be such an inconvenience if it’s done well. The key is to do it for the right reasons and to implement it well.  

Let’s explain. 

Different ways to track time. 

Compared to an Excel spreadsheet, time tracking software can make all the difference. As a matter of fact, time tracking software in general is tipped to gain big on the shares market in the next few years. There’s good reason for that. 

There are 2 common ways to track time on offer. 

·       You can use a timer 

·       You can enter time manually (timesheet) 

ProWorkflow offers both options and more. The reason for that is that a time tracker and manual entries suit very different users. Why? The reason you are tracking time asks for different ways to handle it. 

Different ways suit different users

Most companies don’t need a very precise record of tracked time. Often, it boils down to figuring out how much time was spent on a project or task. That can be because of payroll purposes or the company might need to know how long an activity took to invoice the client. If that is the case for your company, a manual entry might be the way to go. 

But sometimes stakeholders prefer a timer for tracking time because of the increased accuracy. Sometimes team members simply find it easier to click the ‘timer’ button than to enter a manual timesheet at the end of the day.  Every now and then, companies use tracked time to improve productivity. How much time does each team member spend on Instagram or Facebook? Or on lunch breaks? 

In any of these situations, the timer is the bee’s knees.  

Weighing up priorities

When a manager decides to start tracking time, it can significantly improve productivity for his or her team. But at the same time,  managers also need to be aware that same activity in itself will add an extra item on the to-do list. It prompts the question: Is the reason you want to track time important enough to justify the hassle? 

Often the answer is yes. The consideration that can tip the scale in the wrong direction is how precise do you need the time to be tracked. The more precise it needs to be , the higher the risk it will be an inaccurate recording. That’s because higher accuracy requires more time spent on both time entry and tracking. But also, if every minute needs to be recorded, chances that it will be forgotten about at some stage are very, very real.

The real question is: do you want a time recording of every half hour? Or of every minute?  It’s important to carefully consider the answer because this is where time tracking can become a burden rather than a blessing. In other words, it’s not the time tracking in itself that’s’ the problem.  Time tracking often is a very smart decision. It’s how it’s implemented that needs to be considered wisely. 

Different strokes for different folks on ProWorkflow

How do you track time on ProWorkflow? 

There are options aplenty to suit all tastes and flavors. These include: 

·       A stopwatch timer (on the Dashboard, in the Tasks tab and in the Time tab)

·       A diary-like drag-and-drop entry (in the Time tab)-  I would like to point out that many of our clients LOVE this option.

·       Complete a manual entry (timesheet) at the end of the day (in the Time tab)

And if that is not giving you enough options, there is also the time-tracker desktop widget for you to download AND the time-tracker Chrome extension, a one-click option that is especially useful if you spend a lot of time on a web browser.  

On a side note, it’s probably also worth mentioning that ProWorkflow has a calendar available that can link to your Outlook Calendar. The Outlook calendar automatically updates as you edit on ProWorkflow. Handy!

And finally…

We’re assuming you’re getting rather excited about the time tracking options on Proworkflow. Some you may not even have been aware about. Talk to our friendly support team to find out if any of these options might make time tracking a lot easier for you.