Tracking time is a critical part of project management.  It provides you with valuable data about the amount of effort required to complete your work, which in turn allows you to estimate future work more accurately.  Time tracking data can also be used to feed your payroll and client billing systems.

Track Time from the Edit Panel

In the People section of the Edit Panel, simply click the Track Time link or click into the ‘Logged’ field to open the time entry box:

• You can track time in any of the following units: minutes, hours, days or even weeks (e.g. 480m, 8h, 1d, .2w). The time entry will be converted to your default workspace unit as necessary and will be transferred to your timesheet automatically.
• Select an Activity to categorize your time entry. The activity field may be pre-populated with the task default activity or your personal default activity.
• Enter multiple time entries to a task on a given date by clicking the ‘+ Add Time’ link below Activity. You’ll get a new row that will allow you to track additional time to the same activity, or choose a different activity for the new time entry.
• Enter a time entry note in the optional timesheet note box.  This box can be resized by dragging the bottom border down to expand the window.
• Notations added in the timesheet note box will be captured in timesheet data exports. If the export will be used to create client invoices, we recommend reviewing the timesheet_entry_note column in the export prior to running invoices.
• After you refresh, you’ll see that your remaining effort estimate is automatically reduced by the number of logged hours.  Even so, you should always review the adjusted remaining effort in case the scope of your remaining work has changed since the task was originally estimated.
• Click the link Show Estimate History at the bottom of the People section to see the time tracking and estimation history for that item.

Track Time from the Timesheets Tab

On the Timesheets tab, locate the task and click into the window for the appropriate day to log your time.

Entering your time

• From the timesheet,  you can track time in any of the following units: minutes, hours, or days, as well as in the hh:mm format (e.g. 4:30)
• The timesheet will display logged time in hours.
• Time entry notations can be typed into the Timesheet note box. These notations will be captured in timesheet exports.
• You have the option to enter multiple time entries to a task on a given date.  Just click the ‘+’ icon to the right of the Activity box, and you’ll see a window that will allow you to select the new activity. This will add a new row that will allow you to add additional time to this task.

Locating tasks on your timesheet

• You can use the Quick Filter field on your timesheet to locate timesheet items by name. Terms that you enter in this field will bring up any matching results from the task name, client, package, project or sub-folder name.
• To apply time to a past date that is not on the current timesheet, click on the date and use the arrow buttons to change between weeks.
• If you don’t see the task you need on the timesheet, click the “Add” button and select “Find Existing Item” to locate and add the task to your timesheet. Track time to it immediately, or use a pin to keep it on your timesheet.
• You can also group tasks on your timesheet by project, client, and custom task field.  The blue figures below each date represent the subtotal of your time logged for that date, while the figure under Week Total represents a subtotal of all time logged for the week. Clicking on either the daily or weekly subtotal will filter your timesheet to only tasks to which time was logged.
• Groups can be collapsed by clicking the arrow next to the group header.

 

The post Tracking Time appeared first on LiquidPlanner.

Each workspace member has a personal timesheet. Workspace managers can review and export timesheet data for all members.

The start of a timesheet period is determined by the Week Start setting on your workspace settings page.

Which Items Appear on the Timesheet

To view your current timesheet, navigate to the Timesheets tab. Your timesheet is auto-populated with items assigned to you that meet at least one of the following criteria:

• Tasks with active or paused timers- There is a timer (running or stopped) with time accumulated for this task. If you have any tasks with a running or stopped timer, these tasks will appear on your timesheet.
• Pinned task – A pinned task shows up on all subsequent timesheets until the task has been unpinned.
• Upcoming task – Scheduled to start in the next 7 days.
• Event or milestone – Occurring during the current timesheet period.
• Recently done – Your task or assignment was recently marked done.

Other than pinning and unpinning tasks, you cannot remove items from your timesheet. Items will drop off automatically once they no longer match the above criteria.

Here are some tips for using the timesheet:

• To move backward or forward in time to your other timesheets, click on the date picker or the backward/forward arrows (the date button displays the start date of the current week).
• For members with Manager level access and above, the name is a member-picker which allows the user to view other members’ timesheet in Timesheet Review mode.
• Click Add and then select Find Existing Item to locate a task from your plan to add it to your timesheet. Track time to it immediately, or use a pin to keep it on your timesheet.
• Use the Quick Filter field to locate timesheet items by name. Terms that you enter in this field will bring up any matching results from the task name, client, package, project or sub-folder name.

Track Time on Your Timesheet

• From the timesheet,  you can track time in any of the following units: minutes, hours, days or even weeks (e.g. 480m, 8h, 1d, .2w). You can also enter time in hh:mm format (e.g. 4:30).
• The timesheet will display logged time in hours.
• Time entry notations can be typed into the Timesheet note box. These notations will be captured in a timesheet export.
• You have the option to enter multiple time entries with different activities to a task on a given date.  Just click the + icon to the right of the Activity box, and you’ll see a window that will allow you to select the new activity. This will add a new row that will allow you to add additional time to this task.

Edit Previous Time Entries

To correct an erroneous timesheet entry, click the date or use the back or forward arrows on either side of the date to navigate to the week where the time was logged.

Click into the cell for the time entry and fix the time entry by entering the correct time value, zeroing-out the time entry, or associate a different activity to the time entry.

When deleting logged time, that time will not be restored to the task’s estimate. If the time needs to be added back to the task’s remaining effort estimate, you can re-estimate the task in the My Remaining Effort field on the timesheet, or from the task’s edit panel.

Move or Transfer Time Entries

Moving time between tasks is a three-step process. First, use Timesheet Export to pull up a list of all the time entries you need to move.

Then track a corresponding amount of time to the new task or resource to which the time is being moved.

Finally, go back and delete the old time entries using the steps in Editing Previous Time Entries.

Submit Timesheet for Review

Tracking time is essential to keeping the schedule up to date. If your organization requires that you submit your timesheet for review by a manger each week, read on to learn about the timesheet review and approval workflow.

1. After tracking all of your hours for the week, click the Not Submitted button and then Submit to submit your timesheet for review.

2. Once submitted, a Submitted button will appear and your timesheet will go into a “Ready” state, indicating to your manager that your timesheet is ready for review. While in this state, it is still possible for you to re-open and make changes to your timesheet by clicking Submitted > Re-Open.

3. Your manager can then either approve and lock your timesheet, or request an update:

• If your timesheet is approved, an “Approved & Locked” message will display on that week’s timesheet and you’ll no longer be able to edit it. If your manager unlocks your timesheet, it will automatically re-open.
• If your manager requests an update, you’ll receive an email notification with a comment from your manager prompting you to edit your timesheet. This comment will also be visible from your timesheet. Click Needs Update > Re-Open, make the necessary changes, and then Not Submitted > Submit to resubmit it.

Whether your timesheet is approved or not has no influence on how those hours are calculated in Analytics reports or on a Dashboard. Once hours have been tracked to a plan item, the hours are considered logged and are included in reporting.

Group Tasks on the Timesheet

You may group the tasks that appear on your timesheet by client association, project association, and any pick list task custom fields that are set up in your workspace.

• Daily and weekly sub-totals of hours logged appear in blue below each date and also under Week Total. Clicking on these sub-totals will filter your view to just tasks to which time was logged on that particular day or week.
• Depending on how tasks are grouped, sub-totals of hours logged for each grouping will appear within the grouping row, as well as below the Week Total.
• Items with no group will populate at the bottom of the list.
• Groups can be collapsed by clicking the arrow next to each group header.

The post Timesheets Overview appeared first on LiquidPlanner.

1. It’s an ongoing task (e.g. Email or Meetings) and you need it on your timesheet every week.
2. It’s a task you’ll be working on for an extended period and you’d like to keep it on your timesheet for easy access.

A task that is pinned to your timesheet will have a blue dot in the Pin column as shown below:

How to Pin and Unpin Tasks

Pinning tasks to your timesheet is easy — you can pin items by manually selecting the dot in the Pin column, turning it blue. Be sure to take this step when you add a new or existing task to your plan via the Add button.

You can also pin a task to your timesheets from the Project Tab. Right-click on the item then select Pin Item to Timesheet from the menu.

Tasks become unpinned when the blue dot in the Pin column is selected again. The item will fall off of your timesheet instantly when this is done. Marking a task done also clears the pin.

What Appears on the Timesheet

Your timesheet is auto-populated with items assigned to you that meet at least one of the following criteria:

• Tasks with active or paused timers- There is a timer (running or stopped) with time accumulated for this task. If you have any tasks with a running or stopped timer, these tasks will appear on your timesheet.
• Pinned task – A pinned task shows up on all subsequent timesheets until the task has been unpinned.
• Upcoming task – Scheduled to start before the end of the week currently being viewed.
• Event or milestone – Occurring during the current timesheet period.
• Recently done – Your task or assignment was recently marked done.

The post Pin Tasks to Your Timesheet appeared first on LiquidPlanner.

Run the Export

Workspace administrators and managers can export timesheet data as follows:

1. Go to the Timesheets tab > Export Timesheets
2. Use the filter tools (see filtering section below) at the top to identify the timesheet entries you want to export.  If you are using timesheets for invoicing, we recommend that you export only locked timesheets and develop an internal protocol for coordinating your data transfers.
3. Choose the preferred export format (XML, CSV, or Quickbooks) and click Export
   • Quickbooks users please note: exporting timesheet data to Quickbooks requires that you complete a one-time configuration in advance.
   • Your results will include only time entries that are new since the last time you exported.  If you want to capture time entries that had been exported previously, be sure to check the box that says “include previously exported entries.”

Filter Data for Export

Click into the fields at the top to open the filter dialogs and select just the information you want exported. Within the filter dialog, click on Options to further filter your selections:

Helpful Tips

• The preview shown on the Timesheets tab shows you just 20 of the rows that will be exported to give you an idea of what you’ll see in the file.
• Columns that will be exported: date, status, person, full_name, client, project, activity, hours, billable, billing_rate, billing_total, billing_rule, pay_rate, pay_total, pay_rule, timesheet_entry_note, task, task_reference, folder, package, person_id, client_id, project_id, activity_id, task_id, folder_id, package_id, timesheet_entry_id, person_reference, client_reference, project_reference, is_done, done_date, team, month, week, tags, max_effort, and your custom columns.
• To connect timesheet data with your accounting system, it can be helpful to use the Reference field to record related information. The Reference field is captured in timesheet exports, and the field is available on member profiles, clients, projects, and tasks:
  • person_reference – In the People tab, this is the External ID box on the member profile.  Enter the ID your accounting system uses for that person.
  • client_reference –  In Client View, find it in the Planning section of the client’s Edit Panel
  • project_reference – In the Projects tab, find it in the Planning section of the project’s Edit Panel
  • task_reference – In the Projects tab or Home > My Tasks, find it in the Planning section of the task’s Edit Panel
• Time entry notations typed into the private yellow Timesheet note box will be captured in timesheet exports. If the export will be used to create client invoices, we recommend reviewing the timesheet_entry_note column in the export prior to running invoices. In Quickbooks, the private Timesheet note is included in the same field as the task name.
• Upon previewing or running the export, members with Manager access will not see any values derived from billing and pay rules. Only workspace administrators can see rate sheet (bill and pay) data.

The post Export Timesheet Data appeared first on LiquidPlanner.

Here are the important things to know about timers:

• Timers display accumulated time in the HH:MM format, starting at the one minute mark.
• When you start a timer, it will keep running until you click the timer icon to pause it, or until you start a timer on a different task. When a timer is paused, the accumulated time is held for you.  You can restart the timer to pick up where you left off, or you can apply the accumulated time to your timesheet.
• Clicking Use will apply the accumulated time to your timesheet. Clicking Clear will clear the accumulated time for that task.
• Timers are associated with your own member login, which means they are not used to track time for other members or virtual members.
• The timer icon in the workspace header will tell you how many tasks currently have timers with time on them. You can click on the timer icon to see a list of the tasks with accumulated time.
• Only one timer can be active at a time.

Start and Stop a Timer

You can start and stop a timer anywhere you see the timer icon simply by clicking play or pause on the timer. There is a maximum limit of 100 active (running or paused) timers per person in the workspace.

Timers are located in the following places:

On the Projects tab

• If you expose the My Timers column.
• To the right of the task name in the Edit Panel.
• On the workspace header (if there is at least one task with an active timer or a paused timer with unused time).

On the My Work tab

• The timer icon appears when you hover over the task in the list.
• To the right of the task name in the Edit Panel when you click on a task in the list.
• On the workspace header (if there is at least one task with an active timer or a paused timer with unused time).

On the Timesheets tab

• Hover over an item row to see the timer button.
• To the right of the task name in the Edit Panel when you double-click on a task.
• On the workspace header (if there is at least one task with an active timer or a paused timer with unused time).

Apply Accumulated Time

When you are done with your work and ready to log the timer hours:

1. Click the active timer to pause it.
2. Click the small down arrow on the paused timer. You’ll be presented with a choice to Use or Clear the time. Select Use.
3. A window will appear to confirm the timer amount. The total time, activity, or date of the entry can be adjusted and a note can be added.
4. Clicking Save will log the time on the current date for the plan item with which the timer is associated.

The post Using Timers appeared first on LiquidPlanner.

Why is this configuration necessary?

QuickBooks Pro and Enterprise allow you to import timesheet data using files in the IIF format.  An IIF file has a header that identifies the version of QuickBooks and the company file for the data in the file. This header must match your settings in QuickBooks, or you will get errors when you attempt to import the file.

In order to provide LiquidPlanner with the correct values for this header, you need to export timer lists from QuickBooks and upload the exported file into LiquidPlanner.

Configuration Instructions

1. Open your company file in QuickBooks
2. From the File menu, select Utilities > Export > Timer Lists
3. Save the exported IIF file
4. Open LiquidPlanner in your browser
5. Click on your User Menu > Settings > under Data Customization, select Activities > QuickBooks…
6. Browse to the IIF file that you exported in step 3, and then click the Upload button

The uploaded file will be parsed, and the appropriate values extracted.

Alternatively, you can open the IIF file in a text editor (such as Notepad), and then copy and paste the values manually into LiquidPlanner.

The post Configure Timesheet Export to QuickBooks appeared first on LiquidPlanner.

If you frequently track time against the same activity, and there is no default activity set on the task, milestone or event, using a personal default activity saves an extra step when tracking time.

There are two things to keep in mind about the personal default activity:

1. If a member with a personal default activity is assigned to an item before a default activity is set, the personal default activity will override the item’s default activity. If the member should track time to the plan item default activity instead- clear the assignment Activity field so it is set to None, or select an activity.
2. When a member with a personal default activity is assigned to an item after the Default Activity is set, the default activity will override the member’s personal default activity. They will be prompted to use the plan item default activity when tracking time.

Set a personal default activity by accessing My Profile from the User Menu.

• Only shared activities will be available options for the personal default activity.
• Workspace owners, Administrators and Managers can adjust the personal default activity for any workspace member. Go to the People tab Member List and select the member’s name to open their profile.
  
• If you are a member of more than one workspace, you are able to set a different personal default activity in each workspace.

The post Set a Personal Default Activity appeared first on LiquidPlanner.

Filter in Timesheet Review

• You can filter timesheets to specific workspace members or teams by selecting them from the Person filter.
• You can filter to only real members (exclude virtual members and portal guests) in your timesheet review by selecting the “Include only real members” checkbox under Options▼ in the person picker. Note: If you select a team from the picker, any virtual members and portal guests on that team will appear in review, even if this checkbox is selected.
• Click the Date Picker button to select a different week to review. Timesheet Review will display the week for the date you have selected, as well as the five weeks prior.

Timesheet Status

A timesheet’s status can be identified by color of the field, as denoted by the legend:

• When a timesheet is in Not Ready status, it means the timesheet owner has not yet submitted their timesheet.
• Once a team member clicks “Submit Timesheet”, the status changes from Not Ready to Ready.  When following a formal review process, it’s typical to review only Ready timesheets.
• Once a manager approves a timesheet, the status changes to Locked, and the timesheet owner can no longer edit it.
• Managers may unlock timesheets if additional edits are needed.  Once changes are made, the timesheet owner can resubmit the timesheet. If a manager makes updates, they can Approve and Lock from the timesheet by opening the Not Submitted menu or from the Review Timesheets page.
• When a manager requests an update on a timesheet, the timesheet status changes to Needs Update.  The timesheet will remain in that status until it has been reopened, or the reviewer has approved and locked the timesheet.

Timesheet Approval

You can take various actions by clicking on a member’s weekly total (in blue). The actions available to you depend on the status of the timesheet:

• View Details – opens that specific timesheet.
• Approve & Lock – prevents the timesheet owner from making further updates to time logged within that date range.
• Request Update – sends an email notification to the timesheet owner, prompting them to edit and re-submit their timesheet.  This notification will include any feedback that you may have provided to the owner.  You will also receive an email confirming that an update was requested.  The message sent to the timesheet owner will appear in yellow directly on the timesheet. The message will be visible to the timesheet owner, and anyone with manager-level access in the workspace, until the manager who requested the update either removes it, or clicks Approve & Lock.
• Unlock – re-opens the timesheet to allow the timesheet owner and manager to make additional edits, if necessary.

As a manager, you are able to make changes to the time entries on any timesheet as necessary.  When reviewing a timesheet in Needs Update or Ready state, click the red “Re-Open” button to re-open and edit the timesheet. Timesheets still in Not Ready state can also be approved and locked.

Timesheet Review Widget

Managers will see a Timesheet Review widget on the Home tab that allows them to easily monitor timesheet submission.  Choose members or teams to appear in this widget. As soon as a member submits their timesheet and it is ready for review and approval, the status of their timesheet will change to Ready.

The post Timesheet Review and Approval appeared first on LiquidPlanner.