Timesheet

A timesheet is a method for recording the amount of a worker's time spent on each job.

History

Originally developed for an employer to determine payroll, timesheets are not just for payroll anymore. Timesheets may record the start and end time of tasks, or just the duration. It may contain detailed breakdowns of tasks accomplished by the working. This information may be used for payroll, client billing, and increasingly for project costing, estimation, tracking and management.

Time cards

Factory workers often have a "time card" and "punched in" by inserting their card into automatic timestamp machine when starting and ending their work shift.

Software

See main article, time tracking software

Some companies provide web-based timesheet software or services that provide a means to track time for payroll, billing and project management. This project management data can make complex cost relationships visible, thereby allowing lower costs. This knowledge can drive corporate strategy as users let their competitors perform the unprofitable work.

Advantages

Time tracking can lower costs in 3 ways: by making payroll processing more efficient, by making costs visible so you can lower them, and by automating billing & invoicing.

Time tracking can increase revenue through automating billing, which tends to make it easier for a company to get correct invoices out for all hours worked by consulting staff. This speeds up payment and eliminates the hassles of 'dropping' bills.

By lowering costs in 3 ways, and increasing revenue in one way, timesheet management technologies that are web-based can improve the health of companies.

In the project management world timesheets can also be used to build a body of knowledge about how much effort tasks take to develop. For example if developing a training plan has historically taken a month, then it can be assumed that creating a new one will take a month.

Disadvantages

Many employees dislike timesheets, both for the feeling of control they give to the employer, and for the idea that a worker must justify every minute of their time at work.

In some cases people do not trust their managers to use the information intelligently and fairly.

In other cases it feels Orwellian to them. For example, it can be seen as needless bureaucracy, or as something which applies to workers but not to managers.