Time is a resource that humans have always had to consider. Nowadays, efficient use of time is the most precious commodity that we own and manage. We either save it, spend it, waste it, or sell it. The measurement of time started in ancient Egypt sometime before 3500 B.C. with the invention of obelisks, and later sundials. With the rise of factories at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, people had to learn to live by the clock rather than by the sun.
Now, correct time tracking is a vital process in organizations of the Information Age. Let’s dive into time management and what time tracking can do to improve your business.
Not a fan of wasting time? Let’s track it!
Be the master of your time. If you want to improve your time management, you need to track it first. The same goes for any business. So if you want to better manage your business by saving running costs, streamlining processes, or eliminating unnecessary steps, then track it. Thankfully, huge progress has been made from the oppressive time clock system adopted during the Industrial Revolution. Many new and innovative tools are at your disposal to help you succeed.
Be realistic with your time
Track your time as you are going through your to-do list. Track time for specific tasks and projects and add comments to remember what you worked on. The insights you gain from it can be surprising. You may find you spend 3 hours on the daily scrums and meetings, 1 hour dealing with a broken heating system, and only a few hours dedicated to your work. This can then cause the postponement and delay of the project hand over. If you already have an overall picture of your time spent on dedicated tasks, you can either set up realistic goals or identify where support and resources are needed to get the job done more quickly.
Read on: The best time tracking software for projects
Be a better project manager
Many businesses, agencies, and freelancers lose time and money on projects without even realizing it, especially when they have many projects or a growing team of employees. Do you know how much time you spend on meetings, office work, emailing, and time spent on tasks dedicated to a particular client? Knowing how long it takes to design a great piece of work from start to finish, as well as the price tag that comes with it, is important information to have, not just as a benefit for you, but for your clients and your employees.
With the right tool, you can easily track the progress of work and detect possible delays. Plan the work of your team so they can participate in different assignments without hampering other duties. As a project manager, you can allocate the percentage of time to employees and see how they are progressing. A progress indicator can show you if the employee worked more or less than the estimate and help you adjust the workload.
Read on: How to become an excellent project manager
Ensure profitable projects
Whether you are a growing company or an established business, you want to keep track of projects’ profitability. There is a simple solution if you take into consideration the amount of employee hours spent on a task. Burning hours on a project without a budget can be counterproductive. Resource insights give you an overview to see if projects are running smoothly, on budget, and on time. With a realistic idea of how many hours your team has spent on different projects, you can prepare cost proposals as well as set deadlines for new, potential clients with easy and greater confidence.
Bill with ease
An automated system means that you don’t have to lose track of your time and guesstimate each billing cycle. You can easily export all your data to a spreadsheet for your reporting or you can deliver project working hours to the client in just a few clicks, saving you time and increasing transparency.
Read on: Employee billable time and how to track it right
Track on the go
Being able to track the time in a mobile app is not “nice to have”, it’s a must. Mobile time tracking is particularly useful for professionals who work across multiple locations or on-site, ensuring correct reporting no matter your location.
Make your team happy
Finally, time tracking is a key tool to make your team happy because you can balance workloads and keep the team focused on their dedicated tasks. You can see who is overloaded by work and who is free for a few hours to help. The system shows who is in overtime every month and you can compensate accordingly so your employees feel valued and know their work is accounted for.
Try time tracking with Vault ERP
Using Vault ERP to track time is a simple and streamlined process that helps your business bill properly, distribute resources, support employees, and ultimately save time. With our handy knowledge base to guide you through the process, an approachable UI and useful integrations such as Jira, Vault ERP’s Time Tracking Module is a tried and tested method of managing company time.
Get in touch for a free trial today!
