The Timesheet Blog

Note to businesses: If it’s taking you 24 clicks to approve one employee timesheet, then it’s probably time to switch to Web TimeSheet.

That’s exactly what JSR Micro did when they discovered their time-keeping system was an administrative hassle for employees, managers, and payroll alike. Now, with Web TimeSheet, JSR Micro has made its time-tracking and employee time off scheduling processes much easier and more efficient. Employees alone have saved hours a month by entering their time into Replicon’s web-based system. Manager’s approvals, which previously required up to 24 mouse clicks per timesheet, now only take three clicks for all timesheets combined. And, JSR Micro can easily view its attendance compliance with Replicon’s rich reporting capabilities.

To see more ways that this electronic materials supplier is benefiting from Web TimeSheet, read the full case study.

If you’re using Replicon’s timesheet software to track projects, then you’re probably already well-versed at dividing those projects into tasks and sub-tasks. In Web TimeSheet, these tasks are naturally linked to the parent project. But what happens when you need to link two or more entire projects together? How do you do it?

For some customers, the use of “Client Name” or “Department” is sufficient. However, there may be times when you need to create dependencies for the purposes of tracking, timelines and reporting. Imagine a case of three projects that are all part of one large project, such as product design. One project may focus on “Creating the Product.” One project may require a “Factory to be Built.” And one project may necessitate “Hiring Staff” to support the new product. In a lot of cases, these activities cannot be tasks of the same projects, so here is how we would treat those in the timesheet software.

The solution is to create a new Project-Level User-Defined Field (UDF) to use as a linking code between these projects. Here’s how:
Step 1: Create a new UDF at the Project level. Use text, numbers, or even drop-down as the “Type.”
Step 2: Go to each project that is part of this same “group” and add the same code to each one (i.e. ABC123).
Step 3: On any project report, add this new UDF field as a column. We recommend that you also group the report on this new column (in the “Rows Group By” section on the Grouping tab of the report settings).
Step 4: Run the report. Make sure to select any appropriate filters to narrow down your report range.

Each one of the groupings you create will be its own section. So, if you are looking for totals on hours, $ amounts, or anything else numerical, the sums will be provided.

If you are looking for an additional level of complexity, you can use the project link code nomenclature to perform some basic functions.
Example A) Sequence. Project groupings that naturally follow each other can be named ABC123, ABC124, ABC125, etc.
Example B) Phases. Projects that are essentially phases of a larger project can be named to reflect that: NEWPhase1, NEWPhase2, NEWPhase3, etc.
Example C) Dates. Dates can be factored into the code as well: ABC123-Dec2011, ABC123-Jan2012, ABC345-Jan2012, etc.

Lastly, if your project code field is not being used for anything, then you can perform the same functions as above but without having to create a new User-Defined Field.

The end result: greater visibility of the total time, money and work going into your projects – as a whole and broken up by its supporting projects. Once you’ve linked your projects with the time-tracking software, your employees can associate their hours with any of the linked projects – and their individual tasks – right on their online timesheets. Managers can tailor reports however they choose to track overall progress for in-house use, client billing, payroll or other needs.

Intuit’s announcement to discontinue support for its Time Tracker and Time & Billing products has taken a lot of organizations by surprise and has left them holding the bag. Thousands of organizations around the world are suddenly going to have to figure out how to maintain timely and accurate time tracking.

“We’re here to help. Customers can seamlessly transition their time tracking needs to our hassle-free time tracking solutions – which integrates with QuickBooks.” A true cloud solution, we promise that we can get you set up in minutes, transfer your data without having to conduct complex, expensive and time-consuming configuration.

Replicon provides an extremely easy cloud-based solution to collect and track billable hours from employees and contractors for billing, payroll, reporting and project analysis. Consolidating this information in an intuitive, hassle-free cloud platform gives managers the visibility they need to efficiently and optimally manage projects, resources and clients in real time.

Download a free trial of our hassle-free, time tracking solution at http://www.replicon.com/lp/lp_QB_time_tracker_replacement_offer.aspx to avert a potential billing and payroll crisis at your organization.

It’s a signature day: The beta version of Replicon Timesheet for iPhone* is now available in the Apple App Store. If you have an existing SaaS-based version of Replicon’s Web TimeSheet software, you can download the app and start using it. Don’t have a Replicon account yet? That’s not a problem—the app works with trial versions of our software as well. You can sign up for a Free 14-day trial here.

Replicon Timesheet for iPhone makes it easier than ever to enter project time and related expense information. You can do it from anywhere your iPhone works. Just launch the app, enter your project data, and it instantly syncs with your main instance of Web TimeSheet. You can even take pictures of your receipts and upload them on-the-spot.

Top features:
– Track time against projects, including billing details
– Create expense sheets–Take photos of receipts and upload them
– Review approval status of timesheets and expenses
– Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Encryption
– Real-time synchronization
– 24/7 Support

The Replicon Timesheet app for iPhone is FREE.
Download it now at the Apple App Store.

*The Replicon Timesheet app is currently available only for iPhone.

Recently, Monster.com projected that the San Francisco Bay Area would be a key region for job growth in the second half of this year. We’re already seeing signs of that upswing. Our home office is in Calgary, but we opened a branch in the Bay Area not long ago. Part of the reason is that there’s a much bigger pool of the talent and experience we need. But even with many more people available, these days it’s a very competitive situation to fill open positions. Our cofounder, Lakshmi Raj, says that typically candidates who get job offers from us already have received two or three others. Why do some of them (and why might you or someone you know) ultimately choose our team over “brand name” companies?

For one thing, when we say “team” we really mean it. You’ll join a great group of people who are good at their jobs, and who thrive by working together. They’re smart, creative, and energized by the prospect of making the world’s best time-tracking software. While we work hard to make things hassle-free for our customers, we keep things in perspective. So you’ll find there’s plenty of humor and work-life balance. People here don’t wear suits—not even our co-CEO’s. (But you could if you wanted to.)

Replicon is also a good size for getting noticed—just a few hundred folks instead of thousands.  And we’re committed to giving you opportunities to advance your career. We care about your well-being, too:  There are great benefits, and you’ll find there’s also flex time and lots of holidays and vacation.

Engage us with your comments: We’re always happy to talk about how much we like working at Replicon.

And check out our open positions here. Besides the Bay Area, we need good people in Calgary and in our Bangalore office. Help us make the world’s best online timesheets!

Ask any event-planning business what it needs to be successful, and without a doubt, “effective time management” will be at the top of their list.

Michelle Durpetti Events knows this first-hand. As one of Chicago’s leading event management firms, they use Web TimeSheet to handle all of their time-tracking and billing processes. Since implementing the software, MDE has gone from “jotting down time in a notebook” to streamlining its operations, billing clients faster and cutting down on non-billable tasks.

See how they did it – read the full case study here.

If you’ve ever worked as a government contractor, then you know how hard it can be to comply with the many regulations for documenting project work. And when you don’t have an efficient time-tracking system in place, those requirements become even more challenging.

Just ask QRC Technologies, which provides cellular services to the United States government and military. Not long ago, QRC employees were tracking their time and attendance on paper – a tedious process that would not pass federal compliance standards. But today, the company uses Web TimeSheet to keep accurate records of project time and generate highly detailed reports for its clients in just minutes.

Curious how they made the transition? Read the full case study

Can you imagine processing 600 paper timesheets, by hand, one at time? Now, imagine that those 600 timesheets need to be separated into 20 different departments, each with its own varying pay rates billed to different funding sources. And, oh yeah, you have to do all this for each billing period, twice every month.

That’s the daunting task that employees faced at the Institute for Applied Behavior Analysis – before they switched to Web TimeSheet. Now, this California-based organization is saving tons of time (and money) with a paperless time-tracking system that’s making everyone’s lives easier.

Watch this video testimonial to see how IABA made the incredible transition.

The 16th century poet, John Donne, is famous for authoring the phrase “No man is an island, entire of itself.” At Replicon, we know that no software application can offer truly useful solutions if it is isolated from our clients’ other information systems. Without adequate integration capabilities, even the best software product in the world has only limited value. Manual re-entry of data and clumsy exporting/re-importing processes are the equivalent of having to load all your data onto a rickety log raft to get it off the “island” of one software application and transfer it to another. That’s no way to do business; these outdated methods are slow, inefficient, and error prone.

Move to the Mainland

That’s why we are constantly developing new ways to help our customers connect Replicon’s Time Tracking Solutions with other applications. Our latest improvement is one of the most exciting we’ve rolled out to date. RepliConnect API is available for free to all our Web TimeSheet customers.

Did we mention this powerful new tool is completely free of charge? Effective time tracking has never been this simple or affordable.

Why You Should Use RepliConnect API

This Application Programming Interface can be used to connect Web TimeSheet with ANY other software that uses an open API. Here are just a few examples of top software brands that can be integrated with Replicon’s time tracking products more easily than ever before using RepliConnect:

• Microsoft Project
• PeopleSoft
• QuickBooks
• Ceridian

Imagine automating the transfer of employee time tracking information from your timesheets to third party payroll, accounting, and benefits management applications with no more double entries or lost/missing data. Communication isn’t just one way, either. You can set up bi-directional communication to sync data in real time. This ensures that your reporting from EVERY connected system is up to date. The RepliConnect API upgrade isn’t only popular with end users. It’s a huge benefit for IT departments tasked with integrating multiple applications as well. We just made their job much simpler.

How To Get Connected

This API is already included with your timesheet software – you just have to turn it on. With SaaS customers, a quick call to our office will get the job done. For hosted versions, check the “enable” box for this tool in your System Preferences page in Web TimeSheet. For additional information, be sure to watch this short video: RepliConnect API – Web TimeSheet Integration made Easy.


Not a Replicon customer yet? Come give our time tracking solutions a test drive free of charge. You can start using our hassle-free web-based software as a service (SaaS) right away and enjoy it for the full trial period with no obligation. Of course, once you start integrating Web TimeSheet with your other applications, we know you’ll be hooked on how easy it is to manage all your data!


Which software applications will you connect next using our RepliConnect API? Let us know in the comments. Stay in touch with us on Twitter and LinkedIn to hear about what we’ve got planned for our next upgrade.

When you’re in the business of optimizing ROI for companies like Hewlett Packard and the United States Postal Service, it only makes sense to have your own operations running at optimum efficiency.

Just ask Optimization Group, a marketing analytics firm that uses Web TimeSheet to track employee time, gain better visibility into projects costs, and generate more accurate project bids for its clients. It wasn’t always that easy. Before using Web TimeSheet, Optimization Group was using Excel-based timesheets and collecting them from employees by hand and e-mail.

Check out how they made the transition to Web TimeSheet, and how it’s helped the Michigan-based company.