It’s more essential than ever to track and manage expenses properly, particularly employee time tracking. The tracking and allocation of employee time are vital to ensuring accurate paychecks and optimized productivity. To make this process easier for businesses, we have added Dimensions time tracking categories to APS’ employee time tracking software.
In our latest software release, time tracking Dimensions provide another layer of visibility into employee time allocation. With expanded options to track time by category, organizations will better understand how employees work and have access to enhanced labor reporting for better decision-making.
What are Dimensions?
Dimensions enable employers to track specific pieces of information, such as location, about an employee’s work. These time tracking categories for work allow companies to measure employee productivity more effectively. Users have the option to configure up to 10 categories, so employees can allocate their time when recorded.
For example, a company that provides graphic design services on a contract basis may wish to track employee time based on the following:
- Client (Dimension): The customer for whom the employee is designing.
- Project (Dimension Item): The specific project for the client for which the employee is designing.
- Task (Dimension Item): The specific task the employee is performing (tasks are not client-specific).
An employee who works 8 hours per day could then use the Dimensions work time tracking categories to record the following:
- What client he or she was working on,
- Which of the client's projects he or she was specifically working on, and
- What task he or she was performing for that project.
These time tracking details will allow reporting on multiple layers of data. Users can run reports to see how much time was logged for a specific client to know how much to bill. If there are different rates for each task, they can see how much time was spent on each task for complex reporting needs. Users can also view the total time per project and specific tasks. This data can be captured across all clients for staffing insights to meet growing needs related to specific tasks.
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Learn more about what you can accomplish with our Dimensions feature today!
Benefits of Using Categories for Time Tracking
Dimensions allow businesses to customize their reports around employee time tracking to capture critical metrics. They drive visibility into areas of the organization that matter most for more informed decision-making. Time tracking Dimensions give employers access to more detailed reporting, employee performance data, and the profitability of specific services and tasks.
Detailed Reporting
Adding Dimensions time tracking to your current employee time and location tracking process allows employers to see specific details related to every tracked item in the APS system. There are a few ways to view Dimensions time tracking information in our reporting solution:
- Assigned Dimensions Report: This report is available in APS’ Report Manager and can be used to view time tracking Dimensions assigned to employees.
- Hours and Earnings Report: This is a customizable report available in APS’ Report Builder and contains Dimensions time tracking reporting options and filters. Users can choose which categories to include when running this report for a more granular view of how employees’ hours and earnings are allocated. This transparency ensures hours are allocated correctly for billing and post-payroll purposes.
- Attendance Report: This is another customizable report available in APS’ Report Builder with the option to include dimensional data. Users can run this report for more visibility into how much time employees are allocating to each Dimension category. This report is beneficial for providing employee time allocation details prior to payroll processing.
Employee Performance Data
Another benefit of using time tracking Dimensions is for gathering employee performance data. Employers can see who is spending too much or too little time on specific projects and tasks. By utilizing project time tracking categories, businesses can view employee productivity metrics and make adjustments as needed.
Dimensions time tracking can be configured for specific categories, such as employee job site time tracking or employee project time tracking, to ensure data is captured based on a company’s particular needs. With a more proactive approach to employee productivity monitoring, organizations can better control labor spending and ensure clients are billed for actual hours worked.
Profitability of Specific Services
Employers can use Dimensions for expanded insight into the profitability of specific services. Users can tie their Dimensional time tracking data to their General Ledger through APS’ reports and GL setup. By leveraging Dimensions time tracking information with accounting data, organizations can better determine the return on investment on a specific project or department. Businesses can see which services and tasks generate the most profit or even have the best profit margins.
In contrast, companies can use Dimensions time tracking data to identify other business trends, like items or employees that are more costly. This type of information provides an opportunity to make adjustments to project workflows and staff duties to time is allocated to ensure success.
Time Tracking Metrics Included in Dimensions Update
Users can access a variety of time tracking metrics depending on the Dimensions and Dimension items configuration. The flexibility of time tracking Dimensions allows users to create categories that meet their organization’s needs. This approach means that businesses have better control over time allocation and labor expenses.
Users can create and define relationships between Dimension time tracking categories and Dimension items. Dimension items can include:
- Specific locations, like branches, cities, or regions
- Different customers and vendors
- Defined tasks within a project
This flexibility is beneficial in that users can create a hierarchy for their Dimension time tracking as needed. Let’s take a look at some examples of Dimensions time tracking metrics and how the hierarchical organization of categories and items works:
Location
A user can create a Dimension time tracking category for Location and then create and define Dimension items under that category for all of their locations by city. Users can then either assign all or specific Dimensions for time tracking to their employees. Staff can then allocate their hours worked to their designated location when recording time.
Another example of tacking time allocation by location would be if an employee worked at a specific location one day and then filled in for a colleague at another location the following day. The employee would allocate their time worked to the Dimension time tracking category of Location and then choose the appropriate Dimension item for the specific location. Recording this type of time allocation data gives employers insight into how many hours are being worked at each location to manage schedules more efficiently.
Department
Users can create a Dimension time tracking category for Department and then create and define Dimension items under that category for all the departments in their organization. Employees can be assigned to all departments or specific ones, depending on the need.
For example, a nurse may work in one department of a hospital for one week and then float to another department to fill in the following week. The nurse would allocate their time to the appropriate department item for each week, ensuring they are paid accurately for their hours worked.
Customer/Vendor
Users can create a Dimensions time tracking category for Customer or Vendor, and then the individual customers or vendors can be created as Dimensions items. This configuration is beneficial for users who provide services to clients or track the time a vendor spends on a project.
For example, a company that provides graphic design services needs to track the hours its designers spend on client projects. The Dimensions time tracking category would be Customer, and the Dimensions items would be the clients’ names. The graphic designer would choose the specific client when allocating their time to that customer’s project.
Project and Item/Task
Create time tracking Dimensions categories for projects and Dimensions items for related tasks. Setting up this relationship helps track time spent on projects and tasks within those specific projects.
For example, a graphic design company needs to track client projects and any tasks related to those projects. The Dimensions time tracking category would be Project, and the Dimensions items would be the associated tasks. Employee time is allocated to the project, and any related tasks worked on as part of that project to ensure proper billing of hours worked.
Contract
Contracts are another type of Dimensions category users can create for employee time allocation. For example, a company may have independent contractors they use for specific jobs. They can use the Contract Dimensions category for on the job time tracking and allocation. Although the contractor is not an employee of the company, the employer can track time for any work they perform.
Dimensions categories and items are available to use for mobile employee time tracking with APS time clocks, timesheets, and our tablet app. With APS Mobile, our employee time tracking app, staff can allocate their time accurately, no matter where they are working.
How to Create New Dimensions
Users can create and define relationships between time tracking Dimensions, Dimension items, and their assigned values in the system. Payroll admins can add up to 10 time tracking Dimensions categories.
From there, users can add Dimensional items specific to time tracking to establish a hierarchical organization for time allocation.
Once Dimensions for time tracking and items have been created, they can then be assigned to employees to ensure proper time allocation. If using our Attendance solution, time tracking Dimensions assigned to employees are visible:
- To the employee when clocking in (or entering time via timesheets)
- To payroll admins and managers when editing time cards
- When processing a payroll batch
- In various reports in the Report Manager and Report Builder
Time tracking Dimensions are enabled individually, and any related Dimensions items selected when enabled. If using our Attendance solution, assignments are visible:
- To the employee when clocking in (or entering time via timesheets)
- To the employee when viewing their timecards
- To payroll admins and managers when editing time cards
Allocate wages for salary employees to time tracking Dimensions as well. Dimensions will appear when editing Percent Allocation information, and Dimensions time tracking categories have been assigned to the employee. They can be used to determine the allocation of the employee salary. Once applied, this information will be utilized when allocating the employee’s salary within the payroll batch.
APS’ Dimensions provide another layer of visibility into employee hours when used with our time tracking and payroll software. This update to our time tracking solution allows employers to dive deeper into labor reporting for proactive business insights.
What if I'm Already Using Dimensions Via Sage Intacct
If you’re already using Dimensions via Sage Intacct, you may still use APS Dimensions for time tracking. APS time tracking Dimensions can be used in conjunction with our Sage Intacct integration, and any Dimensions tracked in Sage Intacct. APS’ time tracking Dimensions are wholly contained within our HR time tracking software. However, APS Dimensions can be synced to Sage Intacct for businesses using our integration.
