How Time Tracking Boosts Productivity for Teams and Beyond

Filling timesheets sounds like a boring, administrative task that employees hate and managers have trouble implementing. 

Why is it so crucial though? 

We know a lot about time tracking and productivity: and we want to show you the benefits of tracking work hours daily. Continue reading to know more!

7 Benefits of Time Tracking for Companies:

• Forces to focus /single task 
• Keeps people accountable 

• Provides data and insigths 
• Makes sure time is valued and paid correctly  
• Keeps people organized 
• Less time wasted 
• Accurate future estimates

#1 Forces people to focus and single-task. 

Multitasking is a myth. 

We know that by now thanks to several studies – it’s actually really hard for our brains to effectively multitask. Our IQ literally drops when we attempt to do one thing at a time. 

Most of what is commonly defined as multitasking is actually task switching, but that’s not effective either. 

Instead, tracking time forces you to focus on the task at hand.  

#2 Keeps people accountable 

Accountability is a tricky word. 

Nobody likes their work ethics and integrity questioned. 

However, a company culture that is built on transparency will value the fact that everybody in the organization tracks their time. 

By having an account of what people have been working on, everybody stays on the same page and knows which problem or task should be addressed next. 

This only works if everybody in the organization is on board, employees and managers alike. 

#3 Provides data and insigths  

A tracked record of how the projects took, how much budget you used over a timeframe, and how much effort a certain task or phase took – all of this is crucial data you can get from time tracking. 

Once you’ve gathered all the data, you can use it to find time and costs sinks, and understand if your business is productive and profitable. 

Instead of guesstimating, you have the numbers available to make informed business decisions. 

#4 Make sure time is valued and paid correctly  

Time is money, as the old saying goes. The time and work you do for your clients must be compensated fairly. 

There are many activities you do for your clients that often go untracked – and unpaid. 

Now, if you decide to give some freebies or discounts to your clients, that’s totally up to you. 

But all the work you’re not billing even (if it’s not your intention to skip it) can and should be tracked. With a time tracking tool, you can account for all those activities that slip through the cracks. 

#5 Keeps people organized 

It goes without saying: if you know how and where you spend your time, you can optimize it. 

If you know what occupies your days, you can keep a more organized schedule. 

You shouldn’t go to work and wonder “Who is working on what now?”. If the team tracks their time as part of the daily workflow, this information will be readily available. 

And, don’t forget you’re own productivity! Managing and checking multiple projects and teams can be difficult if your schedule is all over the place. Tracking time is crucial for managers, too.  

#6 Less time wasted 

And if you optimize your time, do you know what happens? You waste less time! 

I don’t think it’s necessary to explain why wasting less time is a good thing, but here are just a few benefits: deadlines are met, budgets are respected, projects are concluded smoothly, clients are happy, and employees don’t overwork to make up for a lost time, the work day finished on time, work-life balance improves… I think I’ve made my point here. 

#7 Accurate future estimates 

Last but not least, by analyzing how much time a certain project or task took, you can make better estimates for the future. 

You can quote projects more accurately and fairly for your clients, and make sure the final project is profitable. 

All this boils down to the data we were talking about earlier – a goldmine that is provided by the time tracking software you’ll use 

When time flies: stats on wasted time in Companies

• According to McKinsey, the average worker spends an estimated 28% of the workweek managing e-mail alone and nearly 20 percent looking for internal information or tracking down colleagues who can help with specific tasks.
• In the US alone, the average office employee spends over five hours each week sitting in meetings and over four hours preparing for them. That’s more than an entire working day devoted to meetings. Managers fare even worse, logging an average of 12 to 14 hours a week in meetings. Most of this time in unaccounted for and thus considered “unproductive”.
• According to a global 2019 survey quoted by Projectmanagement.com, only 30% of organizations deliver projects on time, and only 36% deliver projects within budget.

All of these problems can be solved with proper organization and a proper time tracking tool.

Conclusion

Tracking time should be part of a company’s daily workflow. When work hours are registered, the company benefits in terms of productivity, efficacy, and business intelligence. So don’t hesitate and get started with a time tracking tool today!