Introduction


The 4.6 release of WealthWorks+ includes a new timesheet feature replacing the Troika Time & Billing, Manual Time Entry menu option.


The new timesheet feature includes:

  • Definable period length, time units and working patterns.
  • Record time by either placing records on a calendar or adding them to a list view.
  • A new ‘Quick WIP’ option to pre-record repetitive activities.
  • Saved timesheet templates make posting users timesheets quick and easy.
  • An approval process allowing managers to track, approve and reject timesheets for all their user.
  • Timesheet analysis showing the proportion of chargeable and non-chargeable work being recorded.


All approved timesheets are posted to the existing WIP records already displayed and reported on in WealthWorks+. Billing the approved timesheet Work in Progress remains in the Troika system until a future release date. The Troika Time rates are not used in WealthWorks+, and a new rate management feature has been provided.


To start using the timesheets, there are four set-up steps within the System Administration pages of WealthWorks+ to be followed.


It’s recommended that a system administrator completes the setup of the timesheet rates, settings and permissions before users attempt to start time recording. Alternatively, a user with the SUPERVISOR role or the following permissions for their assigned role are required to fully configure the timesheets.

  • Options > System Administrator > Time, Fees & Billing.  Enable View and Edit permissions.
  • Options > System Administrator > Rate Maintenance.  Enable View, Add, Edit and Delete permissions.


A timesheet start date is provided to control when users timesheets are required from and this should be the date to which you switch from Troika time entry to WealthWorks+ timesheets.


The timesheet setup steps are listed below and should be completed in sequence: -

  1. System Administration – Time, Fees & Billing
  2. System Administration – Users
  3. System Administration – Roles & Permissions
  4. System Administration – Rate Maintenance


Step 1.  System Administration - Time, Fees & Billing


Follow the instructions below, or see our video tutorial here.


Work in Progress Display


Review the following settings from the System Admin, Time, Fees & Billing tab ensuring the display of Work in Progress is configured correctly. These settings only reflect how approved WIP is presented and alongside WIP posted in Troika from disbursements, fixed and raised bills.


Time Fees & Billing Reporting Currency

  • Group Time & Billing Details by Fund/Project
  • Hide Zero Value Invoices
  • Include Archived WIP in Billed Recoverability
  • Include Non-chargeable WIP in Billed Recoverability


Timesheets


Next, review the following settings to control how timesheets will be managed within your organisation. Next, review the following settings to control how timesheets will be managed within your organisation. Some of the settings cannot be changed once time recording has commenced.

  • Time unit. Set how long each time unit is in minutes. 6 minutes is a common option.
  • Timesheet Entry Start. Set the date you wish the system overall to start recording timesheets from. Users accounts also have a timesheet start and end date. Timesheets for a user cannot be before this date.
  • Timesheet Periods. Select from Daily, Weekly, Fortnightly, Four weekly or a calendar month.
  • Advanced Periods. Enter how many of the above selected periods can be posted in advance of the current period. The user will be able to scroll ahead to these periods and post entries in advance such as holidays and known activities.
  • Week Start Day. Select the day of the week all users start their timesheet on.
  • Timesheet Lock Period. Enter how many minutes a users timesheet should be locked for if they remain inactive. This is so an approver can gain access to a staff members timesheet.
  • Approval Rejection Notifications. Select this option to receive notifications when a timesheet is approved or rejected. This feature also redirects users at login to failed timesheets.


Step 2.  System Administration - Users


Step 2 needs to be completed for each user who will be required to complete timesheets. Following the instructions below, or see our tutorial here.


Edit Working Week


From the Users' tab in the System Administration pages, select the user row Actions button and Edit Working Week. Edit the working patterns in hours for each user by entering the number of hours the user works on each day of the week.


Edit User - Timesheet tab


From the Users’ tab in the System Administration pages, select the user row Actions button and Edit. Weekly Working Hours. This is calculated based on the working week edited in the previous step.

  • Default Chargeable Activity. Select the default activity to display when entering timesheets for this user.
  • Hide Rates. Select this option to hide the activity rate and currency from the user when they post their timesheet.
  • Override Rates. Select this option to allow this user to override the rate selected.
  • Time Sheet Entry Start. Enter the date the user should start recording timesheets from.
  • Time Sheet Entry End. Leave this field empty if the user should record timesheets for the foreseeable future. Enter the end date when timesheet recording should end.
  • Approvers. Select users who can approve timesheets for this user.
  • Approvees. Select users who this user can approve timesheets on behalf of.
  • Billing Entity. Select a Billing Entity to record against WIP records that the user posts. This WIP can be filtered for when raising a bill for an entity.
  • Cannot amend WIP values. Select this option if the user should be prevented from editing unbilled WIP transactions once they approved and posted from a timesheet.


Step 3.  System Administration - Roles & Permissions


Edit Permissions


Each user needs to be assigned a role with Time, Fees and Billing permissions to be able to use the timesheets. From the System Administration page, Roles & Permissions tab, edit each role and assign the following permissions:

  • Time, Fees & Billing > Timesheets > Timesheet Approval.  Enable View if the role is approving timesheets.
  • Time, Fees & Billing > Timesheets > Timesheet Entry. Enable View, Add, Edit and Delete if the role allows users to record timesheets.
  • Time, Fees & Billing > Work in Progress Search > WIP Transactions. Enable View if the role can search posted Work in Progress transactions once approved.


Step 4.  System Administration - Rate Maintenance


From the rate maintenance section of System Administration there are 3 tabs; Timesheet Activities, Default Rates and User Rates. Timesheet activities need to be created before rates can be added for each activity.


Timesheet Activities


Select the timesheet activities tab and add record using the plus button. Create activities for each timesheet entry to be recorded against.

  • Name. Enter a descriptive name for the activity.
  • Reference. Enter a code or reference for the activity. This might be a reference to your own internal systems.
  • Rate Type. Select either chargeable or non-chargeable time. Both can be billed to an entity, although by default non-chargeable time isn’t. Alternatively, select Office time for activities that can’t be attributed to an entity such as holiday, sickness and training.
  • Default VAT. Select a default VAT rate for this activity. This VAT rate will be applied to this activity when billed but can be overridden at the billing stage. Select none if the VAT rate is determined by entity raising the bill. VAT will be only calculated where the entity is flagged with the property 'Calculate VAT on Activities'.
  • Chart of Accounts and Nominal Account. Select a chart of accounts first and then a nominal account code. This account will be posted to when raising a bill where the debtor ledgers of the billing entity are being maintained in the system. Select none if the activity should not create a posting in the debtor nominal ledgers.


Default Rates and User Rates


When configuring the rates for each activity, there are two types of rate; the default rates (which can be created for a combination of reporting level, entity, project and activity) and user rates. 


You must create at least one default rate for a chargeable activity and office time.


The user rates take precedence over default rates where two with matching rate structures have been specified.

 

More specific rates are chosen in preference to less specific rates (i.e. a rate with a entity, project and activity matched will be used in preference to a rate with just entity and project specified). This last rule holds even if the less specific rate was defined in the user rates.

 

The ordering when arriving at a rate for each timesheet posting is as follows:

  • Entity, Project and Activity
  • Entity and Project
  • Entity and Activity
  • Entity
  • Activity

 

Any default rates set with a reporting level will take precedence over those without a reporting level, but only if the user's reporting level matches the value in default rates exactly. Therefore, the system does not take into accounts any default rates that do no match the users own reporting level.


A tutorial video to assist you in managing your time and billing rates can be found here.


How to post and approve timesheets


See our tutorial here for guidance and training on posting timesheets to a calendar or grid, and here for guidance and training on approving timesheets.


These notes are applicable from WealthWorks+ release 4.6.