Revised time clock: Even more precise timekeeping

The problem thus far: Time corrections

Our timekeeping clocks have always been able to let you precisely record your working time down to the exact second. However, we were not totally satisfied with one detail of the timekeeping process: time corrections directly in the clock - that is, the corrections that you make directly to the duration period while the clock is running.

So far, the exact start and stop time has been stored for times taken with the clock, as well as information such as "corrected by 12 minutes". In such a correction, the corresponding duration period no longer corresponded exactly to the time interval between the start and the end of the time entry.

This could be a hindrance, though, for example for customer invoicing or evaluating exact employee working times. Since corrections are quite frequent in day-to-day operations, we have reconsidered the correcting function of the clock: changes to the working time are made for a valid reason, after all, and the clock should behave according to your purpose as much as possible. The new reactions of the clock to your changes are shown in the following:

How the clock now reacts to the corrections

Reducing the duration period: Breaks or transferring times to other projects

When you reduce the duration period while the clock is running, you would have to have determined that you recently had incorrect recordings. Either you were not at your work station - for example because you had taken a short smoking break - or you temporarily worked on another task but did not record this change of tasks in the clock. For that reason, the new clock now asks you whether a break should be inserted for the duration of the time that has been deducted, or whether the time should be allocated to another task.

Regardless of which option you select, the end time of the currently running time entry will be moved forward as a result. This means that you can record exact times during this correction, too. If you decide that the time you have deducted should be allocated to another task, you only have to select the task to which you want to allocate the working time - using the familiar functions. If, for example, you have originally reduced the duration by 5 minutes, the start of the new entry will be moved 5 minutes into the past. An additional benefit: "Time clocked" applies to the time entry to which the time has been allocated even after these changes, because your clock has been running continuously.

Increasing the duration period: Moving the clock’s starting time forward

If you increase the duration while the clock is running, you must have been working on the task longer than recorded. In this case, we move the starting time of the entry forward. However, there may be overlaps with prior entries that were most likely unintended. This causes the clock to ask whether you want to eliminate the overlap. Depending on whether there was a break between the previous entry and the currently running entry, the clock will now ask you to either:

• adjust the currently running entry so that it follows the previous entry consecutively,
• or move the end time of the previous entry forward.

If possible, we also get the „time clocked precisely“ information here.

Exact traceability

So now, the start and end times of time entries can be shifted. This does not mean, however, that you can no longer trace in what time intervals your clock or your employees’ clocks have actually been running. The following shows an example of how we present the information about the time entry:

Scenario: The time entry was clocked precisely from 10:05 to 10:15 and the duration period was increased by 5 minutes in the clock.

Result:

• Start time: 10:00
• Stop time: 10:15
• Duration: 15:00

Displayed information: „Time clocked and corrected by 00:15 h (Clock initially started at 10:05)"

You will see that on the whole, traceability is even better now: up to now, many users have had to edit the start and end times appropriately when the duration period was corrected. Through all of these revisions, the „time clocked precisely" information was lost. With the new clock functions, however, this information is retained when precisely recorded duration periods are shifted from one time entry to another.

Prospect

 

In the near future, clockodo will also display your breaks in your time entry lists. Here, too, you will benefit from the more accurate recording of start and end times.

Desktop client and apps

There will soon be updates for all desktop clients and apps. The first updates will already be available in October.

Update 27 October 2016: The new apps for iOS and MacOS can now be downloaded in the App Store

Update 28 October 2016: The new version 3.0.1 of the Windows Client can now be downloaded.