Time Logging

Owned by Parth Gohil (Unlicensed)
Last updated: Nov 03, 2023 by Vishakha Pinge
3 min read

Time logging is an integral part of working remotely and is required to bring many benefits to the team and clients. Here is a more in-depth look at why we need time logging.

Time Logging Benefits

For Clients

  • Transparency / Visibility into the movement of the project. Trust is difficult to build. Clients rely on information that is readily available to establish trust with Axelerant; sharing openly what we're working on and how much we are working helps ease a client's concerns around work being done.

  • Timely availability of this information is critical, and whenever the client doesn't have to request this information, it helps alleviate doubt. Also, in most of the engagements, Axelerant needs to share the team's time logs with the client.

  • Daily time logging clarifies what we've worked on and how long to help clients understand their billing.

For Axelerant

  • If we have a daily understanding of what you're working on, we can help direct unused efforts into something valuable for you and the organization.

  • We're able to bill our clients promptly. Every client has their payment cycles, and sometimes due to a couple of days of delay from our end of collating reports, we may end up delaying the payments by several weeks or even a month. 

  • Detailed time logging will help us establish a report of where the organization is putting its efforts and thus put that momentum towards tasks and activities that will improve our efficiency and bring more value to the team.

  • Compute KPIs

  • Invoice accounts correctly per billability and utilization

  • Help us calculate billability, utilization, and profitability

  • Provide data to improve the estimation process

Time Logging Expectations

We’re improving billing efficiency by comparing ourselves to peers, starting with understanding how billability and utilization are defined in the agency industry.

Billability is how many hours your employees are working doing billable tasks, which can be billed directly to a client you already have. Utilization is "hours" you actually assign to an invoice to a client. You do not have to bill by the hour, but it still starts with figuring out how many hours a task will take and adjusting the flat fee you charge your clients accordingly. Billability should always be more than your utilization. Your goal should be 65% of all available hours are utilized, meaning your billability average should be 75%. By Drew McLellan of the Agency Management Institute

With much appreciation for Drew’s lessons, we have a clear goal that most of the hours that a delivery team member works should be directed effort or saleable.

We expect that at least 70% of each delivery team member’s hours worked are utilized as in genuinely saleable to projects AKA a 70% utilization. That means out of a typical 40-hour workweek, no fewer than 28 hours must be time well-spent. Time well-spent means that clients are satisfied with our activities by our delivery per estimates.

When you’re stuck for an extended period of time, like more than 30 minutes, ask for help via #internal-support to ensure you’re moving forward effectively.

Though the Agency Management Institute suggests 75% logging of billable matters, Axelerant expects 100% billability, as in no fewer than 40-hours logged weekly of the project- and Axelerant-based efforts or leaves. This high expectation ensures fairness for all delivery team members due to the many possible exception cases we could have otherwise.

How to Log Time

Please keep Mavenlink and Timetastic leaves updated in near-realtime so that time logging KPI computations and oversight are relevant. The Mavenlink scripts run every Sunday at midnight IST and every Thursday for Timetastic.

Reminder & Restrictions

  • Time-logging is expected to be completed as close to real-time as possible.

  • Discuss with your project manager for which projects that allow weekly time logging

  • Time-logging corrections are allowed up to 21-days after the expended efforts.

  • Because of invoicing, there is no leniency for time-logging updated after the 21-days

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