Consistent, Accurate and Meaningful Data

The importance of data accuracy:

Manual entry time sheets have evolved over the past 100 years from bits of paper, to ledgers and journals,  to excel spreadsheets, and finally the latest fad, to web based time sheet entry. However, despite the change in format over the years, one of the principle reasons time sheets still do not work is because they are inaccurate and are inconsistent. 

Here's why:

Most people that fill out a time sheet, do so either at the end of the day or even the end of the week. This simple fact means that what's entered into a manual entry time sheet is based on the fallibility of the individual's memory. Put simply, it is most unlikely that you or your staff will not remember and record the events of the day, as and when they happened in real-time.

Time sheets, by their very nature, use what's called 'Permissive Timing'. That is to say, the work is done first, and then it's up the person completing the time sheet to remember just how much time was used to complete the job. It's both difficult and impractical to get staff to record time allocated to brief telephone, coworker interruptions, tea breaks and any of the thousand and one other office distractions.

Some organisations operate using what's called Segmented Time Slots which requires their staff complete a manual time sheet at set periods of time throughout the day. Accuracy will improve (marginally), but at what cost? In each 8 hour day, there are 24 quarter hour slots, and if takes just 1 minute to open, complete and close the time sheet software, then expect to spend at least 30 minutes a day manually collecting time. That's 2.5 hours less a week spent on company work proper!

MetriQ® however is the only automated time capture software that employs Pre-emptive time tracking. In fact we invented it. Preemptive time tracking means that time capture begins the moment you or your staff begin work, and continues until they stop that work, or change to a different task or activity. With MetriQ, data accuracy is to the nearest second and staff no longer have to use their memory to remember what they were doing, on what and for whom. It's an important difference, one that could save your business many thousands of dollars a week. It's also worth remembering that with MetriQ, there are in fact, there are no time sheets for your staff to complete!

Increased accuracy means your time data is more useful! For the first time you will be able to see what tasks suck your time, see how long you've been using various software products, and get a rich and detailed picture of just how much you and your staff are spending doing company work, all in in real-time. No time sheet software can offer this level of data accuracy and sophistication.

[back]

"Accuracy is the twin brother of honesty; inaccuracy, of dishonesty."
Nathanial Hawthorne