How AI-Powered Timesheets are Connecting Your World

According to a recent study we conducted in partnership with MSDynamicsWorld.com, 74% of participants report working most of their time within software applications – not surprising, since so much of our work today is technology-driven.

However, when it comes time to fill out and complete your timesheet, shouldn’t your time spent working in these applications be somehow logged in your timesheet…automatically?

This is where artificial intelligence (AI) comes into play. Imagine, if you will, a world where activities you perform in the software applications you use every day are automatically synced and tracked in your timesheet. A world where project or travel expense entries automatically and “smartly” sync up with credit card charge amounts. A world where your timesheet practically fills itself out.

How Timesheets Can Impact Work

In a recent post on MSDynamicsWorld.com, I talked about the “growing need for more intelligent time tracking applications that make the oft-maligned task of filling out a timesheet easier than ever before.” This is a real problem we hear about all too often, which is why we set out to learn about the applications employees use that could be used to populate their timesheets.

In our study, we asked about the different software applications participants use for different types of work, such as accounting, sales and marketing, development, project management, and productivity (i.e. email, collaboration, and communication). Here’s how that broke down:

• 73% use some form of Dynamics ERP software.
• 85% use some sort of Microsoft and/or Office 365 application for productivity
• 46% use Microsoft Project
• 43% use Dynamics CRM for customer service, while 42% use it for sales and marketing

In order to gather data for populating a timesheet, employees could connect these Microsoft applications to their time tracking software to populate it with data like:

• Outlook Calendar and Task entries
• Projects they’re working on in Microsoft Project
• Time spent in certain Office 365 apps
• Customer support tickets or client management in Dynamics CRM

Additionally, connecting a time tracking software solution with a financial/ERP application, such as Dynamics, allows you to quickly sync employee time data to the ERP system for more efficient and accurate project accounting, payroll, and billing.

The Future of Work is Here

Time tracking software solutions, like Journyx, are already paving the way with innovative technology that connects your world and lessens the burden of timesheet management and processing.

• By connecting Journyx with Microsoft Exchange, you get an Outlook time tracking solution that syncs calendar events and task entries straight to your timesheet.
• Integrating Journyx with Microsoft Project allows you to track project time and costs once in Journyx and sync data to both Microsoft® Project and your ERP system – keeping project budgets up-to-date.
• When you integrate Journyx with your ERP system, such as Dynamics, you can save time and impact your bottom line with faster, more accurate timesheet data – and zero manual entry.

Even more AI-powered capabilities are on that roadmap for connecting everything you do at work back to your time tracking application – so you can spend less time on your timesheet, and more time doing your job!