Category Archives: TimeControlOnline

The TimeControl Evolve program

The TimeControl Evolve program enables TimeControl on-premise clients to easily migrate to TimeControl Online

The TimeControl Evolve is designed to enable TimeControl on-premise clients to migrate to TimeControl Online, the TimeControl Software as a Service subscription in the Cloud.  The evolve program is an inexpensive and effective way to move your TimeControl system into the cloud.

TimeControl on-premise has been marketed since 1994 (yes, that’s right, 28 years!) so there are a lot of on-premise clients out there.  Even though more sales these days are for our subscription Cloud service, TimeControl on-premise is still sold and supported and will be for the foreseeable future.

But that leaves a lot of on-premise clients who are interested in migrating from an on-premise timesheet system to the SaaS equivalent.

There are many advantages to migrating to a TimeControl Online subscription:

  1. First, all maintenance of TimeControl is handled by HMS. We do all the server, database, malware prevention and application upgrades for you.
  2. TimeControl Online is upgraded automatically by HMS. You will no longer have to be concerned about upgrades.  HMS takes care of all updates, upgrades and new version installation centrally on the TimeControl Online servers.
  3. Continuous monitoring is handled for you. TimeControl Online is monitored 24x7x365.  We are looking at the system continuously and are proud of our 99.9%+ uptime since the service was first launched in 2011.
  4. TimeControl Online and TimeControl on-premise are the same code. That means that all functionality that you know and love in TimeControl on-premise is already in TimeControl Online.
  5. Data backups and disaster recovery is already included. TimeControl Online is backed up daily and you can even download your own database backup in case you want to be sure to have control over it.  Disaster recovery is layered to handle issues of different scales and types.
  6. TimeControl Online is highly secure. We follow the OWASP standards for testing and our data is housed by Amazon Web Services in highly secure facilities.

The TimeControl Evolve program will let you migrate your TimeControl on-premise licenses to the cloud and we won’t charge the subscription until your current support contract expires.  Yes, that’s correct.  No subscription cost for the entire remainder of your already active support contract.  If you just updated your technical support today, then that’s a whole year of TimeControl Online for free.

Free.

When you sign up for the Evolve program we will assist you in migrating your data to TimeControl Online.  If you haven’t upgraded your TimeControl on-premise to the most current version, then you can optionally have us help do the upgrades to ensure that the data you have will immediately migrate to the online version.  We can also advise you on maintaining or enhancing your links to external systems such as project management tools, ERPs and more.

Everyone’s situation is different.  If you’d like to talk to one of our Account specialists about whether the TimeControl Evolve program is right for you, contact us at: https://www.timecontrol.com/contact or email us at info@hms.ca.

 

Getting back to the office in person and hybrid work

In some areas of the planet, people are slowly being called back to the workplace to do in-person work.  In other areas staff are still working from home virtually.  For those areas where in-person work is starting, a new type of work environment has evolved that has been termed a hybrid workplace where people will work in the office for some part of their week, work virtually for some part of their week and perhaps even have flexible schedules for some part of their week.  This kind of environment would have been considered quite radical only 18 months ago but not so much today.

Many organizations shifted their on-premise corporate systems such as timesheets to a more online environment when the pandemic first ordered shutdowns.  Other organizations made longer term plans for shifting to cloud-based software as a service but on a slower, more managed pace.  Here at HMS we have been busy since March of 2020 working extensively with both new and existing clients on shifting on-premise timesheet systems to our own TimeControl Online subscription service in the cloud.  That work continues.

As workers start to shift to on-premise work, there will be a natural blend of some people doing some work in the office, some people doing some work from home, some people doing all work from home.  Not everyone will shift simultaneously even within one organization.

There are other complications to getting everyone back to work as well.  During this time, some organizations have extended their offshore working teams.  After, all, if we’re all virtual anyway, what difference does it make if someone is at home down the road or at home on the other side of the world?  Now, as some workers shift back to on-premise work, these new offshore workers will have to be blended into shifting HR policies.

All of this may feel very disruptive to people as the routines they and their families have gotten used to are changed.

One thing that has been a stable force for the TimeControl Online clients is knowing that no matter where you are located, accessing your timesheet to report the work you’ve accomplished and, to report your presence or absence is a given.  The TimeControl Online subscription service in the cloud can be accessed from anywhere there is Internet via a web browser or a mobile device (Android or iOS).

We expect in the coming weeks that many of our clients will use TimeControl’s flexibility to add a field to the timesheet asking the employee to record where they were for the line item listed.  Did that work occur at the office, at home or, elsewhere?  It’s a change that takes only minutes and it will give the organization insight into where people are when they’re getting their jobs done.

Here at HMS we’re still all working remotely and will be for the next few months at least.  But, once we’re able to gather in person again, we’ll almost certainly start to do so in a phased-in approach with a blended at home/at work policy.  We’ll let you know, right here on the blog, when that happens.

For more information on TimeControlOnline, visit: https://www.timecontrol.com/features/timecontrol-online.

 

We’ve updated TimeControl Online!

The TimeControl Online Software as a Service subscription system delivers all that TimeControl has to offer but in a subscription model.

When each new feature is created in TimeControl, we consider how it will function in both the on-premises version and in TimeControl Online.  With the recent release of TimeControl version 7.2 for both on-premises installation and online subscription, this is quite clear.

TimeControl 7.2 includes two major new functions and a host of updated functions.  The two new areas of functionality are support for the TimeControl Mobile App and the TimeControl API.

The TimeControl Mobile App is a free downloadable App that is available on the Apple App Store for iOS devices, and on Google Play for Android devices.  It connects to the user’s TimeControl instance to allow the user to create, edit, or even approve timesheets from their mobile device.

The TimeControl API is a programmable interface that extends TimeControl’s already extensive flexibility and integrateability even further.

Both these features are active in TimeControl Online in the cloud right now.

The online TimeControl service provides all the functionality loved by the on-premise version. The code that is deployed for both situations is identical.

More and more clients are looking to services in the cloud to extend their corporate IT functionality.  When subscribing to TimeControl Online, clients avoid having to purchase or configure hardware, networking, databases or worry about security, monitoring or anything other than simply using the timesheet software. HMS Software’s technical team handles the rest.

HMS has recently updated its pricing policies for TimeControl Online.  For those who are using TimeControl on premise and are interested in switching to TimeControl Online, they can speak to their TimeControl representative at info@hms.ca and ask about transfer credits towards their first year’s subscription.

For more information on TimeControl Online, visit timecontrol.net.

Project Imports with TimeControl 6.8

With the update to TimeControl 6.8 for both on premises and on line users, the internal links to project management tools have been rewritten to be much more effective.  In particular, we’ve updated some links to use Guaranteed Unique Identifiers (GUIDs) when they are available.  This allows us to be much more precise about what task to send data back to and to do that transfer much more quickly. 
We were already using GUIDs in several links that we wrote more recently but we’ve been able to update a number of PM import and export links now to follow the same architecture.
In order to make sure this works properly for you, you should do an import of any open project prior to posting data to it immediately following the upgrade to 6.8 (this is true also for TimeControlOnline users).  This is a best practice anyway so you are likely doing this already but if you make sure you do a PM Import of any open projects that may have been using older identification methods, TimeControl will happily transfer them to GUIDs in the background without any further intervention.
Please contact TimeControl technical support at support@hms.ca if you have any questions.

HMS has released TimeControl 6.4

HMS has just released TimeControl version 6.4 for new and existing clients. This version extends on the long-standing success of the TimeControl timesheet system with another new wave of enhanced and new functionality. Since its initial release in 1994, TimeControl has been one of the most recognized timesheet systems for organizations who need a single timesheet interface to fulfill the multiple requirements of payroll, human resources, project management and finance.

Enhancements in this version include the following:

All new Project Manager Validation!
We’ve completely redesigned the way that Project Manager Validation works in TimeControl 6.4. pmvalidationThe all-new multi-browser, multi-device interface allows project managers to highly individual line items that they approve or reject and TimeControl can now be configured to only transfer to a project management the approved items. This extension of TimeControl’s remarkable Matrix Approval Process for Labor actuals will make life even easier for project managers and organizational managers alike!

Not only can this view be used for approvals but project managers can move directly from the PM Validation view to do an adjustment on any timesheet line that they have rights to adjust and do the adjustment instantly. Plus Project Managers can update the ETC (Estimate to Complete) right on the screen before sending the data over to a project management system like Microsoft Project, Project Server, Primavera or Open Plan.

Direct Link to SharePoint task items
We’ve had integration with SharePoint almost since its release to the market but now TimeControl goes even further with a new ability to automatically load charge items from SharePoint task or project task lists just like we do with project management tools like Microsoft Project and Primavera.

My Assignments view
We’ve added an all new view in the MyAccounts area that lets users see what tasks they’ve been assigned to right from their own screen. myassignmentsIt allows users to look forward in TimeControl to what’s coming their way. Not only can users see this view, they can report on it or save it as an Excel or PDF file.

Expense Dialog view
Entering expenses in your TimeControl timesheet have gotten even easier as we’ve now created a new Expense dialog view that shows expenses in a form as well as a grid.

Cross-tab reports
We’ve created some brand new report types that we think will be super popular with both the accounting and project personnel. Cross tab reports let you put financial periods (Quarters, months, Weeks) as columns at the top of the report and projects and tasks as rows. It’s just the thing to show trends in labor being spent over time in any category that interests you.

Grouping by financial period
Aside from the all new cross-tab reports, we’ve made other reporting improvements. While you’ve always been able to sort and select along a financial period, it’s been harder to do sub-totals and grouping in reports by year, quarter and month.
Not anymore
TimeControl 6.4 adds date categorization fields to every line item including all historical data to allow you to do grouping and sub-totaling of any TimeControl report by these financial periods.

Improvements in TimeControlMobile
We’ve been busy with TimeControlMobile also. The updates in TimeControlMobile 6.4 includes the ability to update your (ETC) Estimate to Complete right on your smartphone. We’ve also added support for user defined fields on the timesheet. We’ve taken the opportunity to reorganize some of the data on the mobile screens so it is easier to view and update on your iPhone, Blackberry, Android or Windows Mobile 7 devices.

And lots, lots more…
There’s so much more that just won’t fit into our announcement. We’re confident that both existing and new users will love this new version.

TimeControl 6.4 is available immediately. TimeControl customers with existing current support contracts can download the new version from the Support/Updates area of the TimeControl website at no charge. TimeControlOnline customers will be notified in advance before we update our online Timesheet as a Service environment.

For more information about TimeControl, monitor the TimeControl blog at blog.timecontrol.org, the TimeControl website at www.timecontrol.com. For information about TimeControlOnline, our hosted timesheet subscription service in the cloud, go to www.timecontrol.net.
For any other questions contact HMS Software at info@hmssoftware.ca.

TimeControl now available as a hosted service with TimeControlOnline

TimeControl is open for business in the cloud with TimeControlOnline! We are delighted to announce the availability of our Timesheet as a Service (TaaS) hosted subscription. This new service brings all the power, flexibility and ease of use of one of the world’s most popular timesheets to a hosted subscription model. TimeControl_InTheCloud

TimeControlOnline culminates a development initiative that began in 2007 and lets clients who are interested in a hosted timesheet service start with TimeControl instantly.

The new hosted service brings a remarkable set of TimeControl features and benefits to the online subscription model. TimeControl and TimeControlOnline include functionality for time and attendance, time and billing, project-tracking, linking to project management tools, vacation approvals and even a mobile interface all in the same package. And, with TimeControlOnline, there is no hardware to purchase, nothing to install, nothing to maintain and nothing else to purchase. Everything is included in one competitive subscription price.

TimeControlOnline Features include:
Multi-browser/Multi-lingual interface
TimeControlOnline’s interface is designed to be easy to use. We know that end-users will spend only a few minutes a week entering their timesheet so the interface must be both simple and intuitive. TimeControlOnline is multi-browser compatible and multi-lingual.
TimeControlMobile Smartphone interface
TimeControlOnline now includes a mobile interface designed for smartphones like the iPhone, Blackberry as well as Android and Windows 7 Mobile devices.
Vacation approvals with TimeRequest
TimeRequest is TimeControl’s vacation approval system. It is a simple easy-to-use screen to enter requests to take time off in the future and once approved, the time will automatically appear in the appropriate future timesheet.
Matrix timesheet approvals
TimeControl has an extensive approvals system including automated validation rules, multiple levels of approvals and individualized approval paths. The unique Matrix Approval Process for Labor Actuals was designed to allow both work-based approvals and organization-based approvals to occur at the same time.
Email notifications for missing timesheets
On Monday morning the hardest thing about timesheets can be finding them. TimeControlOnline makes this easy with automatic scheduled email notifications.
Links to Project Management
TimeControl supports more project management links than any other timesheet on the market. Whether you use Microsoft Project or Project Server, Oracle’s Primavera or Deltek’s Open Plan or Cobra, TimeControl can help create an integrated Enterprise Project Management environment.
Government compliance
TimeControl enables organizations to comply with many different government standards including the DCAA, R&D tax credits, the FMLA, California Wage Laws, the European Time Directives and Sarbanes Oxley.

Pricing for TimeControlOnline starts at a highly-competitive $12/month/user with a minimum of 10 users. Discounts are available for volume subscriptions. Prospective clients can request pricing for their particular configuration at www.timecontrol.net/contact/pricing.  TimeControlOnline is available immediately. Additional information and pricing can be found at www.timecontrol.net.