All posts by chris.vandersluis

timecontrol

TimeControl named Most Reliable Timesheet Solution Provider

Silicon Review Magazine has awarded TimeControl it’s Most Reliable Timesheet Solution Provider Award.  The magazine listed HMS Software, publishers of TimeControl as the top listing of their 2025 finalists.

We are delighted at TimeControl’s recognition and think of it as a testament to the TimeControl Team and our partnership with so many of our customers.

Along with the award, the magazine featured an interview with our President, Chris Vandersluis which can be found here.

You can download a PDF of the article, by clicking download.

timecontrol

HMS and Birdview PSA form strategic alliance.

Birdview, Birdview PSA, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisWe are very excited to announce a new Strategic Alliance between HMS Software and Birdview PSA.  Birdview is a Canadian-based project management software publisher and the Birdview and HMS teams have committed to creating a new link between TimeControl and Birdview in the upcoming release of TimeControl.

The link between TimeControl and Birdview would see the project, task, resource and assignment information transfer from Birdview into TimeControl and then the timesheet hours and estimate to complete transfer from TimeControl into Birdview.

Both technical teams have already engaged in the work.

Aside from another link with a global project management software supplier, there is an additional bonus in having both HMS and Birdview be Canadian suppliers, making an all-Canadian solution for our existing and prospective clients.

You can read the full press release on the Alliance here. To find out more about Birdview, go to birdviewpsa.com.

For more information on this link, contact HMS at TimeControl.com/contact.

timecontrol

TimeControl welcomes new dealer for Spain and Turkey

PRM Yazilim, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisHMS is delighted to announced the appointment of PRM Yazilim as a TimeControl Dealer for the countries of Turkey and Spain.  PRM joins a large network of TimeControl strategic, alliance and reseller partners around the world, making the technical reach of TimeControl more global.

“I’m very excited by the addition of PRM Yazilim to our TimeControl Dealer Network,” explains Chris Vandersluis, President of HMS Software.  “As a company with strategic project management experience spanning decades, we are already highly aligned on our technical background and prospective clients.”

PRM operates as an Oracle Primavera P6 Specialized Partner and providing a full range of Oracle Construction and Engineering offerings, training and consulting services.

“We possess a vast experience in the fields of project controls, scheduling and risk management,” says Nihat Yıldırı, General Manager of PRM.  “Our team can really make a difference when customers are looking for ways to transform their project processes. We are here to work with business partners who need someone who understands their business and pains. We have represented Primavera project management solutions in Turkey since 2003”

TimeControl will add to PRM’s extensive representation of supply and deployiment of project and portfolio management solutions.

“Including TimeControl in the products we offer is a natural extension of what we already do,” explains Yildiri. “TimeControl’s link to the Primavera project management solutions is already established and has been in existence for decades.  We believe that we can extend what we already do with our clients and prospective clients who need Primavera to include TimeControl’s multi-purpose and auditable timesheet system in a win for everyone.”

Adding TimeControl to Primavera for PRM will bring to their clients and prospective clients extra functionality and process ability including Crew timesheets, Material, Equipment and Production realization to Field Data Collection, Unlimited Rate Codes and management and much more.  PRM expects to offer TimeControl, TimeControl Online, TimeControl Industrial and TimeControl Industrial Online as well as TimeControl’s free mobile app for Android and Apple devices.

Information on PRM can be found at https://www.prmyazilim.com/en/ or contact HMS at https://www.timecontrol.com/contact for more details.

 

We PRM, representing Primavera project management solutions in Turkey since 2003, has vast experience in all project oriented industries and continues to work with several companies for addressing project management needs. Since 2009 when Primavera Systems acquired by Oracle, we are operating as an Oracle Primavera P6 Specialized Partner and providing full range of Oracle Construction and Engineering offerings, training and consulting services.

timecontrol

More customizing of the TimeControl timesheet

Timesheet Header Fields, TimeControl, Timesheet flexibility, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisWe talk often in here about how to configure or customize the views and interface of TimeControl. One area that is rarely discussed is how to add User Defined fields to the Timesheet header.
Timesheet Header fields are distinct from timesheet line User Defined fields.

When a timesheet is created, TimeControl creates a Header which includes the Employee ID, the start and end dates of the timesheet, the user name of who created the timesheet and the timesheet status. It also then creates timesheet lines which contain the user id of who created or last edited that line along with the project, charge code and rate code and then timesheet details with the information per day of what hours were spent.

Clients who customize their configuration of TimeControl often includes adding additional fields to each timesheet line but what about for the entire timesheet? That’s done at the Header level.

TimeControl comes with 10 Timesheet Header user-defined fields already created. They can be seen in the System Preferences module under the timesheet tab. We always default those 10 fields to invisible in User Profiles field security so you’ve probably never even noticed them. These fields can be renamed in the Manage Languages module then activated in the User Profiles for any users who need to see them. Also in User Profiles is a flag to Show Timesheet Header fields. Once the fields are defined and that flag is turned on for that particular User Profile, a new button will appear in the timesheet called “Fields”.

Presto – new user defined fields at the Timesheet header level.

The field values can be typed in or can be linked to a drop down list in the Manage External Links module.

Flexibility has been one of the key elements that has made TimeControl so successful across so many different industries. User

Defined fields is only one part of that success.
For more information on TimeControl flexibility, see TimeControl.com/features/flexibility.

timecontrol

Supporting a hybrid workforce

TimeControl supporting a hybrid workforce, Timesheet, hybrid timesheet, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisFor so many in the technical world, working remotely or in a hybrid environment has become commonplace.  Many of our staff work on a hybrid schedule here at HMS.  TimeControl is ideal for supporting this.

The flexibility of TimeControl allows almost any kind of data to be attached to or configured right into the timesheet interface.   For example, some of our clients require knowing where work was accomplished.  Was this work done from home or from our office?  Other clients need to know how many days an employee worked at the office and what days those were.

This is easily accomplished in TimeControl through timesheet user defined fields.  We can enter a new column for “work/home”  then give TimeControl only certain options such as “home” or “work” to allow a drop down list.  The list can be as long as you wish.  Alternately it could be left open so people could type in a location.

TimeControl hybrid support with home / work column

Once the data is collected, then reporting on it, filtering it or looking for discrepancies is as easy as can be.  The field doesn’t even need to be filled in by everyone.  You can hide such a field using TimeControl’s user profiles so it only appears for certain departments where the data is relevant.

Also, like all other timesheet data.  This type of field can be used for creating validation rules so you can make the field mandatory or create warning message for people out of compliance for your own internal hybrid practices.

If you are using TimeControl Online or TimeControl Industrial Online, our Software as a Service subscription in the cloud, then you already know your employees can access TimeControl from anywhere in the world either on the web or via our free TimeControl Mobile app.  If you are using an on-premise TimeControl then all you have to do is ensure that TimeControl is outward facing so it can be accessed while out of the office.

Flexibility allows TimeControl to be many things.

Supporting a hybrid workforce is just one.

 

timecontrol

Microsoft partner relationship now enjoys its 30th anniversary

Microsoft Planner, TimeControl 8.6.1, Microsoft Partner Network, TimeControl, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisIt started in 1995.  HMS had published its very first version of TimeControl in 1994 and was determined to add Microsoft Project as a new integration in the version 2 launch in 1995.  The link up between the companies was getting a slow start until a chance encounter between Chris Vandersluis, President of HMS and Frank Clegg, then the President of Microsoft Canada (he is now the CEO of Canadians for Safe Technology).  The two men found themselves sitting next to each other on a flight from Toronto and Montreal and before the flight had landed, Frank had promised to make sure that the right Microsoft people connected with HMS.

That chance encounter paid three decades of dividends for both companies.  TimeControl did launch its version 2 that year with the link to Microsoft Project and a link to the Microsoft Project family of products has continued uninterrupted ever since.

HMS became a Gold Certified Partner at Microsoft and continues to be in the Microsoft Partner program to this day.

With changes this year in the Microsoft Project lineup, HMS is making adjustments to keep up.

Microsoft Project on the Web was retired earlier this year and as a result, we’ve removed it as a possible link within TimeControl.  Microsoft Project Online will be retired in September 2026 and our link to Project Online will continue until it is fully decommissioned.  Microsoft has recommended that Project Online clients shift to either Microsoft Planner or Project Server on-premise.  TimeControl already includes integrations with Project Server.  We were one of the first companies in the world to link to it in any software category.

What about Microsoft Planner?

We are announcing here for the first time that TimeControl 8.6.1 which is due out before year’s end will include an integration with Microsoft Planner.  We will talk more about the link when we start shipping the new version.

Thirty years and counting.  This long term technical relationship is one of the oldest in the software industry and shows no signs of slowing down.

For more information on the many ways TimeControl leverages Microsoft Technology, see the TimeControl Microsoft Portal or just contact a TimeControl professional.

timecontrol

Online training is an often forgotten resource

TimeCoOnline Training, TimeControl, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter Vandersluisntrol’s website is a treasure trove of useful tools for any TimeControl user.

The Online training section, for example, shows numerous short (5 mins or so) lessons on different aspects of TimeControl.  We add to this regularly.  This week we added a lesson on TimeControl’s Alternate User functionality.  We have a blog post on this called What happens when someone isn’t here? but the online lesson shows the configuration and result of the function in operation.  for the 4 minutes it takes to see, a lot of time can be saved  by the end user.

Other

timecontrol

The Timesheet Audit with TimeControl

Timesheet Auditability, TimeControl, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisFor many organizations, there comes a time when the data in your timesheet becomes the subject of an audit.  There can be many reasons for this.  Perhaps there is a research and development tax claim and the government auditor wishes to reconcile the time you have recorded in timesheets against the task-by-task descriptions in the claim. Perhaps your organization is a publicly traded company and undergoing verification for Sarbanes-Oxley compliance.  Perhaps there is a need to reconcile and validate the time taken by each employee for sick leave, vacation or personal time against the Human Resources department records.  Or, perhaps it’s just a validation of collected timesheets for some other internal process.  Whatever the reason, TimeControl was designed to support the auditing of its records.

TimeControl Administrators never fear a timesheet audit!

When something is woven into the architecture, we rarely think about it.  Auditing isn’t a “feature” or “function” of TimeControl.  There’s no Audit button.  The manner of collecting and verifying data has been thought about since the earliest days of TimeControl’s existence decades ago.  It is a part of everything in the product.

We take care to ensure the timesheet data is auditable in so many ways.  Once data is posted, for example, it can only be changed through our adjustment or Debit/Credit functionality which tracks who made the change, what change was made and exactly the date and time of the change.  We also track who approved a timesheet and when and the path of that timesheet from draft to released to rejected (if it was) to released again and finally to posted.  We track the work of Alternate Users to ensure that the audit trail isn’t obscured by someone doing timesheet data changes on behalf of someone else.  We also make sure that the data that is going into the timesheet is coming from lists of employees and charges that have been validated and tracked by design with referential integrity.

We have had many praises from both internal and government auditors for how effectively TimeControl gives them what they need to accurately report what happened with timesheet data.

You can find out more on the TimeControl Auditability story in the TimeControl Auditability white paper on the TimeControl website or, feel free to contact the TimeControl team to discuss your interest in timesheet auditability.

 

microsoft project server

Project Online will go Offline

Project Online screen, TimeControl and Project Online, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisIt’s true.  You may have seen social media or come across blog posts about the future of Microsoft Project Online.  Here at HMS we have known for some time that the days of Project Online were surely numbered through a variety of contacts at Microsoft.  The time has finally come with an official announcement from Microsoft about the end of Project Online.  As of today, you are no longer able to buy a new instance of Project Online.  HMS has been around Project Server and the translation of Project Server into its SaaS equivalent since its inception.  And that’s all about to change.

Let’s get some of the facts straight here and then talk about the impact on TimeControl.

Here are some key dates:

September 5, 2025: Microsoft announces the end-of-life of Project Online for the end of September 2026.

October 1, 2025: End of new sales of Project Online

April 1, 2026, New tenants will no longer be able to be created in Project Online

July 14, 2026: Project Server 2016 and Project Server 2019 shift to “extended support” mode.  Microsoft recommends shifting to Project Server Subscription Edition

September 30, 2026: Official end of Project Online.  There will be no more access to Project Online after this date.  This includes access to any data that has been saved in Project Online.  It is essential that clients remove or back up their data in other sources prior to this date.

Dec 31, 2031:  Microsoft has committed to support Project Server Subscription edition until at least this date.

What does this mean for you?

First, if you are using Project Online now, you need to start making plans to no longer be using the product by September 2026.  You have a year to decide on your destination system and to remove your data from Project Online.  Once September 30, 2026 comes, you will not be able to log into Project Online even to retrieve your data.

What are your options?
You have a couple of big decisions to make

The first is whether to stay with Microsoft for your project management needs at all.  If you do, you have several possible paths:

  1. Migrate your Project Online projects to Project Desktop. These products have no projected end of life at the moment and are widely expected to continue to be available for the foreseeable future.
  2. Migrate your Project Online projects to Planner / Planner Premium. These products are not designed to be an enterprise project management system to replace Project Online.  Their functionality will no doubt expand but no one in Microsoft is saying that the ultimate goal is to make a product similar in scope to Project Online.  You will have to look at what Planner can offer you and how that meets how you are using Project Online now.  This will probably work for some clients.
  3. Migrate your Project Online projects to Project Server on-premise. In some ways this sounds like the simplest solution but you have some things to consider here:
    • First of all, you are moving from a SaaS environment back to on-premise where you are responsible for the hardware, the installation, monitoring security and stability as well as any upgrades. The Project Server environment includes both Project Server and SharePoint.
    • Project Server 2016 and 2019 will go off of main support and into “extended support” this coming July. Moving to those two products will leave you with little help from Microsoft moving forward.
    • You can elect to migrate to Project Server on-premise Subscription edition. Microsoft will even help create a backup of your database that could be used to populate Project Server.  If you make this migration, there will be some things you are used to that won’t be supported.  This includes the old PSI in Project Servers 2016 and 2019 has been replaced with code more like the Project Online CSOM code for integrations and if you have been using OData calls to get reporting data, that will no longer be supported.  And, of course you will be responsible for the upkeep of an on-premise solution.

If you elect not to stay with Microsoft there are numerous project management vendors who will be vying for your business in the year to come.

What about TimeControl?

Here at HMS we take pains to be project management technology agnostic.  We have so many technology alliance partners that it’s impossible for us to promote one solution over another.  For clients who elect to stay with a Microsoft project management solution, we know that our links with Project Server on-premise are already well established and our links to Project Desktop started all the way back in 1995.

For TimeControl clients who are thinking of non-Microsoft options, we keep an updated list of possible combination solutions on the TimeControl website in the Use-Case Solutions area.

The Solutions area will be updated as we bring new possible products into the mix as we expect to do with our next TimeControl release expected by Christmas.  We will quietly remove products that no longer exist or for which there is no ongoing ability for TimeControl to link.  So, expect a number of changes to this area this year.

It is reasonably common for us to face a change of project management system with a client who wants to maintain TimeControl but not maintain their current scheduling system so we are able to help discuss your options with you.

The information in this blog post will be uploaded to the Project Online sections of the TimeControl website and, as more data and more options become available we will make sure that information stays updated.

As always, if you have questions or concerns about using TimeControl with any of the possible project management systems either from Microsoft or other vendors we work with, please talk to our staff at TimeControl.com/contact.

timecontrol

Timesheet Creation

TimeControl best practices, timesheet time saver, Chris Vandersluis, Christopher Vandersluis, Christopher Peter VandersluisSo many options in TimeControl are designed to simplify the data entry process.  Timesheet Creation is just one.

For timesheet administrators, the depth of functionality in TimeControl including its remarkable flexibility is a huge draw.  That’s not the same for end-users.  End-users typically view having to enter their timesheet as a necessary evil.  They’d avoid it if they could but if they have to do it, they’d like the process to be as quick and easy as possible.

That’s one of the reasons we created the Timesheet Creation function.  In its first few versions, TimeControl would ask users to create their next timesheet and then, depending on the options selected by the TimeControl Administrator and the end user, the timesheet would be pre-loaded with lines that were expected for that week.

Timesheet Creation allows the TimeControl Administrator to create the timesheets for end-users in advance.  This means, when they enter the system at the beginning of their week (or whatever their timesheet period is), the timesheet is already there, already pre-loaded with expected tasks and ready to be entered.

Not every organization wants to work that way but for many, it’s a small time-saver that pays dividends in a couple of ways.  First, everyone’s timesheet is created at the same time with the same options and that helps with consistency and a uniform user experience.  Next, if the end-users select the timesheet-entry screen to be their home-screen, what appears when they log into TimeControl is their current week’s timesheet, already created, already pre-populated with all the expected tasks already loaded.  This can serve to lower the resistance to doing the timesheet at all and can promote entering the timesheet quickly.  Finally, having the timesheet already created eliminates one possible step and one possible end-user error point.  The Administrators can create multiple timesheets in advance or even in the past if that is required.  The configuration of how many periods can be created is controlled in TimeControl’s System Preferences.  The Timesheet Creation also doesn’t need to be applied universally.  It can be constrained for certain groups or certain locations as the Administrator decides.

Of course, the end-user may have other tasks they did this week that were unanticipated.  Almost everyone does something in their week that wasn’t in the plan on Monday morning.  TimeControl will always allow users to add to the timesheet from any possible charge codes that are available to that user.

The savings of the Timesheet Creation function is perhaps only 30 to 60 seconds.   But think about that this way.  If you have 1,000 users, that 1,000 minutes a week that’s saved.  52 weeks a year means 52,000 minutes.  That’s a half a person-year in savings.  And that’s just from one possible feature in TimeControl.

We often talk about best-practices for both organizations and individuals using TimeControl.  You can find webcasts, papers and presentations on the subject in the Timesheet Best Practices section of our website at: www.timecontrol.com/resources/best-practices.