When you are trying to make the move from manual entry of timesheets to automatic entry of timesheets, you might find that you are overwhelmed by the sheer number of choices that are available. In order to cut through the different choices and find the one that is best for your company, you are going to need to ask yourself the following questions.

1. Is it common for employees to struggle with remembering to fill out their timesheets?

If you work in a large company, chances are good that there are going to be some people who forget to fill out and submit their timesheets on time. Your current system might require you to look through your files to see who's missing timesheets and then manually send emails to each of the people who have not yet filled out and submitted the timesheets. This process takes a lot of time and can cause the person who is in charge of payroll a lot of grief. If you work in a large company, you can easily narrow down the different timesheet software systems that are right for you by only looking at systems that offer automated notifications. For example, you only want software that will allow you to set a time that each timesheet is do by and if an employee does not submit the sheet on time, then he or she is automatically sent a notification.

If you are in a small business, then you don't necessarily need this type of reporting system because there won't be as many people forgetting their time sheets and you can instead focus on the cost of the software. 

2. Does your company need to fill out uneven chunks of time or allocate time for different projects?

If you think that your company is going to need to specify exactly how each employee spends his or her time because you are billing companies individually for the hours that are spent on their projects, then you are going to need a timesheet software that allows employees and manager to add comments to each time block. This will allow you to keep track of who is spending what time on which projects without having to have employees keep separate records for each project.

3. Are managers constantly out of the office?

Usually, managers need to approve timesheets. If you have a manager that is constantly travelling for work, then you are going to need a timesheet system that works on mobile devices as well as on laptops and computers. This will allow managers to review timesheet information and approve them from wherever they currently are. 

For more information, talk to a company that specializes in timesheet software.