SUMMARY: How to import time into Clients & Profits.

Clients & Profits can import tab-delimited time entries exported from applications such as Microsoft Excel, Timeslip’s LapTrack, FileMaker, and even custom programs created just for tracking hours. Importing time saves you many hours over keying in time sheets one-by-one into Clients & Profits.

Importing time is an option for people who can't (for whatever reason) use Clients & Profits. Their hours can be entered using any regular spreadsheet or database program. Users don't need access to Clients & Profits, so network traffic is reduced. Also, because the user isn't accessing the database, their data-entry is much faster. However, there's a big problem with importing time: When users use another program to track their time, they aren't connected to the Clients & Profits database. So there's nothing to prevent users from entering incorrect job numbers, tasks - or the same hours twice. Also, the user's over-budget alerts aren't shown for imported time.

How should time be exported from my spreadsheet program in order to be properly imported into Clients & Profits?

Clients & Profits imports a standard tab-delimited text file to capture time sheets. Whatever program you choose, it needs to save the hours into a generic tab-delimited text file. This text file, which contains only the raw data and no column headings or calculations, is then imported into Clients & Profits as unposted time entries. Each row of information is one time sheet record.

Your spreadsheet shouldn't contain cost or billing rates. The Import Time window calculates these rates automatically based on the same formulas as regular time sheets.

How Clients & Profits import time

Each time entry is validated as it is imported. Billing rates are added automatically to imported time using the same formulas as regular time sheets. If any kind of error is found (such as an invalid job number, non-existent task, wrong initials), the entry is marked as "bad" and won't be posted. The 'bad' time entries can be edited or deleted using the Import Time window's toolbar button. These imported time entries become regular Clients & Profits Pro time sheets once they are verified and posted.

Fields that should be included in the "time" text file

The time import file is a tab-delimited text file that contains eight fields in this exact order:

1 DATE: The date of the time entry.

2 JOB NUMBER: It must match the job number in your database, letter-for-letter including any separators (e.g., hyphens).

3 TASK: It must also match the task on the job ticket in your Clients & Profits database.

4 HOURS: This is the number of hours, entered with 2 decimal places (e.g., 2.75).

5 INITIALS: This field must match the initials in your Staff file.

6 DESCRIPTION: This optional note describes the time entry, and appears on job cost reports.

7 BILLABLE: Leave this field empty. The task's billable setting on the respective job ticket in Clients & Profits now controls whether the time is imported as billable or unbillable. This works the same way as Time Cards where a user can no longer mark time as unbillable for a billable task. If you want to enter unbillable time against a billable task, then edit the imported time accordingly before posting it.

8 PERIOD: The period assigned when the time is imported. If this field is left empty, the current accounting period in the Clients & Profits preferences is entered automatically.

All time sheets should probably be imported by one person; this will help prevent the same time from being imported twice. Staff members will probably send their time sheet text file on either a floppy disk or directly via the network. BE CAREFUL NOT TO IMPORT THE SAME TEXT FILE TWICE. Each text file isn't marked as being imported, so Clients & Profits can’t prevent duplicate entries.

For more help...

You'll find step-by-step instructions for importing time entries in the Time Sheets Features section of the Clients & Profits online user guide.