Standard User Guide 1
Intrductin Welcme t Bill4Time! This guide is intended fr standard users f the Bill4Time system. These users will be using the basic features f Bill4Time t view clients and prjects, enter time and expenses, and run reprts. Fr System Admins, please g thrugh the Admin User Guide fr instructins n setting up yur accunt. Table f Cntents Sectin 1: The Dashbard... 3 Sectin 2: Clients and Prjects... 5 Sectin 3: Time & Expenses... 6 Sectin 4: Entering Time Entries... 7 Sectin 5: Entering Expenses... 9 Sectin 6: Reprts... 10 Sectin 7: Supprt... 11 2
Sectin 1: The Dashbard Upn lgging int Bill4time, yu are taken t the dashbard. The dashbard is the central hub fr all the functins f Bill4Time, and mst features in Bill4Time can be accessed frm the dashbard. Only functins available t each user (based n their security settings) are displayed when they lg in. Figure 1: The Dashbard 1. Tls At the tp, yu will have sme tls t chse frm. a. Click yur name at the tp t bring dwn yur ptins t view My Prfile, Users, Settings, and Lg Out. If sme f these ptins are unavailable, that means yu d nt have access t that area f the prgram. b. Click the Plus icn t bring up the ptin t add a new Client, Prject, Time Entry, Expense, Internal Time, Invice r Payment. c. Click the Questin mark icn t bring up the 2. Search The Search tlbar allws yu t search fr yur Clients and Prjects. 3. Clients Access t all client related functins t all clients, such as creating, editing, and searching fr clients. Yu als have access t manage yur cntacts. 4. Prjects Access t all prject related functins, such as creating, editing, and searching fr prjects. Nte: While we are referring t Prjects, yu may rename this term t better suit yur cmpany, such as Matter, Case, etc. Fr the purpse f this dcument, we will cntinue t use Prject. 5. Time/Expenses Access t time entry/expense screens, and basic time reprting fr yur activity. 3
6. Scheduling Fr entering and reviewing scheduled items. 7. Invicing Fr creating, viewing, and searching fr invices. 8. Reprts Fr creating assrted user/prject/ client reprts and mre. 9. Accunting Fr viewing all client balances, psting payments, and making balance adjustments. 10. Add Time Allws yu t add time fr any day/client needed. 11. Add Internal Time If turned n in yur Settings allws yu t add nn client, nn billable time fr the user signed in 12. Add Expense Allws yu t add expenses fr any day/client needed. 13. The links at the bttm f the Dashbard Access t the Settings, mbile/desktp apps, the Ideas Site, and technical supprt. The different sectins f the Dashbard can be changed fr each user wh signs int the prgram. By clicking the gear icn n yur Dashbard, yu will get a selectin f different Dashbard Widgets which yu can remve, edit, mve arund, and add. The gear icn is lcated at the far right, next t the Add Expense buttn. Figure 2 Dashbard Edit screen After clicking the gear icn, yu can chse frm the fllwing widgets: Time Entry Grid Once yu chse the client, prject, and hurs, a time entry will be created immediately. Recent Prjects Gives yu quick access t the last 10/25/50/All prjects that yu have wrked n. Clicking the + symbl t the left f the list brings up a windw t add time t the crrespnding prject. 4
Prjects by Due Date Gives yu quick access t prjects with specific due dates. Assigned/Subscribed Prjects Gives yu quick access t all prjects either assigned r subscribed t yu. Budgeted Prjects Gives yu quick access t budgeted prjects and their tracked hurs. Favrite Reprts Gives yu quick access t yur favrite reprts yu saved in the system. Tday s Time Entries Shws yu tday s entries that were made by yu. Weekly Billable Hurs Chart t shw yur billable hurs per week. Recent Time Entries Shws yu the entries that were made by yu in the past week. Tday s Schedule Shws yu yur scheduled entries fr that particular day. Weekly Billable Amunt Chart that shws the amunt f wrk yu did per week. Sectin 2: Clients and Prjects Within Bill4Time yu may have access t the Client and Prject Management in yur menu bar. This allws yu t access the client and prject lists that yu may have access t. Figure 3 Client & Prject Management 5
Sectin 3: Time & Expenses Time & Expenses is a great area fr reviewing and adding entries in the system. Once yu click Time/Expenses frm yur menu bar yu will see the screen belw: Figure 4 Time & Expenses By default this will shw yu the entries n the current day. Yu can chse any day r week t shw all entries fr that time perid. The ptins available n this page are as fllws: Chse t shw All Entries, Expense Entries, r Labr Entries Chse t shw the week f the entries Change the date f the entries shwn Quickly g frm Previus t Next week Search fr any key wrd, client, prject, etc within that date r week yu are n Add Time allws yu t add a new time entry Add Internal Time (if available) allws yu t track internal nn client entries Add Expense allws yu t add a new expense entry Enter Batch allws yu t add multiple time entries at nce (Figure 5) Figure 5 Time & Expenses 6
Sectin 4: Entering Time Entries In this sectin we will discuss hw t enter yur billable time and the fields that are available. There are many different ways t enter time int the system: By clicking the Add Time buttn frm the dashbard t enter a blank entry By using the Time Entry Grid n yur dashbard. By clicking the plus icn next t a prject listed n yur dashbard fr pening a new entry fr that client/prject By clicking the Add Time buttn frm the Wrk Histry in the prject. By clicking the blue Time/Expenses tab and clicking the Add Time buttn. By clicking the clck icn lcated at the tp right crner f the screen t add timers. Adding time nline/ffline with the Mbile, Tablet, and Desktp applicatins. Any f thse areas will create a New Billable Entry (Figure 6). See belw fr the fields available in a blank time entry. Figure 6 New Time Entry When entering time in the system, there are a few required fields t fill in. Client Start typing in the client name and the client drp dwn will appear. Prject Click the drp dwn menu t find the prject after chsing yur client. Activity Select frm this drp dwn list t describe the activity perfrmed. (This may be turned ff by yur admin which means this will nt be highlighted t chse) Private Descriptin This is a descriptin f yur wrk. It can be as lng and detailed as yu wuld like. This data will be saved in the ticket histry s yu can always refer back t it. This will NOT be fund n the invice. Labr Time Enter the amunt f time that the client shuld be billed fr wrk in tenth f an hur increments (0.5 = 30 minutes). 7
The ther fields available are all ptinal. A descriptin f each f them is as fllws: Public Descriptin This descriptin WILL appear n the client s invice. If yu leave it empty, it will autmatically be cpied frm the Private Descriptin field data. Shuld yu chse t enter infrmatin in there, the system will nt cpy frm the Private Descriptin field. Date f Wrk By default, this is filled with the current day. If yu are entering wrk dne n a different day, click n the calendar icn and chse the desired day. Start Time & End Time Chse a specific start/end time and it will calculate the labr time. These times d nt shw n invices/reprts unless certain ptins are turned n in the template r reprt. Entry Type By default, all entries are set t Hurly Wrk. They are billed accrding t the prject s billing methd. Fr a quick snap sht n hw the Entry Type will be shwn per prject, see the table t the right. Overtime This ptin allws yu t use vertime Hurly rates per user. Put a check next t Overtime, and the user s set vertime rate (stated in the User Details) is applied. This will nly shw if Allw Overtime Billing Rates is checked ff in Firm/System Settings. If the Prject s Billing Methd is. Cntingency Flat Fee One Time Flat Fee Reccurring then the New Billable Entry wuld autmatically be set t: Hurly, billable Hurly, nn billable Hurly, nn billable Prject Clsing Flat Fee Billable Uncheck this field if yu are entering time that shuld nt be billed t the client but shuld still be lgged int the system. Exclude frm Invice This ptin may nt be available fr all users. This wuld allw yu t save the entry as an internal entry fr the client s yu can run reprts but never invice the time. Travel Time If yu bill fr travel time and wuld like t track it separately frm yur labr time, yu can enter it here. Keep in mind the Billable Time is the nly amunt shwn t the client. Billable Time This is autmatically calculated based n Labr + Travel. If yu want t verride it, check the bx next t it, edit the Billable field, and enter a reasn fr the verride. Override Billable Hurs Here yu can verride yur billable hurs. Say fr example yu wrked 4 hurs but nly want t charge the client fr 2 f them. Yu can check the bx next t Override and enter in the amunt f time yu want t be billable. Once yu save the wrk entry, the entry is saved t the apprpriate prject. There are three ways t clse this entry: Save & Clse Save the entry and clse the windw. Save & New Save the entry and bring up a brand new New Billable Entry windw. Save & Duplicate Save the entry and a brand new New Billable Entry windw will cme up with the same settings yu put. This saves time by allwing yu t add multiple time entriesfr this client/prject. While in a time entry yu will als see a clck ptin t the right. By pressing play it will autmatically start a running clck while yu enter yur time. This will fill in yur labr time fr yu. Yu can als use the Multi Timer (Figure 5) at the tp right f any page when yu sign int the prgram. This will allw yu t create multiple timers running at the same time. This specific timer will never stp running until yu pause r save the timer in the system (Nte* If the cmputer shuts dwn r brwser clses it will still cntinue t run). Figure 7 Multi Timer Timers will als be available n Mbile, Tablet, and Desktp applicatins. 8
Sectin 5: Entering Expenses Expenses are any cst incurred by the firm that will be subsequently billed t a client. Entering expenses is very similar t entering billable time. There are multiple ways t add expenses in the system: By clicking the Add Expense buttn frm the dashbard t enter a blank entry By clicking the Add Expense buttn frm the prject. By clicking the blue Time/Expenses tab and clicking the Add Expense buttn. Adding expenses nline/ffline with the Mbile, Tablet, and Desktp applicatins. Figure 8: New Expense Required fields: Client Type the name f the client in the text bx r click n the icn t lcate the name. Prject Chse frm the pull dwn menu. Expense Type Chse frm the pull dwn menu Descriptin This descriptin f the expense will shw up n the client s invice. Cst This is the actual dllar cst f the expense. If there is n actual cst yu can leave this ut. (Click n the calculatr icn t use the expense calculatr when adding multiple csts.) Sell Price This is the amunt that will be billed t the client and will fill in autmatically after entering the Cst but can be changed if needed. Descriptin This descriptin f the expense will shw up n the client s invice. Other fields: Expense Date This is the date the expense was incurred. It autmatically sets t the date the expense recrd was created. Click n the calendar icn next t it t change the date. Reimburse Select this bx if yu paid fr the expense and need t be reimbursed by the firm. When yur ffice administratr runs a Reimbursable Expenses Reprt, it will shw these items. Exclude frm Invice This ptin may nt be available fr all users. This wuld allw yu t save the entry as an internal entry fr the client s yu can run reprts but never invice the time. Receipt Attachment Uplad images f any receipts r dcumentatin related t the expense. 9
2013 Sectin 6: Reprts Reprts are a great way t view and edit yur entries in specific time frames yu chse. There are a lt f reprts t chse frm and yu can als save certain filters and bkmark reprts yu run the mst ften. Once yu click n Reprts frm yur menu bar yu will see the screen belw: Figure 9: Reprts Summary reprts Client Summary Time and billable amunts, gruped and ttaled by client and sub ttaled by user. Cntractr Summary Generates a reprt fr users that are setup as cntractrs Inactivity Reprt Reprt shwing hw lng since a Prject has been wrked n Prject Summary Time and billable amunts, gruped and ttaled by Client and sub ttaled by Prject. Summary II Time and billable amunts, gruped and ttaled by Client, Prject, r User. This reprt cntains nn billable data and ttals. User Summary Time and billable amunt reprt, gruped and ttaled by user. Entry & User Activity Type Reprt shwing billable time and amunts gruped and ttaled by Activity Type. Client Prject Entries All clients and Prject time, expenses, file uplads, and nte entries. Expense Reprt Expense reprt with ptins t grup by User, Client, Prject, Expense Type, r Mnth. Internal Time Shws internal time entries gruped and ttaled by user. Mnthly Prductivity Reprt shwing billable, nn billable hurs, and the prprtin f billable hurs, gruped and ttaled by mnth and user. Optin t shw billable and nn billable hurs as well. Prject Details Reprt shwing the details f each Prject. Prject Type Reprt shwing billable time and amunts gruped and ttaled by Prject Type. Schedule Scheduled activity gruped by date r user. Time Entry Time entry reprt shwing time entry details gruped by Prject and Activity. User Efficiency Calendar based, clr cded reprt that shws billable hurs perfrmed fr each user, with ttals fr each day, week, and mnth. User Expenses with Receipts Expense reprt, gruped and ttaled by user with receipt images. User Prject Reprt Billable time reprt gruped by mnth, client, and prject. 10
2013 Accunting WIP Summary Wrk in prgress status reprt gruped and ttaled by client and prject. Anytime yu click the star next t a reprt they will shw up in yur Bkmarked reprts. T save a reprt with specific filters yu can click the Save Filters buttn at the bttm f any reprt. This is specific if yu run a reprt with certain filters ften and yu wuld like t save thse filters each time yu run it. Frm there, yu can name the reprt, chse a date rang, and write in a descriptin. Once finished, click Save. This will allw yu t have this reprt n yur Favrites tab. As sn as yu click t run the reprt it will run with the filters that were setup. Yu can have as many favrite reprts saved in the system as yu want and yu can remve them if ever needed. Frm every reprt yu will have specific filters and ptins t chse frm. Many f the filters are als multi selectable. Fr example, if yu are running the Client Summary reprt and want t run the reprt fr multiple clients yu can start typing the clients name in the bx, select the client and cntinue as yu g. Yu will see the clients listed there that yu want t run the reprt fr. Yu can als exclude certain selectins when running reprts. In the same example, if yu decide t exclude sme clients yu wuld g thrugh the same prcess, then t the right yu will see magnifying glass icn t click. It will then utline these clients in red s when yu run the reprt, they will nt be included. There will als be an ptin t run the reprts t include clsed clients and matters. Yu wuld click n the spinning clck icn t include them. Frm all reprts, yu will have the ptin t Print, create a PDF t save it t yur cmputer, as well as exprt it t excel. When exprting t excel yu can then g thrugh t remve certain data r custmize the reprts further if needed. Sectin 7: Supprt Figure 10: Save Filters Fr mre infrmatin abut using the Bill4Time sftware, cnsult the Bill4Time Supprt page at http://supprt.bill4time.cm. There yu will find many great tls: Knwledge Base Recrded Webinars Vide Tutrials PDF Manuals Yu can als search ur knwledgebase, email supprt, and chat with Supprt nline by clicking the questin mark icn at the tp f any Bill4Time page. Email ur Technical Supprt team at supprt@bill4time.cm as well and we wuld be happy t assist yu. 11