The Problem

How can time be recorded more accurately and help freelancers better understand their worth?

This issue first became apparent to me from years of working at agencies that required me to submit timesheets on a regular basis. Every month become a mad scramble fueled by threats of having internet access turned off because the monthly timesheet police were on the prowl.

Figuring out where my time had gone for the past month (or more) was a joke. I'd trawl through calendars assuming what was recorded in there actually happened, and for the lengths of time stated. I'd use those meetings to assume that related work happened afterward as well. And when there were gaps to be filled I would...well fill them, with anything I could imagine and I knew would likely fit the project plans and my allocation. The result was wildly inaccurate timesheets which meant wildly inaccurate billing to clients, and no real ability to effectively assess my level of effort to undertake similar tasks.

The Solution

Rather than relying on long term memory, ask people what they've just done, frequently.

With this simple concept in mind, the foundation of a super simple time tracker was conceived that would rely more on persistent nudging to log recent activity and, as a result, would tap into the users short term memory (which is far more accurate to recall) and quickly store that activity. The user can then set and forget with no concerns of the timesheet police beating on their desk asking for them to fill in timesheets. The app simply stores all that logged activity giving the user an accurate reference of what they did.

Over time we recognized that this simple solution has deepening uses when we consider the ever-growing freelance and remote workforce. Now the time is more directly relatable to the mighty dollar. And so the product has evolved to include more data and tracking related to financial progress with accumulated hours resulting in an earnings estimate when hourly rates are applied.

★★★★★

"I’ve experimented with several apps over the years. I’ve used spreadsheets. This app is the cat’s pajamas."

– Actual user review in the App Store

Get it now

Agency:
Finlabs

Year:
2020

My Role:
Concept, Strategy, UX, UI Design

Collaborators:
Niko Rehnbäck (Mobile Development & Concepting)

Who did these?

I am David Papworth, a long time creative wanderer that has been lucky enough to stretch my legs on some exciting projects and brands. Having worked in the agency world for a long time, I am now on a journey of creating my own one with Finlabs. This site showcases some examples of design work. I stress that design, as visuals, are less than half the story behind much of the work I do, but a very visible skill in my back pocket that I can showcase. To get to the meat and potatoes of my projects takes a story of research, discovery, experimentation, and refinement that isn't best presented online. I'd do them a disservice by trying to cram in the details but if something interests you and you want to hear more let, drop me a line.