Chasing timesheets every week? Let’s fix that

If you’re here, you’re sighing at the mere thought of sending timesheet reminders yet again. 

And I get you. Filling in manual timesheets is tedious enough, but it’s even more frustrating for you as a leader to force your team into completing them.

This timesheet chase is terribly annoying – it steals your joy of coming up with innovative strategies or growing as a professional, and it’s also expensive.

This needs to stop. Really, we’re in 2025… with AI on the rise and smart-everything, you can’t afford to waste time on another “Reminder – please submit your timesheet.”

Why did you end up chasing timesheets?

More often than not, you’re assuming the problem lies in a lack of motivation or discipline. Look, I get your frustrations, but those assumptions are…not quite right. You need to understand that chasing timesheets is a symptom of outdated processes, not lazy employees – they’re not to blame.

In reality, most employees want to do their jobs well. The problem is when inefficient, confusing, and time-consuming tools or processes make time tracking a challenge. 

Here are some of the most common reasons why your team resists filling in timesheets:

❌ Timesheets are simply repetitive and uninspiring

Seriously, with AI tools making work the easiest it’s ever been, and shiny social channels out there, are you really expecting your team to fill out timesheets?

These are boring, and they’re perceived as yet another admin burden.  

❌ Employees don’t see the point of a timesheet

To be invested, your team needs to understand how sheets connect to project success, client billing, AND THEIR OWN paychecks. Otherwise, it’s no wonder the task feels meaningless and timesheets end up at the bottom of their priority lists.

❌ Timesheets are clunky

If your timesheet system is clunky, slow, or only works in Excel sheets, you only add friction to an already unpopular task. A poor user experience, confusing interfaces, or endless dropdowns – all these make it hard for your team to comply, even if they want to.

❌ Employees don’t trust the process

In some employees’ eyes, timesheets are a symbol of micromanagement. If your culture feels like “big brother is watching,” timesheets are seen as surveillance rather than support, so resistance grows.

So, why would they fill in those timesheets if they don’t feel comfortable? I wouldn’t either.

When you add it all up, it’s clear that the real problem isn’t motivation or a lack of effort. It’s a systemic problem made up of outdated tools, unclear communication, and a lack of trust. To solve this, address these root causes, not just chase the symptoms.

• Recommended read: Top quotes on being on time

What are the ripple effects of chasing timesheets?

Chasing timesheets becomes more than a minor annoyance. It’s the first domino in a chain reaction that quietly undermines your business on many fronts. The moment you or your admin team start sending those weekly reminders, the true cost begins to rise. It’s far more than just wasted time.

Let’s gain some clarity on this – here are the dominoes: 

1. Lost productivity and wasted hours

Let’s state the obvious: every minute spent chasing, correcting, and compiling timesheets is a minute diverted from real value-adding work. Consider this: the damage compounds quickly when each team member wastes 10 minutes daily on the manual timesheet. In a small 5-person team, that’s over 215 hours annually disappearing into admin black holes.

To make things more visual, you’re evaporating an entire month of full-time work.

❗That’s before factoring in the time you need to track down missing entries and fix errors, which can add another 100 lost hours. 

2. Missing billable hours and revenue leakage

Inaccurate or delayed timesheets mean missed or underreported billable hours. If each person underreports just 20 minutes a day, that’s 833 billable hours lost annually for a 10-person team. For $100/hour per billable hour, you’re losing $83,300.

These “small” gaps add up shockingly fast, and directly impact your bottom line and erode your project’s profitability.

3. Payroll delays and legal risks

By slowing down payroll, you’re hitting employee morale hard and exposing your business to legal penalties. A what seemed a last-minute timesheet scramble can seriously violate labor laws and worker agreements.

In some industries, such as construction, healthcare, or janitorial services, one missed payday can result in fines, back pay disputes, or legal actions.

4. Project delays and resource misallocation

When data tracked by your team is unreliable and delayed, you’re unable to forecast anything with accuracy, but just guesstimate. You end up guesstimating project timelines and allocating resources based on your gut. 

The effects of gut-made decisions? Derailed project schedules, cost overruns, and overworked or underutilized teams. 

5. Erosion of your workplace culture

Employee disengagement costs you millions. McKinsey research revealed that worker attrition and disengagement cost S&P 500 companies about $282 million annually. Honest employees want to feel trusted, have autonomy in their own jobs, and not feel pressured. By chasing them, you get the opposite of productivity.

Concluding, chasing timesheets costs you millions. It drains productivity and chips away at the culture you’re trying to build. The longer you let it go, the bigger the ripples, and the higher your costs.

The fix: Automatic timesheets

Modern automatic timesheet apps quietly eliminate this chase and the risks you’re exposing yourself to. 

Why do automatic apps crush manual timesheets?

✅ They work silently in the background

No more nagging your team. With automatic time tracking included, your team will have their timesheets captured without any effort. All that, while they focus on real work.

✅ One-click time logging 

Your team can confirm their hours with a single tap, not endless form-filling.

✅ Their calendar becomes their timesheet 

A smart time tracker pulls data from calendars, project tools, and computer activity and creates ready-to-approve timesheets.📍Are you on a client call? That will be automatically pulled into your timesheet. Are you working inside a tool or on a specific document? That will also be reflected in the timesheet. 

Here’s proof of timesheets in EARLY – the time tracking software that doesn’t make you and your team want to cry:

✅ AI does the heavy lifting 

Time trackers like EARLY use AI to suggest time entries in your team’s timesheet- this reduces timesheet errors to a great degree. 😉

✅ Works everywhere your team does 

Timehseet apps are available across mobile and desktop. Your team can update their timesheets in under a minute from coffee shops, client sites, or their couch. No excuses.

✅ Proven ROI that you’ll love 

Due to the automation, you’re cutting down on admin overhead, and you can increase your ROI. Here’s proof:  

Worried about switching to automatic timesheets?

Are you worried that setting up the new tool takes ages and your team won’t adopt it, or worse, won’t even use it?

As I’ve been using EARLY as my go-to time tracker, I’ll teach you all about it and how easy it is to build it into your processes:

1. It has a lightning-fast setup: EARLY gets your team up and running in minutes, not weeks. Connect your calendars, project tools, and work apps once, then watch the magic happen.
2. It has a zero learning curve: If your team can use a calendar and a smartphone, they can use EARLY. Its intuitive interface eliminates training headaches. Plus, your team doesn’t need to do anything, but do their work, which will be turned into timesheets automatically. 
3. It brings real results within your first week: While other apps take months to bring value, users report seeing tangible improvements in just a few days. You won’t need to waste time. Also, you can use its 30-day free trial for zero risk or commitment. Here’s proof:

“EARLY has allowed us to work more efficiently. Thanks to the insights, we have been able to make a lot of changes to the IT structure to work more efficiently. This has saved each team member around two hours per week, which is 10 hours gained in total across the team, each week.” Noah Ruseng Bested, Bang & Olufsen

So, what could your team accomplish with 10 extra hours every week?

Ready to reclaim those wasted hours?

See firsthand how EARLY eliminates timesheet headaches without adding new ones. Book a demo with our team – No credit card required, no commitment, no risk.

Book your demo

The real question: Can you afford NOT to switch?

Every week you delay switching from manual timesheets is another week of chasing your team, losing billable hours, and watching valuable work time vanish into admin. black holes and feeling that sinking Friday dread when timesheets are due.

I’ll leave you with a comparison between regular timesheets and automated timesheet apps, and you can make your informed decision: