Offline time tracking

There are times when employees are doing lots of work, but not exactly on their computers. So how do you track that? As an employer, it's essential to know how your team members spend their time at work. Offline time gives you the insight you need to see the bigger picture. This way, you see how your team members manage their time, and make necessary adjustments if necessary.

When on virtual work calls or video meetings, people don't usually constantly touch the computer. It’s not that they're not working – it’s just that the nature of the work doesn't require computer activity. That can result in a sort of “barcode” effect on your DeskTime productivity bar, with tiny little slivers of inactive/idle time. You don't have to click on every single one of them and fill them in manually – that would be a waste of time. Instead, you can integrate your calendar with DeskTime. The event that was scheduled in your calendar will then fill up all of the little empty slivers of time. You can find this option by going to your DeskTime account, then clicking Settings → Integrations, and activating the calendar app you use.

A good way to keep track of your time when you're away from the computer is using DeskTime's mobile time tracking app as an offline time tracker. You can add productive time spent on work-related activities or fill in offline time from the mobile app at any time. At the top of the My DeskTime page, you will see the 'Assign time' option. Opening it will reveal a page where you can see all the idle time periods from your timeline for the day. Optionally, you can also add this time period to a project/task with the 'Choose project' option. You can even track the time spent in meetings, brainstorms, or any other events using the offline time tracking feature. When you’re on work-related activities and offline, the app will note this time period. Later you can manually input and mark the time of your absence as productive so no minute would be lost from your day.

The offline time tracking feature allows employees to record why they've been away for a while. Just like the Absence calendar, this helps to avoid the “where-you’ve-been” and “what-you’ve-been-up-to” questions from the management. It also builds a bond of trust among the team, as they don’t have to explain every little break they’re taking. No more unnecessary questions asked.

Simply put, it's a way to still be accountable for your work even if sitting in front of a computer screen isn't your cup of tea. Creative teams use this function when they're off brainstorming ideas, contemplating new solutions, or simply soaking up information and inspiration. It's all part of the creative process and doesn't necessarily require anything else other than a pen and paper.