How to Collaborate with Your Team on Shared Projects

Time tracking becomes even more powerful when your whole team is aligned. Timesheet's collaboration features let you create teams, share projects, manage permissions, and see your team's work in real-time.

This guide walks you through setting up team collaboration from scratch.

Note: Team features are available with Timesheet Pro.

#Understanding Teams and Roles

#What Is a Team?

A team in Timesheet is a group of users who can share projects and see each other's work (based on permissions). You might create teams for:

• Your company or department
• A client engagement
• A project group
• Different offices or locations

#Team Roles

Every team member has one of three roles:

#Creating Your First Team

#Step 1: Access Team Management

1. Log into my.timesheet.io
2. Navigate to Teams or Team Management
3. Click Create Team

#Step 2: Configure Team Details

• Team name: Something descriptive (company name, department, project)
• Description: Optional context about the team's purpose
• Settings: Default preferences for the team

#Step 3: Save and Continue

Your team is created. You're automatically the Owner.

#Inviting Team Members

#Sending Invitations

1. Open your team
2. Go to Members or Invite
3. Enter email addresses (one or multiple)
4. Select the role for each invitee
5. Send invitations

#What Invitees Receive

Invited users get an email with:

• Invitation to join your team
• Link to accept (creates account if needed)
• Your team name and their assigned role

#Pending Invitations

Track invitation status:

• Pending: Sent but not yet accepted
• Accepted: User has joined
• Expired: Invitation timed out (resend if needed)

#Setting Up Shared Projects

#Creating a Team Project

1. In your team, go to Projects
2. Click Create Project
3. Configure project details:
   • Name and description
   • Hourly rate
   • Default settings
4. Assign members who can access this project
5. Save

#Converting Personal Projects

Have an existing personal project to share?

1. Open the project settings
2. Find Team or Sharing options
3. Select the team to share with
4. Configure member access
5. Save

#Project Access Levels

For each project, you can set:

• Who can view: See time entries and reports
• Who can track: Add their own time entries
• Who can manage: Edit project settings, view all entries

#Configuring Permissions

#Member-Level Permissions

For each team member, configure:

Project access: Which projects they can see and track time on

Data visibility:

• Own data only
• All team data
• Specific project data

#Salary Visibility Settings

Control who can see rate and earnings information:

Configure this at the team level or per project.

#Why Salary Visibility Matters

• Hidden: Contractors who shouldn't see each other's rates
• Managers only: Standard business setup
• All members: Transparent team cultures

#Live Team View

See what your team is working on right now.

#Accessing Live View

1. In your team, find Live View or Team Status
2. See all currently active team members
3. View their current task and duration

#List View

Shows:

• Member name and avatar
• Current project
• Current task description
• Running duration
• Start time

#Map View

For field teams or distributed workers:

• See team members on a map
• Location updated based on their task location
• Useful for dispatch and coordination

#When to Use Live View

• Morning check-ins without meetings
• Coordinating field workers
• Understanding team capacity in real-time
• Quick status checks

#Team Reports and Analytics

#Team Statistics

View aggregated team data:

• Total team hours by period
• Hours by project
• Hours by team member
• Comparison over time

#Individual Reporting

As a manager or owner, see individual member reports:

• Their time allocation
• Project contributions
• Productivity patterns

#Export Team Data

Export team-wide data:

• All members' time entries
• Filtered by project, date range, member
• Formatted for payroll or client billing

#Best Practices for Team Onboarding

#Before Inviting

1. Set up projects first: Have team projects ready before inviting members
2. Define roles clearly: Decide who needs Manager vs. Member access
3. Configure permissions: Set appropriate visibility settings

#Onboarding New Members

1. Send invitation with clear role assignment
2. Provide context: Share which projects they'll work on
3. Quick training: Show them how to:
   • Start/stop timer
   • Select correct project
   • Add descriptions and tags
4. Set expectations: How often to track, level of detail needed

#Documentation

Create a simple team guide covering:

• Project naming conventions
• Required task descriptions
• When to use which tags
• Break and billable tracking rules

#Common Permission Mistakes

#Too Much Access

Problem: All members can see all projects and earnings Solution: Use Member role and assign specific project access

#Too Little Access

Problem: Team members can't see projects they need Solution: Review and add project assignments for each member

#Inconsistent Tracking

Problem: Some members track detailed time, others don't Solution: Document expectations and review regularly

#Manager Overwhelm

Problem: One manager handles everything Solution: Promote trusted members to Manager role for specific areas

#Troubleshooting Team Issues

#"I can't see a project"

Member needs to be assigned to the project:

1. Team owner/manager opens project
2. Adds member to project access list
3. Member refreshes their view

#"Member can't track time"

Check:

• They accepted the invitation
• They're assigned to at least one project
• They have "track time" permission on that project

#"Invitation not received"

• Check spam/junk folders
• Verify email address is correct
• Resend invitation
• Have them check they don't already have an account with different email

#"Can't see team member's time"

• Check your role (need Manager or Owner)
• Verify permission settings for that project
• Confirm member has tracked time

#Summary

Team collaboration in Timesheet enables:

• Teams: Groups with shared projects and management
• Roles: Owner, Manager, Member with different permissions
• Shared projects: Collaborative time tracking
• Permissions: Granular control over access and visibility
• Live view: Real-time team status
• Team reports: Aggregated analytics and exports

Set up your team correctly, and you'll have transparent, efficient time tracking across your entire organization.

#What's Next?

With your team set up:

• Integrate with QuickBooks for team billing
• Connect Zapier to automate team workflows
• Generate team reports for clients and management