7pace Timetracker: A Quick Overview Follow

7pace Timetracker is an extension that allows software teams to manage their time directly in Microsoft® Team Foundation Server (TFS) and Visual Studio® Team Services (VSTS) without ever having to leave their environment. 7pace Timetracker extends the capabilities of Team Foundation Server beyond the management of work items (WORK), source control (CODE), continuous integration (BUILD), and quality assurance (TEST), to include TIME.

Timetracker for VSTS is cloud-based and seamlessly integrates with your Visual Studio Team Services organization, while the on-premise Timetracker for TFS version is fully integrated with Team Foundation Server. Both versions consist of a web server interface that provides robust options to add, edit, import, export, approve, and manage the time of both individual team members and the whole team. Timetracker for VSTS and TFS also offer a downloadable Windows Client that can be installed on your local system, allowing you to select a work item ID and then track time spent on that particular work item via a start/stop watch-style interface.

In Timetracker 4.0, time tracking moves to the server and a Web Client is available from within the web access of VSTS/TFS that allows you to start tracking right from any work item, without any additional action required. You can use multiple desktops, run the Windows Client everywhere or just open the browser; you will see a synced time interface that you can control from wherever you are.

Timetracker has its own permission management, is fully customizable, and will work with even the most complex work item template (WIT). 

Below, we will highlight the various benefits of using Timetracker for both developers and managers. 

Development Team

Designed with you, the developer, in mind, Timetracker exists within the same environment in which you work, allowing you to quickly and easily enter and track time directly on work items. No more complex or time-consuming external time-logging! This integration between work done and time tracked lets you know exactly how much time you are spending on your work items, leading to better estimation, and more efficient time management. The entire development team can see team members' individual pace, remaining time, and decreasing burndown.

You can add and edit time from various locations within Team Services and/or the Timetracker extension, including tracking time directly on a work item within the "Work" tab of the TFS web app; utilizing the keyboard-optimized "Timesheet" tab for capturing the work week at a glance; manually entering, editing or submitting weekly time on the simple, visually-appealing "Monthly" tab, or log and track time on-the-fly with the fully-integrated Web Client (only available in Timetracker 4.0) and/or the downloadable Windows Client. Both clients list all work items assigned to the team; you simply select the work item, click start, and the client captures the time you spend working on that item without you having to give it a second thought. Both the Windows Client and Web Client work together or on their own to accurately track your time. You can also track time on non-TFS work items and can even import time logged in Excel into Timetracker on the "Times Explorer" page.

Project Managers

The ease with which development team members can enter and track time on work items right within their own work environment with the integrated Timetracker tool results in exceptionally accurate, real-time data quality that is invaluable to you, the project manager. The high quality of instantaneous data closes the gap on uncertainty and error and results in Timetracker-driven burndown and built-in reporting functionality that is powerful and insightful. Timetracker's integrated reports provides you with important details on the health of each software iteration or sprint, such as how much time the team has spent on each work item, which team members completed which task(s), the current burndown rate, and if things are progressing on-time and on-budget. In addition to approving time for your team members on the "Approval" tab, you can also close or lock weeks for future time entry or editing.

There are many options for you, as a manager, to transport data-generated knowledge to your team, fellow managers or customers. A custom budgets component can be connected to iterations, releases, features, work items, and to single-time recordings. The "Budgets" tab of Timetracker acts as a powerful analytic and reporting tool, provides you with a completely transparent, real-time view of where work efforts flow, and assists you in billing your clients. On the "Times Explorer" tab, you can preview records before assigning them to budgets; select, filter, and group columns to suit your needs, and add, edit, import and export (from Excel) individual or batch time records. The REST accessible Reporting API, based on OAuth and OData, supports analytics tools like PowerBI and permits integration with systems like Project Server. WYSIWYG and rich data export provides managers with Excel-based data for additional processing.

For more information on 7pace Timetracker, please visit https://www.7pace.com/timetracker.