Time Entry List View or Custom Time Entry Report

Customised time entry list views allow you go choose what information you want to see about your time entries.

Create and mange list views of the time that your users have recorded. Show details about each time record and the matter that it is lined to. You can also see set the view to show different information about how each time entry is billed.

To create your Task List view go to - Admin - Custom List Views - and click on "Time Entry List Views" or the "Manage button" to the right of custom list views. 

Then click on the green "Create New List" button

We then need to set-up our list. 

We need to enter the following information:-

List Name - A name for the list we are creating 

Description - A description of what information is held in the list - it is good practice to detail here exactly what your list contains, for example "A list of all time entries that have not been billed". 

Sort Oder - Where you would like to list to appear in a Menu group name, for example if you are creating three lists that you want to appear under a group heading called "Time Entries" you can give them sort orders of 10, 20 and 30 this means that the list with sort order 10 will appear first and the one with 30 will appear. If you do not specify any order they will appear in alphabetical order. 

Menu Group Name - The name of the menu where you would like the report to be inserted this will appear under the Timesheet heading in the main menu. Examples, of Group Names are shown below. You can have multiple list views in one Menu so you can keep them organised (remember this is case sensitive, and optional). If you do not insert a menu group name the list will appear individually under the Timesheet heading in the main menu. 

Next we choose what system roles can "see" our custom list view - you tick the box next to the system role you want to be able to see the list view you are creating (please note that if you do not tick any) no one will be able to view your list. 

Next we choose whether we want the custom list view you are creating to be a default view. The default view is the list we see when we click on Matters and then Matter list. By default, this list contains all matters that are assigned to ourselves however this can be changed to any list view that we want. If you are creating a list view that you want to be a default for a specific system role then you can use the tick boxes below to enable this. 

Next we choose our filters. If we leave the box empty then all the options will be shown in the list view. For example, If we leave the matter status box empty all the tasks (regardless of their status) will be shown in the list view. If we choose "Inactive" then only the inactive matters will be displayed in the list. 

We click on save when we have made all our selections. 

A new list is automatically populated with some of the most common columns/task elements to save you the effort of setting these up each time. If you don't want any of these columns simply remove them in the column editor by using the checkboxes and selecting the 'Delete' button.

You will notice that the columns are automatically created with default positions spaced 100 positions apart. This allows you to insert columns between these columns by selecting position numbers in the gaps.

Adding Columns

To add a new column select the 'Add Column' button at the top right of the screen. The column editor will open and you can enter a name and default position for your new column. You will also need to select a "Data Source" for the column as shown below.

Data Sources

"Data Sources" are used to group fields from the same area of the ActionStep database to make them easier to find. New data sources and fields are added from time to time so the screenshot above might be slightly different in your system. The data sources shown below have the following meanings:

Previewing and Setting Column Widths, Sort Order, and Filters

Once you have completed your list you can click on 'Preview' to view your list with live data. You can then extend column widths, sort the order by a particular column by clicking on it, move columns around and add a filter. By clicking on the filter with a drop down arrow you can choose what you want to see (for example, below we only want to see tasks assigned to a certain person).

Business Use Cases

Why/How is this useful to my business? 

Examples of how businesses use these reports in a practical sense are:-

* Tracking fees paid

* Compiling time entry reports (unbilled/billed) time entries per month

* Detailing staff with most unbilled WIP per month 

Head Up Rules

An amazing feature of Actionstep is the heads up rule this means that any report you create can be emailed directly to you or another user of your system (the Director, the Practice Manager) on any frequency required (for e.g. once a week, once a month). That way you have the information automatically when it is required. For more information about heads up rule, please go to the following link: Heads Up - User Guide Article

Here is a link to a video giving a demonstration on how to create one of the reports above:-

Time Entry List View - Video

Here is also a link to our webinar on custom list views:-

Custom List View - Webinar

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