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BambooHR Time Tracking & Scheduling
Cheat Sheet
Use this guide to quickly recommend the right category of solution when a prospect asks about BambooHR-connected time tracking or scheduling options.
The first decision: what problem are they solving?
Match the prospect's need to one of four paths.
Path 1
They are scheduling people
Recommend when they say:
- "We need to build employee schedules or shifts."
- "We have hourly, frontline, retail, healthcare, hospitality, or field teams."
- "Employees swap shifts or clock in from mobile devices."
- "We need geofencing, kiosks, attendance rules, or labor compliance."
Path 2
They are capturing attendance
Recommend when they say:
- "We need a physical time clock."
- "We want to prevent buddy punching."
- "We need fingerprint, facial recognition, badge, or kiosk-based clock-in."
- "Our focus is attendance accuracy and payroll-ready punches."
Path 3
They are tracking time against work
Recommend when they say:
- "We track time by client, project, task, grant, program, or cost center."
- "We need billable vs non-billable time."
- "We care about project budgets, invoicing, payroll, or profitability."
- "We need audit-ready time records."
- "Our teams are consultants, accountants, engineers, nonprofit staff, or project-based."
Path 4
They just want basic time entry in BambooHR
Recommend when they say:
- "We just need simple time entry inside BambooHR."
- "We do not need another major platform."
- "Our use case is straightforward hourly tracking and approvals."
Quick Comparison
| Category | Client Need | Tools | Best Fit | Usually Not Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scheduling / Workforce Management | Build shifts, manage coverage, shift swaps, frontline staffing | Deputy, Humanity, MakeShift, Connecteam, WorkforceHub | Retail, hospitality, healthcare, field teams | Project costing, billing, grant tracking |
| Time & Attendance / Biometric Clocking | Accurate punches, kiosk clocks, anti-buddy-punching, payroll-ready attendance | Accu-Time, NextGen, Synerion, stratustime, BambooHR Time Clocks | Manufacturing, warehouses, secure on-site operations | Billable time, task/client/project reporting |
| Professional Services / Project Time Tracking | Track time by client/project/task/grant, billable hours, budgets, DCAA & nonprofit compliance | TimeRewards, ClickTime | Consultants, nonprofits, government contractors, project-based teams | Shift scheduling, biometric attendance |
| Native / Basic Time Tracking | Simple hours and approvals directly in BambooHR | BambooHR Time Tracking | Straightforward hourly time capture | Complex operations, advanced reporting, project accounting |
Where TimeRewards Fits Best
Lead with TimeRewards when they say:
- "We need project-based timesheets."
- "We bill clients or manage grants."
- "We need better reporting for payroll, invoicing, or budgets."
- "We need more control than a basic time entry tool."
- "We need an audit-ready or compliance-focused solution."
- "We need DCAA-compliant time tracking."
- "We need to allocate time across grants, contracts, or funding sources."
Don't lead with TimeRewards when:
- Shift scheduling
- Rotating rosters
- Attendance kiosks
- Facial recognition or biometric clocking
- Frontline workforce coverage planning
- A basic BambooHR-native time entry experience with minimal complexity
However: if the client also needs DCAA compliance, grant tracking, nonprofit compliance, project costing, billing, or audit-ready reporting — bring TimeRewards back into the conversation quickly.
Compliance Callout
TimeRewards is especially strong when compliance is part of the buying decision: DCAA compliance, government contracting, audit-ready timesheets, grant management, nonprofit compliance, program/fund/grant-based allocations, or detailed reporting for payroll, invoicing, or funding audits.
6 Fast Discovery Questions
- Are your employees mainly shift-based or project-based?
- Do you need scheduling, or just time entry?
- Do you need time tracked by project, task, client, class, or grant?
- Do you need clock-in controls like kiosk, geofencing, or biometrics?
- Is your main goal attendance/payroll accuracy or project costing, billing, and compliance?
- Do you have any DCAA, grant, nonprofit, or audit-related compliance requirements?
Fast Recommendation Logic
Scheduling shifts → Scheduling / Workforce Management
Attendance accuracy with clocks or biometrics → Time & Attendance / Biometric Clocking
Projects, clients, budgets, billable time, DCAA/grant compliance → Professional Services / Project Time Tracking
Simple BambooHR-native time entry → BambooHR Time Tracking
Suggested Talk Track
"Usually this comes down to one question: are you scheduling people, or are you tracking time against projects, clients, grants, and budgets? If you are mostly scheduling shifts, we should look at workforce scheduling tools. If you need project-based time, DCAA compliance, nonprofit or grant compliance, reporting, billing, or budgets, TimeRewards is usually the better fit."
Simple Rep Takeaway
When in doubt, separate the conversation into two paths:
Are you scheduling people? or Tracking time against projects, clients & budgets?
If the answer is mostly the second one, TimeRewards should usually be part of the recommendation.