Giving project teams a clearer view of where time goes
PT Sarana Multi Infrastruktur (Persero), or PT SMI, finances infrastructure projects that support economic and social development in Indonesia. Its work contributes to national infrastructure priorities, the Sustainable Development Goals, and climate-related objectives.
As SMI’s project portfolio grew, so did the amount of information employees needed to record and managers needed to review. Time spent across tasks and projects had to be entered accurately, approved by the right people, and made visible for monitoring.
The existing process created unnecessary effort. Employees needed a simpler way to enter their working time, project managers needed a clearer approval workflow, and leadership needed better visibility into project activity.
Suitmedia partnered with SMI to develop a timesheet application that worked across Android, iOS, and responsive web. The solution connected time entry, approval, review, and role-based monitoring in one system.
Project growth had created an information management problem
1. More projects meant more data to capture
SMI supports a growing number of infrastructure projects through financing and consultation services. Each project involves teams, tasks, working hours, and responsibilities that need to be recorded over time.
As the number of projects increases, manual or fragmented data entry becomes harder to manage. Employees may need to record time across several tasks, while project managers need to review the information before it becomes part of the official project record.
The challenge was not only the volume of data. It was the need to keep that data consistent enough to support decisions about project progress, team activity, and resource use.
2. Employees needed a faster way to record working time
Timesheet entry can become a repetitive administrative task. If employees must navigate a complicated form or wait until they are back at a desktop computer, updates may be delayed or entered from memory.
Delayed entry increases the risk of incomplete or inaccurate information. It can also create a backlog at the end of a reporting period, when employees need to reconstruct how their time was distributed across projects.
SMI needed a process that could fit naturally into employees’ working routines. A simpler mobile and web experience could make recording time more immediate and less burdensome.
3. Time data needed to remain connected to tasks and projects
A timesheet is more useful when it shows what the time was spent on, not only how many hours were recorded.
Employees needed to associate working hours with specific tasks and projects. This gave SMI a clearer view of the work taking place behind each project and helped project managers understand how team effort was being allocated.
Without this connection, timesheet data risks becoming a compliance exercise rather than a useful management resource.
4. Project managers needed a clear approval process
Employee time entries required review by project managers. Managers needed to check whether the submitted hours and task descriptions were appropriate before approving or rejecting them.
If approval happened through disconnected communication, the process could become slow and difficult to track. A manager might not know which entries were waiting, which needed correction, or whether an employee had updated a rejected submission.
The system needed to make approval a clear stage in the workflow, with visible status and straightforward actions.
5. Different users needed different views of the same information
The application served several roles:
- Employees entering time.
- Project managers approving or rejecting entries.
- Division heads reviewing summaries.
- Administrators managing the system.
Each role required a different level of detail and control. Employees needed to focus on their own work. Project managers needed team and project-level review. Division heads and administrators needed broader summaries and oversight.
A single undifferentiated interface would create unnecessary complexity. The solution needed to provide role-appropriate views while preserving one shared source of information.
6. Review and correction had to be part of the workflow
Timesheet data is not always correct on the first submission. Employees may need to revise an entry, correct a task, or clarify the number of hours recorded.
If the system only supported submission and approval, rejected entries could create confusion. Users needed to understand what required correction and how to resubmit the information.
A complete workflow needed to support review, rejection, revision, and approval without forcing users into separate channels.
7. Managers needed information beyond individual entries
SMI needed to monitor project activity and summarize timesheet information based on user roles.
A manager may want to understand how much time a team is spending on a project, which tasks are active, or whether entries are being submitted consistently.
This required more than a list of individual timesheets. The system needed to turn detailed time entries into summaries that supported broader management decisions.
8. The platform needed to work across devices
Project teams do not always work from a fixed desk. Employees may record time from an office, project location, home, or while traveling between activities.
A desktop-only application would limit access and encourage delayed entry. SMI needed the system to work on mobile devices as well as through a responsive website.
Device flexibility was therefore part of data quality. The easier it was to record time close to the work, the less employees had to rely on memory later.
9. The system had to improve efficiency without weakening control
SMI wanted to simplify data entry, but the process still needed managerial oversight.
A self-service system should not mean that employees submit information without review. The right design would make entry easier while preserving approval, monitoring, and accountability.
This balance was central to the project: reduce administrative friction while improving the quality and visibility of project data.
Designing one timesheet workflow from entry to oversight
1. Start with the actual work employees needed to record
Suitmedia designed SMI Timesheet around the relationship between employees, tasks, working hours, and projects.
Employees could record time against specific tasks and projects on a weekly basis. This reflected the way SMI needed to understand project effort rather than capturing hours as isolated figures.
The structure also helped employees organize their own records. They could see how their time was distributed and identify missing or incomplete entries before submission.
2. Create a simple Input Timesheet function
The Input Timesheet function allowed employees to enter working time for each task and project.
The experience needed to be clear because employees might use it regularly. They should be able to identify the project, choose the relevant task, enter their working time, and submit the record without unnecessary steps.
A straightforward entry process improved the chance that employees would update information consistently rather than postponing it until the end of the week or month.
3. Use schedule views to make time entry easier to understand
The timesheet was presented in daily, weekly, or monthly formats depending on user preference and device resolution.
These views helped employees understand their entries in context. A daily view could support detailed updates, while a weekly or monthly view could help users review patterns and identify gaps.
Offering several views also improved accessibility. Different users could work with the format that best matched their habits and screen size.
4. Make the interface responsive across devices
SMI Timesheet was designed for Android, iOS, and responsive web access.
This allowed employees to record and review information through the device most appropriate to their working context.
The responsive approach also helped preserve consistency. Users could move between mobile and web without encountering entirely different systems or workflows.
5. Keep project and task context visible
When users enter working time, they need to understand which project and task they are recording against.
The interface was designed to keep this context visible and reduce the risk of selecting the wrong item.
This supported data quality. Accurate project and task associations made the timesheet information more useful for managers and administrators.
6. Create an Approval Timesheet function for project managers
The Approval Timesheet function allowed project managers to review employee submissions.
Managers could approve or reject working-time entries based on the project context and the information provided by the employee.
This created a clear control point. Project data became more reliable because entries were not treated as final immediately after submission.
7. Make rejection actionable
A rejection should not be the end of a timesheet entry. The employee needed to understand that a correction or revision was required.
The workflow supported the review and correction of submitted data. This helped employees return to the entry, make the necessary changes, and resubmit it.
A clear revision path reduced frustration and prevented rejected records from becoming stuck outside the system.
8. Provide a Monitoring Timesheet view
The Monitoring Timesheet function allowed users to view summaries based on their role.
Employees could review their own information, while division heads, project managers, and administrators could access broader views appropriate to their responsibilities.
This transformed the system from a form-submission tool into a management platform. Users could understand not only individual entries, but also wider patterns of project activity.
9. Use role-based access to manage complexity
The system needed to show the right information to the right user.
Employees should not be overwhelmed by administrative controls, while project managers and division heads needed access to team or project summaries.
Role-based design improved both security and usability. Users could focus on the work they were authorized and expected to perform.
10. Support review and correction of man-hour data
Timesheet review was available for viewing and making corrections or revisions to man-hour entries for project team members.
This helped managers and authorized users address errors within the same system rather than through separate spreadsheets or messages.
Keeping review connected to the original record improved traceability. Users could understand what was submitted, what changed, and what remained to be approved.
11. Make project monitoring more practical
The system connected time entries with project activity, giving managers a stronger basis for monitoring how work was progressing.
Time data alone does not explain project performance, but it can provide useful context when viewed alongside tasks and team responsibilities.
The platform therefore supported more informed management conversations. Leaders could identify patterns that required attention rather than relying only on periodic summaries.
12. Reduce manual consolidation
A centralized timesheet system reduced the need to gather information from separate files or communication channels.
This improved operational efficiency for managers and administrators. They could review information in one environment rather than spending time combining records before analysis.
The reduction in manual consolidation also lowered the risk of data inconsistencies.
13. Design for user convenience without removing accountability
The platform simplified entry while preserving approval and monitoring.
This was an important design principle. Employees received an easier way to complete their responsibility, while project managers and administrators retained visibility and control.
The result was a better division of work. The system handled structure and routing, while people focused on reviewing accuracy and managing projects.
14. Build a platform that can support future project growth
As SMI’s infrastructure project portfolio expanded, the timesheet platform needed to accommodate more users, projects, tasks, and reporting requirements.
A structured foundation made it easier to add future features without changing the basic user journey.
This created long-term value. SMI could build on the platform as its project management needs became more complex.
15. Validate the application across user roles
Testing needed to include employees, project managers, division heads, and administrators.
Each group would interact with different functions, and a problem in one role could affect the broader workflow.
Role-based testing helped ensure that the platform was practical for data entry, approval, monitoring, and administration.
A connected timesheet system made project oversight more practical
1. Employees gained a simpler way to record time
The application reduced the effort required to enter working hours against tasks and projects.
Employees could record information through mobile devices or a responsive website, making it easier to update data closer to when the work occurred.
This improved convenience and reduced the chance of relying on memory or delayed reconstruction.
2. Project managers gained clearer approval control
Managers could review employee entries, approve appropriate records, or reject entries that required correction.
This created a more structured approval process and helped ensure that project records were reviewed before being treated as complete.
The result was greater confidence in the information used for project monitoring.
3. Revisions became easier to manage
Employees could correct or revise their entries when required.
This reduced the need to manage corrections through email or separate documents. The workflow preserved the connection between the original entry, the review, and the updated version.
A clear revision process also improved data quality over time.
4. Users could view information according to their role
The Monitoring Timesheet function gave different users access to the summaries relevant to their responsibilities.
This made the system more useful to employees, managers, division heads, and administrators without forcing all users into the same interface.
Role-appropriate visibility supported better decisions and reduced unnecessary complexity.
5. Project activity became easier to monitor
Time entries connected to tasks and projects gave SMI a clearer view of team activity.
Managers could review how work was being recorded and identify patterns that might require attention.
This supported more proactive project management. Issues could be noticed through the data rather than only after a project fell behind.
6. The platform supported multiple devices
Android, iOS, and responsive web access helped employees use the system in different work contexts.
This was particularly valuable for project teams that did not spend their entire day at a desk.
Device flexibility improved the likelihood of regular use and supported more timely data entry.
7. Data became more organized for management
A centralized workflow created a more consistent structure for employee time, tasks, projects, approvals, and summaries.
This improved the quality of information available for project management and administrative review.
The organization could spend less effort preparing the data and more time interpreting it.
8. Manual administrative effort was reduced
The application simplified data entry, approval, monitoring, and review.
This reduced repeated work for employees, project managers, and administrators. The system handled routing and structure while users focused on the parts requiring judgment.
The result was a more efficient operating model for managing project time.
9. SMI gained better visibility across its project portfolio
As project activity grew, the platform provided a way to understand work across multiple projects and teams.
This helped SMI move toward a more consistent view of resource use and project activity.
The value was not simply in tracking hours. It was in creating information that could support better planning and execution of infrastructure projects.
10. The system supported more disciplined project management
A structured timesheet process encouraged employees to record work consistently and managers to review it regularly.
This strengthened accountability without requiring excessive manual oversight.
The platform helped make project discipline part of the normal workflow rather than a separate reporting exercise.
11. The solution created a foundation for future improvement
The application could potentially support additional reporting, analytics, approvals, project dashboards, and integrations as SMI’s needs evolved.
Its structure made future development more manageable. The organization could improve the platform without changing the basic way employees entered and managers reviewed information.
This created a more resilient digital foundation for project operations.
The deeper lesson: timesheets are valuable when they explain work, not just hours
1. Data entry should be close to the activity
The longer employees wait to record their work, the greater the risk of incomplete or inaccurate information.
Mobile access allows data to be entered closer to the moment the work happens. This improves reliability and reduces administrative recovery later.
2. Time data becomes useful when tied to projects and tasks
Hours without context provide limited insight.
Connecting time to specific tasks and projects helps managers understand how effort is distributed and where work is progressing or becoming concentrated.
3. Approval creates a quality checkpoint
Employee-submitted information should not automatically become final project data.
A clear approval workflow allows managers to review, correct, and validate entries before they inform broader planning or reporting.
4. Role-based views reduce complexity
Employees, managers, division heads, and administrators need different levels of information.
Showing each user the functions and summaries relevant to their responsibilities improves usability and reduces the chance of misuse.
5. Correction should be part of the normal process
Data will sometimes need revision. A system that treats correction as an exception outside the workflow creates unnecessary friction.
Integrated revision paths improve data quality while preserving a clear record of what changed.
6. Operational dashboards should support decisions
A monitoring view is useful when it helps managers identify where attention is needed.
The goal is not to display more data, but to make project activity easier to understand and act on.
7. Mobile access can improve management discipline
When employees can record time from the device and location most convenient to them, timely submission becomes more realistic.
Convenience supports compliance. People are more likely to complete a process consistently when the system fits their working conditions.
8. Project systems should grow with the portfolio
Infrastructure projects and teams change over time.
A timesheet platform should provide a foundation for more advanced reporting and resource management rather than remaining limited to basic data entry.
Strategic Insights for the C-Suite
- Design timesheets as project intelligence systems, not administrative forms. The value comes from connecting time to tasks, projects, approvals, and decisions. Hours become useful when they explain how work is progressing.
- Make data entry possible at the point of work. Mobile and responsive access reduce delay and improve accuracy. Convenience is a practical way to strengthen compliance with reporting processes.
- Build approval and correction into the workflow. Managers need a clear quality checkpoint, while employees need an easy way to revise errors. Both should happen within one traceable system.
- Use role-based monitoring to turn data into action. Employees, project managers, division heads, and administrators need different views. Show each group the information required for its decisions.
- Treat project data platforms as scalable infrastructure. As project portfolios grow, the system should support richer reporting, analytics, and resource planning. Build the foundation before complexity becomes unmanageable.
