Time and expenses

A Consultant records hours on time entries with a work date, client, engagement, billable flag and notes. The line also identifies the team member. Draft and Submitted states separate work being prepared from work awaiting review. The billable and nonbillable hours fields help a manager read the mix of client delivery and other work without discarding the original hours. That matters for utilization and for checking whether an engagement is consuming its budget.

expenses records travel, meals, lodging, software and other costs by date, amount, consultant and engagement. The billable flag distinguishes a cost expected to pass to the client from a cost the firm absorbs. The receipt URL and record attachment can keep evidence with the claim. A submitted expense has its own status, which should be reviewed in the engagement context before anyone marks it approved or reimbursed.

• Time. Keep the work date, hours, billable choice, person, client and engagement on each entry.
• expenses. Record category, amount, date, receipt reference, engagement and consultant on each claim.
• Review queues. Submitted time and expense lists show what managers need to inspect.

Set the expected cadence for time entry and expense submission. Agree how the manager handles a time entry linked to the wrong client or an expense with unclear support. Decide who may change a reviewed record and how the firm documents corrections. Make sure the practice’s definitions of billable time and billable expenses are used consistently, since the engagement’s logged hours and expense total feed management review.

An analyst spends a day preparing a client workshop and incurs travel expense. They enter the hours with the correct work date, client and engagement, then submit the time. They add a travel expense with the amount and receipt link against the same engagement. The Engagement Manager opens the two submitted lists, checks that both records point to the same client assignment, and reviews the work notes and receipt. If the travel belongs to another engagement, correct its link before treating the amount as part of this job’s economics.

The partner can then compare logged hours and expense total with the engagement budget and value. The consultant’s hours also contribute to the team members utilization reading.

• Timesheets Awaiting Approval — Check submitted consultant time against its work date and engagement.
• Expenses Awaiting Approval — Review submitted costs by consultant, category and amount.
• Active Engagements — Read logged hours and expense totals in the engagement context.

See delivery review and margin review.