Time & Expense Approvals

Time & Expense Approvals

Overview

The Time & Expense Approvals module provides a centralized workflow for managers, delivery leads, and designated reviewers to review, approve, or reject time entries and expenses submitted by team members. This module ensures that all logged hours and costs are validated before they flow into billing and invoicing.

Octayne PSA supports manual review, rule-based compliance review, and AI-powered review to accommodate organizations of all sizes and complexity levels.

[Screenshot: Review Time & Expenses landing page showing tabs for Time Entries and Expenses with summary statistics]

Prerequisites

Before you can review time entries and expenses, the following must be in place:

• You must be designated as a reviewer on one or more projects (set in Project Settings > Members), or
• You must hold an admin or delivery_lead role in the organization.
• You must have the following permissions:
• timesheets:approve_reject — required to approve or reject time entries.
• expenses:approve_reject — required to approve or reject expenses.

Note: If you believe you should have review access but cannot see the Review page, contact your organization administrator to verify your role and permissions.

Reviewing Time Entries

Accessing the Review Page

1. Navigate to Review Time & Expenses from the main Navigation Menu.
2. The page opens on the Time Entries tab by default.
3. You will see a list of submitted timesheets from team members on projects where you are a designated reviewer.

[Screenshot: Review Time & Expenses page with the Time Entries tab selected, showing a list of submitted timesheets]

Selecting a Timesheet for Review

1. In the Time Entries list, locate the timesheet you want to review.
2. Click Open on the weekly timesheet row to expand the detailed view.
3. The detailed view shows individual time entries for each day of the week, including project, task type, hours, and notes.

[Screenshot: Expanded weekly timesheet showing daily time entries with project, task, hours, and notes columns]

Tip: Review the notes column carefully. Team members often include context about what they worked on that can help validate the hours logged.

Approving Time Entries

1. Open the timesheet you want to approve.
2. Locate the Status dropdown for the individual entry or the entire timesheet.
3. Select Approve from the dropdown.
4. The entry status changes to Approved and the submitter is notified.

[Screenshot: Status dropdown on a time entry showing the Approve option selected]

Rejecting Time Entries

1. Open the timesheet you want to reject.
2. Locate the Status dropdown for the individual entry or the entire timesheet.
3. Select Reject from the dropdown.
4. Optionally provide a rejection reason in the dialog that appears.
5. The entry is returned to the submitter in Open status for correction.

[Screenshot: Rejection dialog with a text field for providing a rejection reason]

Note: Always provide a clear rejection reason so the submitter understands what needs to be corrected. Entries without feedback tend to be resubmitted with the same issues.

Bulk Approve/Reject

For efficiency, you can approve or reject multiple time entries at once:

1. On the Time Entries review list, select multiple timesheets using the checkboxes on the left.
2. Use the Bulk Actions toolbar that appears at the top of the list.
3. Select Approve Selected or Reject Selected.
4. Confirm the action in the confirmation dialog.

[Screenshot: Bulk Actions toolbar showing Approve Selected and Reject Selected buttons with multiple timesheets checked]

Warning: Bulk actions apply to all selected entries. Double-check your selections before confirming, especially when rejecting, as all selected entries will be returned to their submitters.

Compliance Review

Compliance review allows reviewers to configure automated rules that flag time entries for potential issues before approval.

Configuring Review Rules

1. On the Review Time & Expenses page, click Settings at the bottom-right corner of the review page.
2. The Review Rules configuration panel opens.

[Screenshot: Review Rules configuration panel accessed from the Settings button at the bottom right]

Available Review Rules

The following review rules can be toggled on or off:

Rule	Description
Minimum Hours Per Day	Flags entries where a team member logged fewer than the configured minimum hours in a day.
Maximum Hours Per Day	Flags entries where a team member logged more than the configured maximum hours in a day.
Weekend Entries	Flags any time entries logged on Saturday or Sunday.
Missing Descriptions	Flags entries that do not include a description or notes.
Unassigned Task Type	Flags entries that are missing a task type assignment.
Exceeds Budget Threshold	Flags entries that would push a project's total hours beyond a configured budget threshold.

Tip: Start with a few critical rules (e.g., Maximum Hours Per Day and Missing Descriptions) and expand as your team adjusts to the review workflow.

Saving Rule Configuration

1. After toggling the desired rules on or off and configuring their parameters, click Save in the top-right corner of the form.
2. The rules take effect immediately and apply to all future reviews.

[Screenshot: Review Rules configuration with several rules toggled on and the Save button highlighted in the top right]

Reviewing Flagged Issues

When compliance rules flag entries during review:

1. Flagged items appear with a warning indicator (typically an orange or red icon) in the review list.
2. Select the flagged item to see the specific rule violation.
3. Make manual adjustments if needed (e.g., ask the submitter to add a description), or click Next to proceed past the flag and continue reviewing.

[Screenshot: Flagged time entry with a warning icon and a tooltip showing the rule violation details]

Note: Flagged entries are not automatically rejected. The reviewer has full discretion to approve, reject, or skip flagged items.

AI-Powered Review

Octayne PSA includes an AI-powered review capability that automatically analyzes submitted time entries against your organization's policies and historical patterns.

How AI Review Works

The AI review engine examines submitted timesheets and flags entries that may warrant closer attention. It considers factors such as:

• Deviation from the team member's typical logging patterns.
• Entries that conflict with organization-defined policies.
• Unusually high or low hours for a given project or task type.
• Potential duplicate entries.

AI review runs automatically when entries are submitted and surfaces flagged items alongside compliance review flags.

[Screenshot: AI Review flags displayed on a timesheet with AI-specific icons distinguishing them from compliance flags]

Configuring AI Review Rules

1. Navigate to Organization Settings from the Settings menu.
2. Select AI Review Rules.
3. Configure the AI review parameters, including sensitivity levels and which policies to enforce.
4. Click Save to apply.

[Screenshot: Organization Settings > AI Review Rules configuration page]

Warning: AI review is a supplementary tool. It does not replace human judgment. Always review AI-flagged entries manually before making approval decisions.

Reviewing AI Flagged Entries

1. AI-flagged entries appear in the review list with a distinct AI indicator icon.
2. Click on the flagged entry to view the AI's analysis and reasoning.
3. Approve, reject, or skip the entry based on your judgment.

Tip: Over time, the AI review engine learns from your approval and rejection patterns. Consistent reviewing improves the accuracy of future flags.

Reviewing Expenses

Accessing Expense Review

1. Navigate to Review Time & Expenses from the main Navigation Menu.
2. Click the Expenses tab at the top of the page.
3. You will see a list of submitted expenses from team members on projects where you are a designated reviewer.

[Screenshot: Review Time & Expenses page with the Expenses tab selected, showing submitted expenses]

Approving/Rejecting Expenses

1. Locate the expense entry you want to review.
2. Click on the entry to view its details, including the attached receipt.
3. In the Status dropdown, select Approve or Reject.
4. If rejecting, provide a reason in the rejection dialog.
5. The submitter is notified of the decision.

[Screenshot: Expense review detail view showing receipt thumbnail, expense details, and Status dropdown]

Tip: Always verify the uploaded receipt matches the expense amount and description before approving. Mismatched receipts are a common reason for rejection.

Reviewer Designation

Reviewers are designated at the project level. To assign a reviewer:

1. Navigate to Projects and select the project.
2. Go to Project Settings > Members.
3. Locate the team member you want to designate as a reviewer.
4. Enable the Reviewer toggle for that member.
5. Click Save.

Reviewers can only see and act on time entries and expenses for projects where they are designated.

[Screenshot: Project Settings > Members page showing the Reviewer toggle for team members]

Note: A project can have multiple reviewers. All designated reviewers receive notifications when entries are submitted.

Permissions Required

The following permissions govern access to the approval workflow:

Permission	Description
timesheets:approve_reject	Allows the user to approve or reject submitted time entries.
expenses:approve_reject	Allows the user to approve or reject submitted expenses.

These permissions are typically granted through role assignments (admin, delivery_lead, or custom roles). Contact your organization administrator to request permission changes.

Troubleshooting

Issue	Possible Cause	Resolution
Cannot see the Review Time & Expenses page	You do not have reviewer designation or the required role	Contact your admin to verify you are designated as a reviewer on at least one project and have the appropriate permissions.
No timesheets appear in the review list	No team members have submitted timesheets on your assigned projects	Confirm with your team that they have submitted their timesheets for the relevant period.
Compliance rules are not flagging entries	Rules are toggled off or misconfigured	Click Settings at the bottom right of the review page and verify that rules are enabled and properly configured.
AI review flags are not appearing	AI Review Rules are not configured at the organization level	Navigate to Organization Settings > AI Review Rules and ensure rules are configured and saved.
Bulk approve/reject is not available	No entries are selected	Use the checkboxes to select one or more entries before the Bulk Actions toolbar appears.
Rejected entry was not returned to the submitter	Notification delivery issue	Verify the submitter's notification settings. The entry will still appear in their Expenses or Timesheets view in Open status regardless of notification delivery.

FAQ

Q: Can I approve some entries on a timesheet and reject others?

A: Yes. You can set the status individually for each time entry within a weekly timesheet. You do not have to approve or reject the entire timesheet as a single unit.

Q: What happens after I approve a time entry?

A: Approved time entries become available for inclusion in invoices through the Billing & Invoicing module. They also count toward utilization metrics.

Q: Can I undo an approval?

A: Admins can revert an approved entry back to In Review or Open status if corrections are needed. Standard reviewers should contact their admin for this action.

Q: How do compliance review and AI review interact?

A: Both run independently. An entry can be flagged by compliance rules, AI review, both, or neither. Flags from both sources appear on the same review interface with distinct icons.

Q: Are reviewers notified in real time when entries are submitted?

A: Reviewers receive notifications based on the organization's notification settings. This may include in-app notifications, email notifications, or both.

Q: Can a team member be a reviewer on one project and a submitter on another?

A: Absolutely. Reviewer designation is per-project. A team member can submit their own time on projects where they are a contributor and review others' time on projects where they are a designated reviewer.

Q: Is there a deadline for reviewing submissions?

A: Octayne PSA does not enforce a hard deadline for reviews, but your organization may have internal policies. Entries that remain In Review for extended periods may delay invoicing.