December 29th, 2025

How Subcontractors Cut Time Processing Nearly in Half

How Subcontractors Cut Time Processing Nearly in Half

For many subcontractors, time processing quietly eats up hours every single week.

Collecting paper timecards. Chasing down missing time entries. Fixing errors. Re-entering data for payroll. What should take minutes often turns into a frustrating, time-consuming weekly scramble.

The subcontractors who cut time processing nearly in half didn’t hire more office staff or work longer hours. They fixed the system. Lowered admin time and greatly improved accuracy.

Here’s how.

The Real Problem Isn’t Payroll—It’s Time Data

Most payroll delays don’t start in payroll. They start in the field.

Common issues include:

• Paper timecards turned in late
• Illegible or incomplete entries
• Hours not tied to the correct job
• Supervisors spending time verifying, tweaking and questioning time entries instead of managing

By the time payroll runs, the damage is already done.

Step 1: Replace Paper and Spreadsheets

The biggest time savings come from eliminating manual collection entirely.

Subcontractors who move to electronic timecards:

• Remove the need to gather paper each week
• Eliminate re-keying hours into payroll
• Reduce errors caused by guesswork

Time data is captured once—and used everywhere.

Step 2: Capture Time at the Source

The fastest payroll starts with accurate clock-ins and clock-outs. Depending on the type of subcontractor, some crews work multiple jobs a day and week. For example, if you are in drywall, the crew might work 4-5 jobs a day, 15-20 jobs a week.

High-performing teams:

• Let crews clock in from the field
• Tie time entries directly to jobs
• Validate entries automatically with minimal oversight

This prevents problems instead of fixing them later.

Step 3: Standardize Before Automating

Subcontractors who struggle with digital tools often skip this step. If you are the drywall or flooring contractor this is where you can make up time. This doesn’t mean you need to rework every single timecard process either. That said, more often than not, a simple update rules and standardization usually does the trick.

Successful teams standardize:

• Time submittal deadline and rules for both admin
• Job names
• Approval process

Once standardized, automation actually saves time instead of creating confusion.

Step 4: Flag Exceptions Automatically

Instead of reviewing every timecard, optimized systems surface only the issues.

That includes:

• Missed time entries
• Overtime thresholds
• Entries outside normal hours
• Time not tied to a job

Office staff focuses on exceptions—not data entry.

Step 5: Feed Clean Data Directly Into Payroll

The final step is removing duplicate work.

When time data feeds directly into payroll:

• No admin re-entry is required
• Errors are reduced
• Payroll runs faster and more confidently

This alone can save several hours every pay period.

The Result: Less Admin, More Control

Subcontractors who optimize time tracking typically see:

• Time processing reduced by 40–50%
• Fewer payroll corrections
• Better visibility into labor costs
• Less frustration for crews and office staff

And most importantly, payroll stops being a weekly fire drill.

It’s Not About Working Faster—It’s About Working Smarter

Cutting time processing nearly in half isn’t about pushing people harder. It’s about building a system that works the way subcontractors actually operate. Not the other way around—conforming to the app.

When time data is accurate, automatic, and payroll-ready, everything downstream gets easier.