If you’re running a staffing agency, chances are you’re familiar with a Statement of Work or SOW. Simply defined, an SOW is a document that outlines the parameters, goals, and expectations of an upcoming project. It estimates the number of hours needed to complete the tasks and defines where that labor will come from, especially if contracted workers will need to be hired in order to complete the project. SOWs are often used to aid in proposing new projects to higher-up stakeholders, showing a comprehensive overview of what the venture will entail.

Time tracking is essential to defining your Statement of Work. At any stage of your project’s management, it is important to know how much time is being invested into your work. However, there are other benefits time tracking brings to creating and defining SOWs that you may not have considered.

Your Statement of Work Should Establish Trust

Contingent workers, those who are contracted on a temporary or per-project basis, may be wary before taking on new opportunities. Contractors are often treated poorly compared to full-time employees, despite their necessity to the company and their willingness to work hard and meet deadlines. When you incorporate time tracking into your Statement of Work, you establish that your contractors will be paid on-time according to the work they complete. Temporary employees are clear on the scope of the work their contract encompasses and conditions are implemented that prevent them from being underpaid. Any overtime contractors invest into the project, whether it be to complete additional work or to polish deliverables according to the vision of the project manager, is equitably compensated.

When your temporary workers know they can trust your agency, they are much more likely to put their best effort into the projects they work on. Additionally, there is a higher chance these employees will return and do more excellent work when invited. Using time tracking in your SOWs makes expectations clear for everyone involved and elevates the level of trust your employees have in you.

Ensure Legal Compliance

Offering break time to your employees is a legal requirement. However, when you work with contractors as a staffing agency, it can be difficult to know exactly when your employees are due for legal breaks and whether you’re in compliance with employment laws. Adding time tracking to your SOWs can help you avoid these tricky situations. When employees track their time, using software to do so whenever they have availability, you’ll be able to always ensure legal complications don’t get in the way of accomplishing your company goals.

Improve Project Management

While a Statement of Work is often created in order to propose new projects, it’s important to make sure you’re reviewing it frequently. Perhaps you estimated part of a venture only taking a few hours, but complications have arisen and are causing it to take much longer. Instead of blaming the contracted workers, who are likely doing their best, you can reevaluate your SOW and notice where you might need to bring in additional hands or redefine roles to accomplish the stated goals. Time tracking can be an immense help in this regard, allowing you to see where contractor hours are going and where they can be redistributed for greater results. 

As you define and create your own statement of work, consider adding time tracking to each project. By doing so, you’ll establish trust with your employees, comply with employment laws, and manage your own assignments more efficiently. There’s no shortage of benefits to tracking time.

Want to see how Timerack can help you define your SOWs better? You can learn more about our time tracking software here.