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How to Track Time for Development Tasks?
How to track time for development tasks?
Track time by logging effort in task comments or time fields, comparing estimates to actuals for learning, using time data for planning improvement (not performance reviews), and keeping tracking lightweight. Focus on task-level tracking, not minute-by-minute. Use historical data to improve future estimates, not to measure individual productivity.
Time tracking labels
| Label | Purpose |
|---|---|
| estimate:1h | 1 hour estimate |
| estimate:4h | 4 hour estimate |
| estimate:1d | 1 day estimate |
| estimate:3d | 3 day estimate |
| actual:over | Took longer than estimated |
| actual:under | Took less than estimated |
| needs-breakdown | Too large to estimate |
Task with time tracking
## Feature: User Export
### Time Tracking
Estimated: 8 hours (1 day)
Actual: 10.5 hours
### Time Log
- 2025-01-27: 4h - Built export service
- 2025-01-28: 3h - Added formats, tested
- 2025-01-28: 2h - Code review, fixes
- 2025-01-29: 1.5h - Final testing, deploy
### Variance Analysis
Over by: 2.5 hours (+31%)
Reason: JSON format had unexpected edge cases
### Lessons for Future
- Add buffer for format handling
- Consider 1.5x estimate for new file types
Time tracking best practices
| Do | Don't |
|---|---|
| Track at task level | Track every 15 minutes |
| Use for estimation learning | Use for performance review |
| Focus on patterns | Focus on individual variance |
| Keep it simple | Create complex timesheets |
| Team-owned data | Manager surveillance |
| Improve planning | Punish over-runs |
Estimation improvement workflow:
- Estimate task - Before starting
- Track time - Simple logging during work
- Record actual - When task completes
- Calculate variance - Estimate vs actual
- Analyze patterns - Weekly/monthly review
- Adjust estimates - Apply learnings
- Improve accuracy - Over time
Time analysis patterns
# Estimation Analysis - January 2025
## By Task Type
| Type | Avg Variance | Trend |
|------|--------------|-------|
| Bug fixes | +15% | Improving |
| New features | +42% | Needs work |
| Refactoring | -10% | Good |
| Documentation | +5% | Accurate |
## By Complexity
| Complexity | Avg Variance |
|------------|--------------|
| Small (1-2h) | +8% |
| Medium (4-8h) | +25% |
| Large (1-3d) | +55% |
## Recommendations
- Break large tasks into medium
- Add 30% buffer for new features
- Bug fixes are well-calibrated
NoteVault time tracking documentation
# Time Tracking Guidelines
## Purpose
Improve estimation accuracy for better planning.
NOT for monitoring individual productivity.
## How to Track
1. Note estimate before starting
2. Log hours daily in task comment
3. Record actual when complete
4. Note variance reason if significant
## Example Log Format
Time log:
- 2025-01-27: 4h - Core implementation
- 2025-01-28: 2h - Testing, fixes
Total: 6h (estimated 8h)
## What We Do With Data
- Improve estimation formulas
- Identify task types that need buffers
- Capacity planning for sprints
- Project scoping accuracy
## What We Don't Do
- Individual performance metrics
- Comparison between developers
- Billing clients per-task (use project level)