At accounting firm De Hooge Waerder, registering hours worked was becoming more and more complex. With work for several clients in a single day and constant switching between tasks, the overview was often lost. With ClockAssist, the North Holland firm can now write more billable hours and time tracking is no longer a time-consuming, annoying chore.
About De Hooge Waerder
De Hooge Waerder is a North Holland accounting firm with several offices in Alkmaar, Heerhugowaard, Beverwijk, Haarlem and Amsterdam. Its professionals continuously immerse themselves in the field and in their clients' developments, so they always deliver advice that fits clients' day-to-day practice and future plans.
Time tracking was a time-consuming daily chore
Rowan Minnaard, medior assistant accountant at De Hooge Waerder, talks about the hectic nature of the work: "In a day I work on umpteen clients at once. At the end of the day I actually didn't know anymore what exactly I had done." The traditional way of registering hours via Excel or the CRM system gave too little grip on the working day.
To still account for his hours, he had to dig through his e-mail, calendar or even the downloads folder to reconstruct activities. A time-consuming and frustrating process that also came at the expense of billable hours. He noticed he tended to book time he could no longer trace as non-billable. All this made the process inefficient and error-prone. And valuable billable hours were lost unnoticed.
"In broad strokes I knew. But then I still had a gap at the end of the day and I even went through my downloads folder to find out what exactly I had done."
Rowan Minnaard, medior assistant accountant De Hooge Waerder
Smart support with ClockAssist
ClockAssist was introduced after an exploratory round within the firm. A partner approached a number of employees to test the tool. Rowan was enthusiastic right away: "I'm always into new tech gadgets, so I thought: I'll sign up."
Using ClockAssist creates a visual day overview that serves as a memory aid: users see at a glance what they did and when. The system is linked to the firm's own CRM, so the data is immediately usable for booking hours.
"I spend far less time registering my hours. Your day is right in front of you, you drag the blocks to the right client, and you're done."
Rowan Minnaard, medior assistant accountant De Hooge Waerder
Rowan is also experimenting with the AI module, which automatically links client names to activities. Although this option doesn't always work perfectly yet, Rowan finds it a valuable addition: "It occasionally recognises the wrong client, but when I work longer for one client in a day, it registers that well by now."
More billable hours, less frustration
The impact is concrete and immediately noticeable. Where Rowan used to lose time every day recovering his activities, he can now register his hours much faster and more accurately. He says: "I spend far less time registering my hours. Your day is right in front of you, you drag the blocks to the right client, and you're done."
The biggest advantage? Fewer lost hours. Rowan continues: "If I can already book two extra hours a week thanks to ClockAssist, that's obviously a bonus." Where he previously didn't book half an hour or three quarters because it wasn't clear what exactly it was for, Rowan can now account for it thanks to ClockAssist. Time that used to fall through the cracks this way is now visible and billable.
It is also very easy to use. Rowan says: "ClockAssist isn't really rocket science. Once you get the hang of it, it just runs."
Smooth collaboration and pleasant onboarding
The collaboration with ClockAssist is also smooth, questions are answered quickly and the onboarding was pleasant. About ten colleagues actively use the tool at the Beverwijk office. Rowan says it's easy to discuss within the firm and colleagues are open to this kind of innovation. He says: "At first we had a few questions. But Dennis responded quickly and really helped us get started."
Asked whether he would recommend ClockAssist to other accounting firms, Rowan answers without hesitation: "Yes, of course! It just works well. And time tracking doesn't have to be difficult at all."
"Yes, of course! It just works well. And time tracking doesn't have to be difficult at all."
Rowan Minnaard, medior assistant accountant De Hooge Waerder
What ClockAssist delivered for De Hooge Waerder
- Up to 2 extra billable hours booked per week: time that used to fall through the cracks is now visible and billable.
- No more reconstruction work through e-mail, calendar or downloads folder: the visual day overview serves as a memory aid.
- Far less time spent on time tracking: drag blocks to the right client, done.
- Linked to the firm's own CRM, so data is immediately usable for booking hours.
- About 10 colleagues active at the Beverwijk office, after a pleasant onboarding with fast support.
Ready for automatic time tracking?
Want to find out how ClockAssist helps your accounting firm generate more revenue and simplify time tracking? Book a demo or get in touch today, we're happy to help you think it through!
