Time Email Alert

Owned by DATABASICS, Inc.
Last updated: Oct 04, 2024 by Ernesia Toney
9 min read

Time Email Alert is for when you want to set up reminders or notifications to go to users/approvers/etc. To view the setup examples, please also visit the short webinar recording on Email Alerts 

The following process types are available:

  • Missing timesheet days - use this option for an email reminder for missing time entries per day 
  • Existing timesheets  - email reminder for timesheets in the following status: Draft, Released, In Approval Process, Rejected, Approved, Open or Closed
  • Missing timesheets - email reminder for timesheets in the "New Timesheet" Status


Alert Setup

  1. Click on Admin tab at the top of the screen.
  2. On the left side of the screen, click the arrow to expand the Email Alert menu.
  3. Click on Time Alert.
  4. Click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    1. Name*: Give the alert a name. This name will be visible to the Admin only. 
    2. Process Type*: Select one of the process types
      1. Existing timesheets: This will capture timesheets that have been opened at one point. All except missing timesheets will be included in this process type.
      2. Missing timesheet Days: This will capture timesheets that do not have time entered per day. 
      3. Missing timesheets: This will capture timesheets that have not be opened/created for the period. 
    3. Send To*: Select from the drop down who the alert will be sent to.
    4. Subject*: This subject will be the subject of the e-mail. 
    5. Header: Enter in a header message, this will be the main body of the email.
    6. User Message*: This part of the setup will include the list of timesheet periods/days referenced in this email. The message you put in this section will repeat as many times as there are records that fit the criteria. Example: If there are 2 missing timesheets, the message you enter in this field will repeat twice. So please do not include any other test in this part of the reminder, other than the referential data. 
      1. Click on the information icon to view the available fields to add to the user message. 
        1. Adding a label for the field entered will show in the user message. If no label is entered, only the data will show in the message. 
          1. Example if you put {PeriodStart} - {PeriodEnd}
            1. User will see 12/01/2018 - 12/15/2018
          2. If you put Timesheet Period: {PeriodStart} - {PeriodEnd}
            1. User will see Timesheet Period: 12/01/2018 - 12/15/2018
    7. Footer: Enter in a closing message to the reminder. This is an optional field.
    8. Check Type*: Select
      1. Between Two Days: If you would like to be able to manually input the timesheet periods to include in this reminder 
      2. Current: If you want to include timesheets ONLY for the current period.
        1. For Missing Timesheet Day (Process Type) - This means today's timesheet
      3. Previous: If you want to include previous timesheet periods. 
        1. For Missing Timesheet Day (Process Type) - This means previous day
    9. Include Holiday: Select Yes or No to include Holidays Option Only for Missing timesheet Days
    10. Include Weekend: Select Yes or No to include Weekends Option Only for Missing timesheet Days
    11. Hours Type*: Option Only for Missing timesheet Days
      1. Hours
      2. Percentage of Standard Hours
      3. Percentage of Standard Hours with FTE
    12. Operator*: Select an operator for the hours type. Option Only for Missing timesheet Days
    13. Hour1*: Enter in the number of hours for your criteria above. Option Only for Missing timesheet Days
  5. Click Next to continue.
  6. On this screen, you will add query items. The query indicates what criteria must be satisfied for this alert to go out.
    1. To add a query, click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    2. Query Field*: In the drop down, select a field you would like to build your query based off of for this alert.
    3. Condition*: Select a condition
      1. In and Not In will provide a list of the available option for the field.
      2. All others, you will need to be put the exact value in order for the query to work.
    4. Value*: Enter or select the value for the query.
      1. If you are selecting a value, click on OK to save your selection.
  7. Click on Save to save your query.
  8. Click Next to continue.
  9. On this screen, you will schedule the job (Job Setup).
    1. Schedule Setup 
      1. Start Date*: Select a date you would like the alert to start
      2. End Date: Select an end date if applicable. This is an optional field and can be left blank.
      3. Interval*: Select how often you want the alert to go out. 
      4. Biweekday Frame: Select the day of the week the alert will run every other week. (Only available if you chose Biweekly as the Interval)
      5. Weekday Frame: Select the day of the week you would like this alert to go out on. You may choose more than one day. (Only available if you chose Daily as the Interval)
      6. Month Frame: Select the month (s) you would like the alert to run on. (Only available if you chose Monthly as the Interval)
      7. Day Frame: Select the date(s) of the month you would like the alert to run on. (Only available if you chose Monthly as the Interval)
      8. Time Frame*: Select the time the alert will go out.
    2. Additional Settings
      1. Data Keep Days: The number of days the system will store the instances of when the alerts were run. 
      2. Self-Clean: If you want the system to automatically clean up the instances based on the number of days entered above.
      3. With Attachments: Check this box if you would like an attachment of the log when a notification is sent.
      4. Notifyee: Email address of an admin to receive notification based on the events chosen Notify Events.
      5. Notify Events: Notification will only be sent in the case where any of the boxes are checked in this field.
      6. Time Zone*: Select a specific time zone you would like the alert to run.
      7. Date Format: Select a date format. 
      8. Skip Job Schedule: Choose a Skip Job option if set up under Job Schedule.
      9. Thread ID*: leave as default or contact support if needed.
      10. Number Format: Select a number format.
      11. Time Format: Select a time format.
      12. Job Uuid: A unique identifier assigned to each job, can used to uniquely identify specific instances of jobs to ensure that there is no duplication in scheduling.
  10. Click Save to save this alert.



Here are some examples of Time Email Alerts and how they would be set up:

Examples

Missing Timesheet (Weekly)

This example will set up on an alert on a weekly basis for timesheets that are on hold or missing. It will be set to exclude sales and development groups.

  1. Click on Admin tab at the top of the screen.
  2. On the left side of the screen, click the arrow to expand the Email Alert menu.
  3. Click on Time Alert.
  4. Click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    1. Name*: Missing Timesheet (Weekly)
    2. Process Type*: Select Missing timesheets: This will capture timesheets that have not be opened/created for the period. 
    3. Send To*: Select Employee
    4. Subject*: Please Submit your timesheet 
    5. Header: The following timesheet(s) are currently missing. Please log into Databasics and complete your timesheet(s).
    6. User Message*: Timesheet Period: {PeriodStart} - {PeriodEnd}
      1. Click on the information icon to view the available fields to add to the user message. 
      2. For Missing Timesheets these are the available fields:
        {PeriodStart}

        {PeriodEnd}

        {FullName}

        {FirstName}

        {LastName}

        {StandardHours}
      3. Adding a label for the field entered will show in the user message. If no label is entered, only the data will show in the message. 
        1. Example if you put {PeriodStart} - {PeriodEnd}
          1. User will see 12/01/2018 - 12/15/2018
        2. If you put Timesheet Period: {PeriodStart} - {PeriodEnd}
          1. User will see Timesheet Period: 12/01/2018 - 12/15/2018
    7. Footer: Thank you
    8. Check Type*: Select Previous 
  5. Click Next to continue.
  6. On this screen, you will add query items. The query indicates what criteria must be satisfied for this alert to go out.
    1. To add a query, click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    2. In the drop down, select Employee.
    3. After the Query Field is set, the wizard will let you pick a Condition. This one will have Condition set to In because we want the following employees to be included.
    4. In the Value List field, we select the employees that are to be included in this alert.
    5. Click on OK to save your select.
  7. Click on Save to save your query.
  8. Click Next to continue.
  9. On this screen, you will schedule the job (Job Setup).
    1. Schedule Setup 
      1. Start Date*: Select a date you would like the alert to start
      2. End Date: Select an end date if applicable. This is an optional field and can be left blank.
      3. Interval*: Select Daily.
      4. Weekday Frame: Select Monday
      5. Time Frame*: Select the time the alert will go out.
    2. Additional Settings
      1. Notifyee: Email address of an admin to receive notification based on the events chosen Notify Events.
      2. With Attachments: Check this box if you would like an attachment of the log when a notification is sent.
      3. Notify Events: On Error (Notification will only send when there is an error that occurs with this alert)
  10. Click Save to save this alert.


E-Mail Reminder to Managers to Approve Timesheets (Weekly)

This example will set up a reminder on a weekly basis for managers to approve timesheets.


  1. Click on Admin tab at the top of the screen.
  2. On the left side of the screen, click the arrow to expand the Email Alert menu.
  3. Click on Time Alert.
  4. Click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    1. Name*: Reminder to Managers to Approve Timesheets
    2. Process Type*: Select Existing timesheets: This will capture timesheets that have been opened at one point. All except missing timesheets will be included in this process type. 
    3. Send To*: Select Ready to approve
    4. Subject*: Reminder to Approve Timesheets 
    5. Header: Enter in a header message. This is an optional field. 
    6. User Message*: This is a reminder that there are timesheets that need to be approved.
    7. Footer: Enter in a closing message to the reminder. This is an optional field.
    8. Check Type*: Select Previous 
  5. Click Next to continue.
  6. On this screen, you will add query items. The query indicates what criteria must be satisfied for this alert to go out.
    1. To add a query, click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    2. In the drop down, select Status.
    3. After the Query Field is set, the wizard will let you pick a Condition. This one will have Condition set to In because we want the following employees to be included.
    4. In the Value List field, we select In Approval and Released that are to be included in this alert.
    5. Click on OK to save your selection.
  7. Click on Save to save your query.
  8. Click Next to continue.
  9. On this screen, you will schedule the job (Job Setup).
    1. Schedule Setup 
      1. Start Date*: Select a date you would like the alert to start
      2. End Date: Select an end date if applicable. This is an optional field and can be left blank.
      3. Interval*: Select Daily.
      4. Weekday Frame: Select Monday
      5. Time Frame*: Select the time the alert will go out.
    2. Additional Settings
      1. Notifyee: Email address of an admin to receive notification based on the events chosen Notify Events.
      2. With Attachments: Check this box if you would like an attachment of the log when a notification is sent.
      3. Notify Events: On Error (Notification will only send when there is an error that occurs with this alert)
  10. Click Save to save this alert.




E-mail Reminder to Managers to Approve Overdue Timesheets – with a Reference to Number of Days

 


 



Ready for Approval: Subject Only – means that the reference text underneath this section can be included in the “Subject” of the reminder

  1. {DaysOverdue=7}* - this would be the number of days after a timesheet was submitted to approver after which a timesheet would be considered overdue. In this example the timesheets would be overdue approval after 7 days of their submission. 7 can be replaced with a different value.
  2. {Total} - indicated total number of timesheets in an approver’s queue
  3. {Overdue} - total number of overdue timesheets in an approver’s queue. In this example those timesheets that have been sitting in the approver’s queue more than 7 days.

 *This is a required field and must be included in order for the rest of the reference fields to work properly.


Ready for Approval: Header Only - means that the reference text underneath this section can be included in the “Header” portion of a reminder

  1. {Overdue} – Total number of overdue timesheets in an approver’s queue (same definition as above)
  2. {Total} – Total number of all timesheets in an approver’s queue

 

Ready for Approval: Message Only - means that the reference text underneath this section can be included in the “User Message” portion of the email.

  1. {DaysOverdue} – The number of days a timesheet has been sitting in an approver’s queue
  2. {ReadyOn}  -Date when a timesheet was released



EXAMPLE:



Missing Time for Day

This example will set up on a daily alert for time not recorded for the prior working day for specific employees. 

  1. Click on Admin tab at the top of the screen.
  2. On the left side of the screen, click the arrow  to expand the Email Alert menu.
  3. Click on Time Alert.
  4. Click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    1. Name*: Missing Daily Time
    2. Process Type*: Select Missing timesheet days: This will capture time not entered for a working day.  
    3. Send To*: Select Employee
    4. Subject*: Please enter previous day time
    5. Header: The time has not been recorded for the day below. Please log into Databasics and complete your timesheet.
    6. User Message*: Day: {EventDate} 
      1. Click on the information icon to view the available fields to add to the user message. 
      2. For Timesheet by Day these are the available fields:
        {EventDate}

        {FullName}

        {FirstName}

        {LastName}

        {ChargeAmount}

        {RequiredAmount}

        {PeriodStart}

        {PeriodEnd}

        {Status}
        1. Adding a label for the field entered will show in the user message. If no label is entered, only the data will show in the message. 
          1. Example if you put {PeriodStart} - {PeriodEnd}
            1. User will see 12/01/2018 - 12/15/2018
          2. If you put Timesheet Period: {PeriodStart} - {PeriodEnd}
            1. User will see Timesheet Period: 12/01/2018 - 12/15/2018
          3. If you put {EventDate}
            1. User will see 04/19/2021
          4. If you put Day: {EventDate}
            1. User will see Day: 04/19/2021
    7. Footer: Thank you
    8. Check Type*: Select Previous - This means previous working day. This depends on when the weekend is set on the location set up.
    9. Include Holiday: Yes - to include time not entered on holidays
    10. Include Weekend:  No - to exclude the weekend
      1. Example:
        1. If weekend is set to Saturday/Sunday when the reminder is sent out on Monday, it will look for time on Friday of the previous week.
        2. If weekend is set to Friday/Saturday when the reminder is sent out on Monday, it will look for time on Sunday.
    11. Hours Type*: Hours (to look at the number of hours per day)
    12. Operator*: Less or Equal (<=)
    13. Hours1*: 0.00
  5. Click Next to continue.
  6. On this screen, you will add query items. The query indicates what criteria must be satisfied for this alert to go out. NOTE: If you need this to go out to all employees - the query below does not need to be added. 
    1. To add a query, click the Add button  in the toolbar.
    2. In the drop down, select Employee.
    3. After the Query Field is set, the wizard will let you pick a Condition. This one will have Condition set to In because we want the following employees to be included.
    4. In the Value List field, we select the employees that are to be included in this alert.
    5. Click on OK to save your select.
  7. Click on Save to save your query.
  8. Click Next to continue.
  9. On this screen, you will schedule the job (Job Setup).
    1. Schedule Setup 
      1. Start Date*: Select a date you would like the alert to start
      2. End Date: Select an end date if applicable. This is an optional field and can be left blank.
      3. Interval*: Select Daily.
      4. Weekday Frame: Select Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. 
      5. Time Frame*: Select the time the alert will go out.
    2. Additional Settings
      1. Notifyee: Email address of an admin to receive notification based on the events chosen Notify Events.
      2. With Attachments: Check this box if you would like an attachment of the log when a notification is sent.
      3. Notify Events: OnError (Notification will only send when there is an error that occurs with this alert)
      4. Time Zone*: Select the time zone the alert should be set if it different than the default time zone selected. 
      5. Language*: Select the language 
  10. Click Save to save this alert.


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