Bloomsbury FC

Client Background

Bloomsbury Football is a London-based grassroots football charity dedicated to providing opportunities for children from 18 months to 18 years, to engage in football activities. The organization has a vast network of volunteer coaches who dedicate their time to train and mentor young players. However, the existing manual timesheet process was time-consuming and prone to errors, resulting in increased administrative overhead.

Project Goals

The primary objectives of the software delivery project were as follows:

Automate Time Tracking

Develop an application that reduces (or eliminates) the need for manual timesheet entry and automates the process of tracking and logging coaches’ working hours.

Cost Reduction

Streamline administrative tasks associated with time tracking, reducing the need for manual data entry and minimizing the risk of errors.

User-Friendly Experience

Create a user-friendly interface that simplifies the process of entering working hours, ensuring coaches can efficiently log their time without significant effort.

Project Execution

The project delivery was completed following the Agile methodology, using the Scrum framework, with iterative sprints, regular interaction from the client and scaleable cutting-edge technology. The project team consisted of software developers, UX/UI designers, Product Owner, Scrum Master and QA testers. The development phases included:

Requirement Gathering

Detailed discussions were conducted with the client’s stakeholders to understand their specific needs, pain points, and desired features for the timesheet entry, formulated into a Product Backlog and an agreed MVP delivery for phase 1.

Design and Prototyping

The UX/UI designers created wireframes and interactive prototypes to visualize the application’s user interface, ensuring it aligned with the client’s requirements. The design phase involved feedback and iterations to optimize the user experience.

Development

The development team utilized modern technologies and frameworks to build the timesheet entry application. The application featured a responsive web interface accessible from both desktop and mobile devices.  Testing is included in this phase, as the delivery was completed using Behavioural Driven Development, meaning Customer and system behaviours were captured as requirements in the form of machine-readable scripts used as the basis of unit tests, against which working code is written (example below).

Deployment and Training

After thorough testing and client approval, the application was deployed as a production system, following the CI/CD principle meaning small regular changes with zero system downtime become the norm rather than large periodic “releases”. Training sessions were conducted by the developers of the system, to familiarize coaches with the application and its features.

Technical Delivery and Cost Reduction 

The project achieved cost reduction and streamlined user experience through several technical solutions:

Automated Time Tracking

The timesheet entry application eliminated the need for manual data entry by automatically recording the coaches’ working hours based on predefined schedules and attendance records. This reduced the administrative burden and minimized errors.

Integration with Payroll System

The application seamlessly integrated with the organization’s payroll system, eliminating the need for manual data transfer. This automation reduced the effort and potential mistakes associated with payroll processing.

Notifications and Reminders

The application implemented automated notifications and reminders to coaches, ensuring they promptly logged their working hours. This reduced delays and improved data accuracy.

Real-Time Reporting

The application provided real-time reporting capabilities, allowing administrators to monitor and analyze coaches’ time usage efficiently. This data-driven approach facilitated better decision-making and resource allocation.

Results and Benefits

The implementation of the timesheet entry application yielded the following outcomes:

Time and Cost Savings

The automation of time-tracking processes reduced administrative overhead significantly. Manual data entry and reconciliation efforts were minimized, leading to cost savings.

Improved Accuracy/Reduced Admin Support

By removing manual intervention, the application eliminated errors associated with manual timesheet entries reducing the time spent for system administrators to correct errors.