Timecard Approval and Timesheet Audit Playbook

Time approval is a control system, not a formality.

This playbook installs a weekly approval and audit process that prevents:

• inflated hours
• unapproved overtime
• duplicated time entries
• charging time without deliverables

What you will produce

1. Weekly time approval cadence
2. Audit rules and exception triggers
3. Dispute workflow for corrections
4. Time review dashboard fields

Weekly approval cadence

• Worker submits time weekly
• Manager approves within a set window
• Exceptions trigger audit review
• Corrections are tracked to closure

Audit triggers

Use simple triggers that catch most issues:

• overtime without pre-approval
• repeated maximum hours patterns
• weekend hours without a reason
• time charged with vague descriptions
• overlapping time blocks

Templates

A) Weekly time approval checklist (copy and paste)

Copyable template (TEXT)
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Weekly Time Approval Checklist

Worker:
Week ending:

- Hours match expected schedule
- Overtime is pre-approved
- Time descriptions are specific
- Work delivered aligns to time charged
- No duplicate or overlapping entries

Decision:
- Approve
- Reject and request correction
- Escalate for audit

B) Timesheet audit log (copy and paste)

Copyable template (TEXT)
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Timesheet Audit Log

| Worker | Vendor | Week ending | Issue | Dollars at risk | Owner | Status | Resolution |
| ------ | ------ | ---------- | ----- | --------------: | ----- | ------ | ---------- |

C) Correction request (copy and paste)

Copyable template (TEXT)
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Subject: Timesheet correction required

Hi [Name],

We reviewed your time submission for week ending [date] and need corrections before approval.

Issue:
[Describe issue]

Requested change:
[Describe change]

Please resubmit by [date].

Thank you,
[Name]

Common failure modes

• approvals happen late, after invoices are submitted
• no audit triggers exist, so abuse is invisible
• disputes are not tracked, so dollars are not recovered