How to Get Ready for a DCAA Audit

How to Prepare for a DCAA Audit

Both the Department of Defense (DoD) and NASA are very significant parts of the overall United States government. As this part of the government handles some very important tasks, they are required to outsource a lot of work each year to independent companies that will enter into contracts. As part of any contract, you will be required to allow for audits to be completed by the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA). There is a lot that should be understood about what is involved and how to prepare for a DCAA Audit

What Triggers a DCAA Audit?

The DCAA contract audits can take place from time to time for any business. There are various factors that can trigger an audit to take place. Many of the times, you will go through a routine audit process that is completed based on a random draw. You may also be selected for an audit if you have not gone through one in several years or are in a new contract. The DCAA may also select your organization for these audits if there are any inconsistencies or red flags in the materials that have been presented.

What Do They Look for in a DCAA Audit?

There are various forms of audits that the DCAA can test, which can vary based on the types of services and cost structure of your business. Some of the most common forms of DCAA audits include forward pricing, incurred cost, and compensation and benefits audits. These cost-reimbursement contracts for compensation and materials continue to be among the most common.

During these audits, the DCAA will look to validate the information you have submitted as part of a reimbursement. This can include making sure that you have proper invoices and payroll records set forth. Generally, the DCAA will ensure that you have the proper equipment and software in place to comply with these types of contracts before the contract even begins. Hour Timesheet offers a variety of services that can help ensure you are properly documenting this information and are prepared for the upcoming audit.

How to Prepare for a DCAA Audit

Going through a DCAA audit can be a stressful experience. However, these types of audits do not need to be stressful for government contractors.Eventually, they can even feel quite routine and the use of products and services offered by Hour Timesheet can be helpful as well. There are various tips that can help you properly prepare for these audits.

Keep Current Books and Records

One of the best ways that you can prepare for these audits is to ensure that you are always ready for them to walk in. This part of the process should include making sure that your books and records are updated in real-time, that you spend the time necessary to double-check reports before sending them out, and that you have a process in place to gather information and reports when needed for an audit. Luckily, Hour Timesheet’s time tracking software integrates directly with QuickBooks, Gusto and ADP systems, which makes payroll and accounting processes much easier.

Audit Yourself

When you want to make sure that you are prepared for one of these audits, another great tip to follow is to audit yourself and your company from time to time. Anyone that has gone through a DCAA audit will know what they are looking for. Establishing a regular internal audit process to copy this process will benefit your organization in several ways. A proper internal audit of your records will ensure your books and records are in good order, that your team members are prepared, and that you will receive good results when the time comes. To make it even easier, use a DCAA compliance checklist, and keep track of areas where you excel, and where you can improve.

Ultimately, all government contractors should be prepared for an audit at all times. While this can seem like a stressful experience to go through, those that are prepared will have received much better overall results. Reach out to Hour Timesheet today to learn more about how we can help you prepare for a DCAA Audit

Guide to Incurred Cost Submissions

A Guide to Incurred Cost Submissions

Obtaining a contract with the Department of Defense (DoD) can be a great win for any business. When you do have a contract with the DoD, you can typically expect that it will be long-lasting and provide you with a good revenue stream. As part of signing any DoD contract, you will need to fully understand your requirements for seeking reimbursement for costs. Part of this can include knowing how to follow the proper protocol for incurred cost submissions.

Why Do You Need to Submit Incurred Costs?

The DoD frequently has contracts with companies that will provide a reimbursement for costs incurred by the company. This can include wages, benefit allocations, material and inventory costs, and other expenses related to providing the product or service. Due to the size of the DoD, they frequently partner with the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) for routine and targeted audits. These audits will seek to ensure that the incurred costs were filed properly and accurately. This is why companies who work on government contracts must ensure that all processes remain DCAA compliant, in the case that an audit is performed.

What Are Examples Of Incurred Costs?

When you are going to submit an incurred cost report, it is important to know what costs are frequently included. In general, incurred costs should be any costs that were necessary for you to provide the DoD with the agreed products or services. These can include direct costs such as labor, benefits, and materials. It can also include indirect costs such as allocation of overhead spending, security, and administration. The programs offered by Hour Timesheet can help you better understand what your incurred costs are, by making it easier for employees and contractors to track the proper time. Plus, Hour Timesheet integrates directly with QuickBooks , Gusto and ADP, to make payroll and accounting processes more efficient.

Who Is Required To Submit An Incurred Cost Submission?

An incurred cost submission is generally required for any vendor that performs services for the DoD. There are carve-outs for this requirement that could change your requirement based on the type of contract that you have in place. Most of the time, you will need to have these reports sent in by June 30 following the end of the prior fiscal year.

What Needs To Be Included In The Submission?

The purpose of the submission is to ensure that you are reimbursed for any costs that you incurred for providing the service to the DoD. You should always include all direct costs and provide any information that you have to support your expenses. This typically will largely include receipts from inventory suppliers as well as payroll registers. The products and services offered by Hour Timesheet can help make it easier to keep records and stay DCAA compliant while ensuring the right information is included in your cost submission.

There are also going to be indirect costs that can be harder to allocate. For these, it is important to list all of your indirect costs and also complete any supporting schedules that are needed to validate the costs you incurred as well as the fair amount to have reimbursed for the DoD.

What Happens If I Am Audited By The DCAA?

The DCAA frequently audits vendors. These can be random, targeted, or completed on vendors that have not gone through the process in a while. A large part of the process for a DCAA audit will aim to verify that the internal cost submissions were fair and accurate. To ensure that you are prepared, you should always keep your records and supporting schedules handy so you are able to answer any questions that can arise. Completing your own internal audits can also help with overall preparation. If you’re not sure your company meets DCAA compliance requirements, Hour Timesheet offers resources to help.

Ultimately, having a contract with the Department of Defense can be a great deal for any business. While there are a lot of opportunities to grow with the DoD, the contracts can be complicated and often require that you send in an incurred cost submission at least once per year. This will be a large factor in determining the revenue you receive as part of the contract. When you need help with your incurred cost submissions or any other support with your DoD contract, contact Hour Timesheet to learn how we can help your company with DCAA compliance.

Online Employee Time clock

Guide to Online Employee Time Clocks

Having a remote workforce is the new “normal” in today’s environment which creates new challenges in workforce management. Enter Hour Timesheet Mobile, it provides a secure, reliable, and accurate way to allow employees and contractors an easy way to clock in and out as well as document time away from “their desk”.

Who Needs Hour Timesheet Mobile Time Clock?

Any organization with mobile and remote employees who no longer have access to a physical time clock.

Organizations who have workers that travel as part of their job.

Organizations looking to track job cost at the web clock interface.

Simplify Punching In and Out and Streamline Your Payroll Work-Flow Processes

Our online employee time clock includes various features allowing management to streamline the employee’s timecard data.

1.     Clock-in/Clock-out

2.     Add Project Hours

3.     Add Leave Hours

4.     Add Timesheet Notes

5.     Access to Leave Balance Data

HTS can help your organization with the 5 C’s.

COMPLIANCE. The online employee time clock makes tracking breaks and overtime easy. That helps you stay compliant with state, federal, and municipal regulations.

COMMUNICATION Keep abreast of what is going on even when you are not there in person. The online employee time clock will provide alerts when employees fail to show up for shifts or when they’re approaching overtime.

COST. Track job cost and have access to real-time reports to help you evaluate your overhead cost associated with absence time and overtime.

CALCULATIONS Our online employee time clock does the busy work of calculating time cards for you. The includes regular and overtime hours worked, paid time off hours, and more. Our app will save you valuable time by computing your timecards automatically. Your timesheets will start to reflect your payroll expenses.

CONNECTIONS Hour Timesheets offers various reporting formats for payroll, including Excel and CSV export, PDF, or more simply a paper copy. Our time clock system can easily integrate with various well-known payroll providers, including QuickBooks , Gusto and ADP.

Online Employee Time Clock

If you’re tired of having to wade through the mountains of timecards and reports regularly, then now’s the time to join the 21st century with Hour Timesheet’s Online Employee Time Clock.  Our easy-to-use application offers a multitude of features and is highly customizable. Your employees do not require training to use the application, and there is no hardware required either. It really could not get any easier.

Time Is Money And Every Minute Counts

Contact Hour Timesheet today to learn more about our app.

Time Keeping Software for Lawyers

When selecting timekeeping software for your law firm, it can be tough to know which specific features you need to keep your business running smoothly. In the past, timekeeping software for lawyers was tracked on paper timesheets. This was followed by an arduous back-and-forth exchange between a client and law firm. After weeks and multiple revisions, the billable time would be manually entered into the firm’s billing system. It wasn’t a very efficient process, but it was the only one available.

Even today, lawyers are repeatedly told to track time accurately; all billable activities should be recorded as soon as they occur. This wasn’t a realistic option given that many billable activities occur outside of the office until mobile time tracking. Then everything changed!

At Hour Timesheet, our solution is simple. We offer timekeeping software for lawyers that is quick and easy to use while helping increase your efficiency. Your billable hours are more accurate and your payroll integration is smoother thanks to us, Hour Timesheet.

Mobile Access

Whether you’re driving to your client’s office or walking down the block to join them for a meeting, having mobile access to your office software makes things less stressful. Hour Timesheet offers timekeeping software for lawyers through our timesheet app. These mobile time-tracking tools make it possible to track your time and enter them simultaneously. Thereby ensuring that you capture—and charge for—all of your billable time. Hour Timesheet’s mobile app is a real-time project management app that includes employee scheduling, a time clock app, and easy-to-use timesheet software. The app will allow you to:

Track billable hours

Track employee time at work and home (remote)

Track time against overhead and G&A

Track employee locations

    Highly Accurate

    Hour Timesheet has a strong industry-wide reputation for providing its legal clients with an accurate paperless audit log for all time and timesheet edits. This will include everything from a detailed activity log, including username, IP address, time, date stamp, hours worked, and paid time off entries. Privacy settings will also give you the ability to limit employees only to see charge codes they are authorized to use.

    By adhering to strict tracking guidelines, you’ll maintain a good relationship with agencies you want to work with in the future. There will be no delayed payments to your company, and you’re more likely to get future contracts. You’re also more likely to have transparent operations within the company overall.

    It’s crucial to keep and maintain transparent, straightforward timesheets for each employee, timesheets that document their working hours.

    Seamless Integrations

    Hour Timesheet timekeeping software enjoys plenty of payroll integrations with QuickBooks, Gusto, ADP, Paychex, and Insperity. With just a few clicks, it can keep track of your billable and non-billable hours. The era of charging errors, lost timesheets, the shock of overtime, and manual entry mistakes are gone. Thanks to payroll integrations, these types of errors are a thing of the past. Simple payroll integration is critical to the smooth operation of your legal business. Hour Timesheet will let you export your information directly to your chosen payroll software with a simple click.

    Timekeeping Software for Lawyers with Hour Timesheet

    The once tedious task of keeping track of your time using pen and paper is a thing of the past. Now lawyers can use timekeeping software from their computers and download an app to their mobile phone. They can seamlessly integrate payroll software such as QuickBooks or Paychex to track billable and non-billable hours. Additionally, Hour Timesheet is DCAA compliant, providing its legal clients with the necessary audit log. Hour Timesheet is the timekeeping software designed with lawyers in mind. Contact us to learn more.

    ADP Timesheet Integration

    DCAA Compliant Timesheet Integration with QuickBooks and ADP

    Three Solutions Working Together – If you use ADP Run, ADP Total Source or ADP Workforce Now as your payroll provider and do your invoicing in QuickBooks, you’re in luck. The Hour Timesheet integration with QuickBooks and ADP is simple and fully DCAA Compliant. This time tracking software gives you everything you need to track time & attendance, create invoices, and do payroll in minutes without having to key in data.

    Hour Timesheet includes a feature-rich time and attendance solution and mobile functionality that is geared for small businesses. Our SaaS solutions give your organization affordable, easy-to-use web-based solutions. Plus, our timekeeping software is fully DCAA compliant. Our professional services are designed to help your time tracking and accounting stay organized and prepared in the event of a DCAA audit.

    Main Features & Benefits of Hour Timesheet Payroll Integration

    Mobile App (iOS and Android) –Hour Timesheet offers mobile time tracking in the Hour Timesheet Mobile App. As a result, Hour Timesheet integration with QuickBooks and ADP is easier than ever.

    Managing Employee Leave – Manage leave balances, track leave or time off requests, and more directly in Hour Timesheet’s software. All data is stored and tracked, and easily transferable between platforms.

    Manage Overtime Hours- Aside from tracking regular hours and job performance, the time tracking software complies with all DOL overtime regulations.

    Job Costing – Track and manage job costs, labor costs, and other information directly on the platform. You can view employee profiles, job codes, and other payroll processes.

    Quick Access to Time Cards – Hour Timesheet is a SaaS solution, so employee timesheets are stored safely. To-the-second, real-time data is ready and available on the cloud whenever you need it. Hour Timesheet makes extra efforts to ensure all employee time entries are accurate, on time, and employee attendance can improve.

    Daily Time Entry Reminders – Hour Timesheet uses daily reminders and notifications to ensure all employees are tracking time as they’re doing it, rather than after the fact.

    Location Tracking – Available on the Hour Timesheet mobile app, managers can keep track of employee location when working at home or off-site.

    Quick Payroll Processing – With Hour Timesheet and ADP Platform integration, you eliminate the double-entry of data and ensure that your staff is paid accurately and on time.

    Time To Eliminate Data Entry For Good – The QuickBooks “one-click” sync imports employee data and customer/job data into Hour Timesheet for quick employee profile setup. No more manual data entry for every new job or contract.


    Decades of Experience At Your Fingertips

    The 25 years of experience you get by choosing Hour Timesheet means that you’ll have experienced, knowledgeable customer service at your fingertips. We’re always ready and eager to help you troubleshoot your way through any problem or figure out new ways we can help your business succeed! Even if you’re not a government contractor looking to achieve DCAA compliance and prepare for DCAA audits, Hour Timesheet can help your business save time. If you’re unsure, request a demo today to see what Hour Timesheet can do for your business.

    Detailed Audit Trail

    Daily Timesheet Reminders

    Correction Timesheet Workflow

    Required Reason for late or edited entries

    Supervisor Approvals

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