OTES-1733//JOURNEY MAPPING//AT&T × INFOR

Time Reporting
INFOR · Compass

A journey mapping study uncovering how AT&T field managers validate, manage, and approve technician timesheets inside the INFOR system — and where Compass can streamline the experience.

Researcher
Tim Moua
Method
Journey Mapping
Participants
6 Managers
Date
Oct 22, 2025

01 // Objectives

Research Goals

Understand the end-to-end experience of validating, managing, and approving technician timesheets within INFOR to uncover:

01

Pain points in current validation and approval workflows, especially when switching between systems.

02

Critical data needs for timesheet review and decision-making, including what users prioritize and what they find redundant.

03

Opportunities for dashboard optimization, enabling a unified and intuitive view of technician time data.

04

Notification effectiveness, including frequency, relevance, and impact on user actions.

05

Coaching enablement, identifying how Compass can support managers in addressing repeat timesheet errors.

06

AI-driven support potential, exploring how intelligent suggestions could streamline issue resolution and approvals.

02 // Method

Participants & Methodology

Managers

Locations (US Regions)
SWSEWMW
Type

6 managers (4 Ambassadors · 2 Non-Ambassadors)

Past Research

Techs

Methodology

  • › One-on-one user interviews
  • › Conducted via Microsoft Teams
  • › Recruited from Manager & Ambassador lists

03 // Summary

Executive Summary

Wins

What's Working

  • +Daily validation process ensures payroll accuracy.
  • +Managers committed to compliance and accountability.
  • +Existing reports (Hours Report) provide helpful error insights.
  • +Coaching works for occasional errors.
Losses

Pain Points

  • −INFOR to EASE sync issues cause scheduling errors.
  • −Manual, time-consuming validation (30–120 mins daily).
  • −Poor visibility of technician's vacation.
  • −Persistent system errors (new hire / code issues).
  • −Redundant approval workflow and locking steps (switch between multiple screens/applications).
  • −Errors and delays can directly impact technician pay accuracy.
Suggestions

Opportunities

  • ›Integrate AI for automation: Automatically pull metrics (ATND, VTS, scheduling data) into dashboards and forms.
  • ›Provide guided insights: Highlight which technicians need attention based on compliance and error patterns.
  • ›Enhance dashboard functionality: drill-down views, real-time alerts, and links to related tools (ESM, Map).
  • ›Improve communication tools: Enable sharing of timesheet summaries or coaching forms via email/text.
  • ›Simplify workflows: dropdown activity codes, and consolidated vacation/EPO visibility.

04 // Workflow

Manager's Daily Validation Flow

STEP 01

Arrival

  • › Managers arrive 1 hour before technicians.
  • › Open INFOR as the first task of the day.
STEP 02

Initial Check

  • › Check for errors (red X, yellow triangles) and green check marks.
  • › Goal: Ensure time entries look correct.
STEP 03

Cross-Reference

  • › Almost daily, managers redo technician time due to incorrect entries.
  • › Requires cross-referencing INFOR, MSOC, Atlas, ESM, Time Validation, Path Tracking, Maps.
STEP 04

Validate

  • › Validate clock-in/out times, meal breaks, ATND, exceptions.
  • › Goal: Avoid payroll issues and maintain compliance.
STEP 05

Hours Report

  • › Review Hours Report for technicians with < or > 40 hours, missing lunches, ATND issues, exception codes.
  • › Deadline: cleared by Monday ~11:00 AM before payday every 2 weeks.

05 // Pain Points

Errors in the Application

Errors in the Application

  • ›INFOR ↔ EASE sync issues cause scheduling errors; schedule updates don't reflect in INFOR.
  • ›Missed or incorrect lunch clock-ins are frequent and require daily fixes.

Manual, Time-Consuming Validation

  • ›Managers redo tech timesheets daily, taking 30–120 minutes.
  • ›Must jump between multiple systems/reports to find related data (e.g., ATND and technician location).

Poor Visibility of Vacation

  • ›Managers lack visibility into PTO and vacation hours, making validation difficult.
  • ›Data requires navigating multiple reports instead of being available in one view.
  • ›Causes long discussions with technicians to verify times.

Persistent System Errors

  • ›First-day error for new hires never clears, causing ongoing report issues.
  • ›Managers cannot edit timesheets after lock — delayed corrections and off-cycle checks.
  • ›Techs have a hard time finding time codes; managers do it for them.

Redundant Approval Workflow

  • ›After verifying hours, the page auto-scrolls to the top, forcing managers to find where they left off.
  • ›INFOR doesn't always track off days in a 40-hour period, showing under-hours falsely.

Pay Accuracy Risk

  • ›Valid entries sometimes flagged as errors, requiring manual deletion and re-entry.
  • ›Green check marks don't guarantee compliance (e.g., unpaid meal breaks).
  • ›The hours-worked table is inaccurate and hard to interpret.

06 // Metrics

Most Important Data When Reporting Time

01Available Time Not Dispatched (ATND).
02Clockings / time punches (start, end).
03Meal period (taken or not, lunch in/out).
04Scheduled work hours.
05Total hours worked (incl. 40-hour compliance).
06Dispatch time (first job).
07Closeout time (last job).
08Exception codes (OT, sick, exclusion time).
09Out-of-gate time and back-to-barn time.
10Time between jobs.
11Number of jobs completed.
12Efficiency metrics (HPC, MAC targets).

07 // Notifications

Alerts & Delivery

Current Process & Manager Needs

  • ›Technicians with less or more than 40 hours.
  • ›Missing or incorrectly coded lunch breaks.
  • ›Excessive Available Time Not Dispatched (ATND).
  • ›Exception codes and overtime mismatches.
  • ›Only one manager recognized and uses the bottom-right alert button.

Wanted Critical Alerts

  • ›Missed meal or rest breaks.
  • ›Timesheet changes after close or past periods (2–3 weeks old).
  • ›Technician fails to clock in/out at scheduled times.
  • ›Unapproved time or errors.
  • ›Missing exception codes.
  • ›Repeat offenders (missing lunch or coding errors).

Preferred Delivery

  • ›Email is acceptable for some managers.
  • ›In-app notifications or dashboard insights preferred.

Desired Frequency

  • ›Real-time or same-day alerts for critical issues.

08 // Coaching

Coaching Opportunities

Coaching & Education

  • ›Most managers start with coaching: remind techs to clock in/out properly.
  • ›Explain importance of coding lunch, huddle, and meeting times.
  • ›Missed lunch / forgotten huddle treated as reminders unless habitual.

Progressive Discipline

  • ›When issues persist despite training, managers escalate to formal write-ups.
  • ›Common with technicians resistant to new systems or old habits.

Mixed Views on Effectiveness

  • ›1/6 manager strongly supports coaching repeat offenders.
  • ›4/6 are okay with it, but feel it won't change behavior given the confusing tool.
  • ›1/6 feels it's not worth a coaching.

Documentation Challenges

  • ›Managers admit they don't always record coaching conversations in Compass due to time constraints.
  • ›Wishlist: automated reminders, integrated tools (EASE → INFOR), gamified training.

09 // Journey Map

AT&T INFOR — Manager Journey Map

Mission Statement

The future of INFOR (time validation) should deliver a seamless manager, time-approval experience through streamlined workflows and clear, transparent status updates.

POSITIVE
NEUTRAL
FRICTION
Phase 01

Pre-shift

Phase 02

Time Validation

Phase 03

Submit

Journey
& Thoughts
Step 01

Arrive 1 hour before technicians

Step 02

Open INFOR as first task

Step 03

Enter Teams field code to access Supervisor Approval

Step 04

Open multiple references to validate techs' time: MIGC, EASE, ESM, Time Validation, Path Tracking, Maps

Step 01

Switch INFOR to List or Calendar view to see the team's time at a glance

Step 02

Review timecard status indicators: red X, yellow triangles, green check marks

Step 03

Flip back to multiple references to validate what 'should have happened' during the shift/day

Step 04

Validate clock-in/out, meal breaks, ATND, and exceptions

Step 05

Add or correct activity codes as needed

Step 01

Confirm and submit technician's time

Step 02

Re-check and validate HOURS for missing/incorrect times

Step 03

Make final decision to Approve / Disapprove time

Pain Points
−Have to come earlier than start time to validate time and avoid technician questions.
−Enters a code just to pull up the time approval page.
−Have to pull data from various sources.
−Often needs 2–3 monitors just to view everything at once.
−EASE doesn't reliably sync from the technician's side — delays and inaccurate records.
−Two pages (list and calendar) to view technicians' timesheets.
−Some managers aren't aware that the list view exists.
−Missed or incorrect lunch clock-ins are frequent and require daily fixes.
−Green check marks don't always mean good.
−Bounces back to different systems or tools to double-check times.
−Green / yellow / red pills don't always make sense.
−Deletes all technician data if incorrect.
−Must manually fill all incorrect data from the beginning.
−Cannot track ATND and lunch hours without digging into MIGC.
−Must manually insert activity codes.
−Have to memorize or know activity codes by heart.
−No easy access to view activity codes.
−Misunderstanding and lack of knowledge in the different activity codes.
−Must hit submit for each time change or will lose data.
−Has to scroll back to where the manager left off after every save.
Opportunities
›Open directly to timesheets — no code entry required.
›Consolidate key time and performance data into a single, unified view to eliminate switching between platforms.
›Open to a single dashboard that displays technician time, with simple controls to switch views as needed.
›Ensure time data syncs accurately with DMS and refreshes frequently.
›Create a clear, easy-to-read status pill for timesheet indicators (green / yellow / red).
›At-a-glance visibility: ATND, breaks (start/end), meal periods, scheduled vs. total hours worked.
›Provide a list view for a simple list to quickly access and add activity codes.
›Create an in-tool glossary/dictionary so managers can quickly understand activity codes.
›Auto-save every time entry/edit so managers don't have to manually save each change.
›Prevent the page from jumping back to the top after a save — keep the manager at the same scroll position.
›Add an Hours report directly within the dashboard that surfaces missing or incorrect time entries, reducing reliance on email follow-up.

10 // AI

User's AI Suggestions

Real-Time Error Resolution

  • ›AI chat assistant: 'I have this error code — what's the fix?'
  • ›Automated troubleshooting guidance for common issues.

Proactive Alerts & Reminders

  • ›Notifications for pending time edits, missed clock-ins/outs, ATND > 45 mins.
  • ›Daily summary of unresolved issues.

Smart Scheduling

  • ›Detect incomplete schedules (under/over 40 hours).
  • ›Suggest adjustments based on off-days and workload.
  • ›Auto-build compliant schedules when gaps are detected.

Technician-Level Flags

  • ›Real-time prompts for techs: missing lunch/huddle, incorrect codes.
  • ›Reduces manager workload by preventing errors at entry.

Automated Validation

  • ›AI cross-checks time reported vs. VTS vs. job data.
  • ›Highlights discrepancies and suggests fixes.

Coaching Support

  • ›AI-generated messages for technicians for minor errors.
  • ›Reinforces compliance without manager intervention.

11 // Conclusion

Final Statements

This research revealed that while managers value the timesheet reporting tools, inefficiencies and visibility gaps within INFOR continue to create manual burden, delays, and payment risks.

By aligning these insights with our research goals, we identified key opportunities to:

01

Reduce pain points through automation and improved UI with guided insights that simplify validation and approvals.

02

Surface critical data in unified dashboards that enhance visibility into technician schedules, PTO, metrics, and errors.

03

Strengthen notification + communication effectiveness for faster, more informed decision-making.

04

Enable coaching, helping managers proactively address repeat issues and streamline reviews.

Takeaway

The findings highlight a clear path toward a more integrated, intelligent, and user-friendly timesheet experience within Compass — supporting both business oversight and technician efficiency.

Back to Work

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