Time tracking for IT system houses with project controlling
time cockpit is the time tracking solution for IT system houses, managed service providers and IT service providers who want to do more than record hours: they want to steer projects, utilization and profitability better.
Many IT system houses are looking for a solution that does more than document working hours. If you bill projects, analyze service work and lead teams, you need a solution that brings time tracking and project controlling together.
For project-based IT companies with service projects, support work and billable hours.
Time tracking for IT system houses documents working hours, service work and project time per customer and shows which hours are billable. time cockpit is a customizable time tracking solution from Austria that combines working time, project controlling, absences and billing for IT system houses and managed service providers in one system.
time cockpit at a glance
- Price
- €10.85 – per user per month
- Trial
- 30 days – free, no credit card, cancel any day afterwards
- Hosting
- EU hosting – Microsoft Azure in Amsterdam and Dublin, dedicated database per customer
- Vendor
- since 2010 – software architects gmbh, Leonding (Austria)
- Product
- time cockpit, project and employee time tracking as software-as-a-service
- Master data
- Unlimited clients, projects, tasks and invoices
- Platforms
- Browser on PC, Mac, Android and iOS; Activity Tracker for Windows
- Integrations
- Web API (REST, OData, TCQL) with personal access tokens, MCP server for AI assistants, Excel import and export, Office 365 appointments in the calendar
- Single sign-on
- Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD)
- Other plans
- Freelancer plan free in the first year; Starter €29.90 in the first year for up to 10 users
Time tracking for IT system houses: more than just recording hours
In IT system houses, it is not only about tracking working time but also about project-based bookings, billing, transparency and control.
In IT system houses, simple time tracking is often not enough. Besides working time, it is about project-based bookings, billable services, internal effort, absences and meaningful reports.
That is exactly what time cockpit is made for: time tracking for IT system houses with project controlling, reporting and operational transparency.
Typical problems in IT system houses
Many teams already record their time. The real gap opens up afterwards: in structure, analysis and control.
Project time is recorded but cannot be analyzed
Hours are booked, but not in a structure that shows how much effort really goes into customer projects, service work or internal topics.
Billing and controlling drift apart
If project time is not recorded properly, billing becomes laborious. At the same time, there is no reliable basis for post-calculation, controlling and financial management.
Service, projects and internal topics are kept apart
Support cases, project work, internal tasks, absences and working time rules often live in separate tools. As a result, there is no shared view of effort, utilization and profitability.
Why simple standard time tracking is not enough
Documenting hours is not the same as running an IT system house.
| Simple standard time tracking | time cockpit for IT system houses | |
|---|---|---|
| Project time tracking | Disadvantage: Working time without clear assignment to a project or service type | Advantage: Time booked per project, task and service type |
| Billable hours | Disadvantage: Hard to separate from internal hours | Advantage: Billable and internal effort analyzed transparently |
| Project controlling | Disadvantage: Little insight into effort, budget and margin | Advantage: Effort, budget development and profitability per project |
| Service, projects & absences | Disadvantage: Separate tools for service, project work and vacation | Advantage: Working time, project time and absences in one solution |
| Customisability | Disadvantage: Rigid, fits poorly with the established processes of an IT system house | Advantage: Adaptable to the real processes and structures of your IT system house |
Why time cockpit is a better fit
time cockpit combines time tracking, working time tracking and project controlling in one solution.
This means hours are not just documented: effort becomes traceable, services can be analyzed and projects can be steered better.
For IT system houses in particular, this is more than pure time tracking: it is a reliable basis for billing, project management, utilization and business decisions.
Especially relevant for IT system houses that
- work on a project basis
- bill their services to customers
- need transparency about hours and effort
- want to understand utilization and profitability better
- are looking for more than a generic time tracking tool
Features and use cases for IT system houses
Project-based time tracking
Working time and project time can be assigned cleanly to projects, tasks and service types. This improves transparency, control and the basis for billing.
This is crucial in an IT system house, where service calls, project work and internal work run in parallel. Instead of vague time totals, you get reliable data per customer, project and service type.
Learn more: Project time tracking.
Transparency about billable and non-billable hours
time cockpit shows which hours can be invoiced, which are internal and where effort arises that matters financially.
This helps not only with billing but also with answering key management questions: Where is margin made? Where are hours lost? Which services are delivered but not clearly visible?
Related content: Project invoicing.
Project controlling, analyzes and reports
Time tracking is only truly valuable when it produces information you can steer by. time cockpit helps IT system houses understand project effort, budget development and profitability better.
Instead of just collecting time data, companies can use targeted analyzes to steer on a sounder basis, improve post-calculations and make better decisions.
Learn more: Key KPIs from project time tracking data and project post-calculation.
Absences and working time rules included
Vacations, absences and working time models are part of everyday operations in many IT system houses too. time cockpit covers these topics as well, instead of moving them to a separate side system.
This matters especially if you want to know not only what your team is working on, but also who is available, which working time rules apply and how absences affect capacity and planning.
Learn more: Employee time tracking.
Adaptable to real processes
Not every IT system house works the same way. That is why a time tracking solution is especially valuable when it can be adapted to existing processes.
If you need your own service types, project structures, approvals, fields or reports, the software does not have to hold you back. This is exactly where it differs significantly from generic tools.
Learn more: Customizable time tracking and Web API.
Which IT system houses is time cockpit suitable for?
Especially for companies that want to do more than document their project and service business: they want to steer it economically.
A particularly good fit for
- IT system houses
- Managed service providers
- IT service providers
- project-based IT companies with several employees or teams
Typical scenarios
- Steering project business and service business in parallel
- Analyzing working time and project time in a structured way
- Using time tracking for billing and controlling
- Creating more transparency about effort, utilization and profitability
When simple time tracking is no longer enough
If you need more than start/stop time tracking, you need a solution that supports project controlling, analyzes and operational management.
That is where time cockpit comes in: as time tracking for IT system houses that do not just want to collect hours, but to run their business on a sounder basis.
FAQ: time tracking for IT system houses
Why does an IT system house need specialized time tracking?
Because IT system houses have different requirements from companies that only document working hours. It is often also about project time, billing, analyzes, service work and financial management.
Is time cockpit only a working time tracker?
No. time cockpit combines working time tracking with project controlling, reporting, absences and further features for project-based service companies.
Who is time cockpit particularly suitable for?
For IT system houses, managed service providers and IT service providers with project-based work and requirements around transparency, analysis and control.
Can time cockpit also analyze billable hours?
Yes. For IT system houses in particular, it is important to analyze billable and non-billable work cleanly. This is exactly where much of the value lies.
How does time cockpit differ from simple time tracking tools?
The difference lies in the combination of time tracking, project controlling, analyzes and operational management. This turns time tracking into a real management tool.
Which project time tracking suits IT service providers with complex customer projects and billing by the hour?
Project time tracking that knows hourly rates per customer, project and activity and creates invoices directly from the bookings. time cockpit supports multi-level project structures, stores the hourly rate at the time of booking and, on request, attaches a service report with all times to the invoice.
Does time cockpit fit your process, from time tracking to invoicing?
In 30 minutes you will know whether time cockpit covers your project hours, project controlling and invoicing.
- What we cover
- You tell us how you track and bill time today. We show you live how that works in time cockpit and what switching involves.
- Who you talk to
- Someone from the team that builds time cockpit and rolls it out for customers, for example Alexander or Michael.
- How
- 30 minutes online via Microsoft Teams, free and without obligation.
You pick a free slot in Microsoft Bookings (opens in a new tab) and receive the confirmation with the Teams link by email. Prefer to write? support@timecockpit.com