Productivity & teamwork

Top 14 Industries Thriving with Time Tracking & How You Can Too

12 min

Top Industries Thriving with Time Tracking & How You Can Too

Here at Memtime, we’re all about helping people get the most out of their working day. Over time, this results in hours (AND HOURS) of reclaimed time that countless people have used to be more productive at work and progress in their careers. If you’re not interested in growing professionally, how about having more time to do the things you enjoy or spend time with those you love? In short, we’re here to help you fulfill your long-term goals, no matter what they are, and if you want to call us heroes in the process then we’re OK with that.

For instance, the very fact you’re reading this introduction means you’re curious as to how time tracking software can help you and/or your company. That’s why this article will explore what industries use time tracking successfully, breaking down real-world applications of time tracking, and the resulting key benefits. The goal is to help you quickly identify how time tracking applies to your industry so you can hit the ground running. You are welcome.

So, let’s get straight down to business!

Table of Contents

#1 Marketing & advertising
#2 Legal services
#3 Accounting & finances
#4 Consultants
#5 Designers & creatives
#6 Freelancers & remote teams
#7 Software development
#8 IT services
#9 Construction sectors
#10 HR & recruitment
#11 Retail & e-commerce
#12 Government & public sectors
#13 Healthcare & pharmaceuticals
#14 Transportation & logistics

#1 Marketing & advertising

Between optimum ad placement, SEO implementation, and lead generation, on top of the small matter of engaging content creation, marketing agencies are typically spinning too many plates as it is. It's hard to keep track of what you're doing at any given moment, never mind tracking how much time you're spending on each task, no matter how small.

If you’re a leader in this space, you want to ensure that time tracking is simple and secure for your team, while gleaning accurate data and clear insights into your agency's most significant expense – work hours.

How time tracking is best used here: It might be quicker to cite where time tracking isn’t best used. The short version is it helps agencies with more accurate billing, resource allocation, budgeting and forecasting, plus the small matter of workflow optimization. It also facilitates “big picture” stuff like performance insights, better project management, and client reporting.

In short, proper use of time tracking for agencies in this space can result in your upselling of your more profitable services and growth in your delivery margins.

#2 Legal services

We have two words for you regarding how time tracking benefits the legal field – “billable” and “hours.” Not only can it help you recover billable hours, and log time quicker, but accurate time tracking also boosts law firm revenue by enabling optimal caseloads and informed strategies to increase profitability and PEP.

How time tracking is best used here: In addition to the above, time tracking can also help with overservicing/undercharging clients while cutting down on manual admin tasks. In terms of how Memtime can specifically help, it ensures that no billable minute from previous workdays is overlooked, reducing a law firm's time tracking efforts by as much as 75%.

#3 Accounting & finances

Time tracking in accounting and finances

So we know that broadly speaking, good time tracking software simplifies the process for already busy accountants and finance professionals by:

Automatically capturing activities across programs
Ensuring accurate and private timekeeping
Eliminating the need for manual tracking, thus saving time and reducing errors

Moreover, users can review more detailed timelines, convert activities into time entries, and integrate with accounting software for smooth workflow management. Much like the legal field, automated time tracking can help recover billable hours, avoid undercharging clients, and improve project planning with more precise data.

How time tracking is best used here: It can be hard to determine whether flat fees are truly profitable, especially when the time spent on a project outweighs the fee. To gain clarity, you need accurate time tracking data, which manual timers often fail to provide (assuming you remember to set one in the first place…)

#4 Consultants

The consulting world is a vast umbrella, encompassing an array of industries including IT, Operations, HR, Management, and AAALLLL the rest. What do they all have in common? Project-based billing. But is project-based billing the most efficient way to charge for your time?

How time tracking is best used here: Project-based pricing may free consultants from tracking time, but it can make project profitability vague. Automating your time tracking solves this by comparing estimated and actual hours to pinpoint the most valuable services and clients.

The benefits of using a tool like Memtime to enhance your current project time tracking setup are threefold: I mean, who doesn’t want more accurate utilization while minimizing bench time and improving profitability?!

#5 Designers & creatives

The biggest killer of creativity is the constant stream of interruptions. So. Many. Interruptions. Moreover, manual time tracking (which is only, at best, 67% accurate) typically siphons about half a day each month out of your calendar, equating to roughly four hours of non-billable administrative work per creative professional. You know as well as I do that time could be spent way more creatively elsewhere.

How time tracking is best used here: With tracking software like Memtime, designers can complete their timesheets in under five minutes a week, significantly reducing brain drain. Moreover, estimating creative projects is challenging without accurate records of past hours. Automatic time tracking provides designers with precise data, enabling better project estimates, timely delivery, and prevention of the scourge of scope creep.

#6 Freelancers & remote teams

What do freelancers and remote teams thrive on? Flexibility. Time tracking software makes it simple to record billable hours, guarantees client transparency, and aids independent contractors in understanding how they divide their time between different projects. It encourages accountability and unifies efforts for remote teams, particularly in asynchronous work settings.

How time tracking is best used here: The ideal use of time tracking software should allow independent contractors to monitor their desktop apps usage in a passive manner, reducing interruptions and increasing efficiency. For example, graphic designers can track how much time they spend on Adobe Photoshop and client communications to get a clear picture of how much time they spend on each.

On the other hand, remote teams benefit most when each member's time is automatically tracked — helping the whole team stay aligned, accountable, and productive across different time zones without needing to manually report their hours.

#7 Software development

Accurate time management is crucial for software development in order to manage sprints, meet deadlines, and increase overall productivity. Developers can keep track of how many hours they spend coding, debugging, and attending meetings with the use of time tracking tools. Allocating resources, enhancing project estimates, and meeting strict delivery deadlines all benefit greatly from these insights.

How time tracking is used here: Software development processes frequently incorporate time tracking tools. Developers working on a complex feature, for instance, can record the number of hours spent on various phases, from preliminary coding to quality assurance testing. This makes it possible for project managers to locate bottlenecks and efficiently distribute workloads.

#8 IT services

IT specialists juggle everything from system installations to troubleshooting urgent issues — often under pressure. Time tracking software brings structure to the chaos by showing exactly how long ticket resolutions take and ensuring service-level agreements (SLAs) are met. It also builds client trust by making the effort behind each fix fully transparent.

How time tracking is used here: Say a technician spends two hours fixing a server outage using remote desktop tools and internal ticketing systems — automatic tracking logs that time in the background. The result? Precise billing and accountability without manual input.

#9 Construction sectors

To say the construction industry relies heavily on efficient time management to complete projects on schedule and within budget would be something of an understatement. Time tracking software can also help with labor cost management, employee attendance monitoring, and time theft prevention.

How time tracking is used here: Employees clock in and out using on-site kiosks or mobile apps, while architects, engineers, and project managers automatically track time spent in design tools, email, and planning software — giving everyone a clear view of where the hours go.

#10 HR & recruitment

Whether you still call it “human resources”, or changed your terminology to “people and culture”, you would still utilize time tracking to monitor attendance, understand workload patterns, and gain visibility into time spent on recruiting, onboarding, and internal admin tasks. That kind of insight helps streamline operations and optimize team capacity.

How time tracking is used here: To get more granular about it, some industry-specific tracking software like BambooHR can be integrated to handle leave administration and payroll calculations.

#11 Retail & e-commerce

In this case, time tracking improves operational efficiency, minimizes downtime, and optimizes staff scheduling. It guarantees precise payroll processing and aids in performance analysis during peak-demand periods such as holiday seasons or major sales.

How time tracking is used here: To ensure compliance with labor laws, physical brick-and-mortar stores may use tools to track employee shifts and breaks. Meanwhile, e-commerce sites can track how long it takes to complete orders – which is particularly useful when you’re planning ahead to fulfil shipments for peak holiday periods.

#12 Government & public sectors

For the government and public sector, time tracking software is crucial because it helps with effective resource management, enhances accountability, and guarantees on-time service delivery. It facilitates the tracking of employee hours across departments, guaranteeing adherence to labor laws while maximizing workforce utilization.

Accurate time tracking helps more budget-sensitive industries avoid the blight of overstaffing and cut down on wasteful spending. By offering transparent insights into schedules and resource allocation, the software also simplifies project management for things like social programs, disaster response, and infrastructure development.

How time tracking is used here: Workers in the public sector can record the number of hours they spend on fieldwork, policy planning, and administrative duties using time tracking tools. These systems could be used, for example, by a city council to track the amount of time spent on community projects and make sure that deadlines are met. They also improve transparency by giving taxpayers a thorough understanding of how public funds are being spent.

#13 Healthcare & pharmaceuticals

There is nothing more critical than managing patient care schedules and allocating adequate time to undertake life-changing research and development.

How time tracking is used here: Hospitals track staff shifts to ensure proper coverage and reduce burnout, while pharmaceutical companies monitor clinical trial hours for both efficiency and regulatory compliance. This kind of tracking supports smoother operations and improves accountability in high-stakes environments.

#14 Transportation & logistics

From route optimization to driver accountability, and fleet management, time tracking ensures timely deliveries, reduces inefficiencies, and ultimately improves customer satisfaction.

How time tracking is used here: Field service workers can use a range of GPS-enabled time trackers. By way of example; a delivery company might track driver routes and time spent in transit, improving logistics and on-time delivery rates.

Other specialized sectors

As you can see, the potential for time tracking to positively impact industries is almost boundless, but we need to wrap this up. So, we’ll leave you with just a few other key fields in which time tracking can revolutionize operations.

Events & hospitality: Time tracking streamlines event planning by managing staff shifts and service times.
Service & maintenance: Technicians can log on-site hours for efficient scheduling and billing.
Gaming, Media & Entertainment: Tracking software ensures adherence to production schedules and resource management.

How time tracking helps businesses grow

There’s time tracking—and then there’s effective time tracking that lets you bolster your productivity, streamline your operations, and take back your time so you can grow as a business (or as a person).

To recap, this is how time tracking can help you to:

Put an end to undercharging customers: If your company or you charge by the hour, then how well you keep track of time determines how much money you make. Not keeping track of how much time you spend on each operation makes it easy to undercharge or overservice customers. Memtime keeps minute-by-minute records of your day to aid in recovering billables and charging clients equitably.
Claw back 30 minutes of your day: Inputting hours into your billing software, creating descriptions, and starting and pausing timers can take up a significant portion of your already hectic day. Across a month, that adds up to several hours of non-billable time lost. You can effectively put time tracking on autopilot to free up admin time and concentrate on providing value. This can translate to more than 2.5 hours of non-billable work being recovered per week.
Improve your resource planning: By way of example; accounting and CPA firms often have trouble planning projects and resources due to a lack of knowledge about utilization rates. This hinders their ability to make informed decisions. Why? Because people's ability to keep accurate time is inconsistent. You can achieve all of your deadlines and stay under budget with the help of automated time tracking, which enhances your capacity to estimate and plan resources.
Stop losing your most talented people: There's a good reason why time tracking is so universally loathed. It seems like a side hustle but without the extra pay. It can be that winning mix of intrusion and disruption. Eliminating the need to manually set timers and recall every detail is the goal of automation, and while keeping track of time shouldn't invade anyone's privacy, it should make everyone's lives easier. When time tracking supports your people instead of burdening them, they stay engaged — and that’s how teams grow together.

Wrapping up

Hopefully, this marathon article has helped you become more aware that time tracking software like Memtime is easy to use, super accurate with zero effort on your behalf, and – most importantly – respects your privacy.

Why not give it a whirl for two weeks on us, you don’t even need to submit credit card details!

Sheena McGinley

Sheena McGinley is a columnist and features writer for the Irish press since 2008. She’s also a business owner that is conscious of how time tracking can foster progress. She wrote for SaaS companies and businesses that specialize in revenue optimization by implementing processes. She has the unique ability to digest complex topics and make them easy to understand. She shares this precious skill with Memtime readers. When she's not making words work for people, Sheena can be found taking (very) brisk dips in the Irish Sea.