Introduction

The Strategy and Technology Office, along with our partners in MNIT, is excited to introduce a new option for Time Reporting in SSIS. As part of continuous improvement and modernization efforts, we’ve developed a Time Entry Web App, available through your browser or mobile device. In this video, we’ll walk through how to access the web app and explore some of the new features. 

Access and login 

Let’s start by logging in for the first time. Open the browser on your computer or mobile device and enter https://time.ssis.mn.gov in the address field.  

Next, click “Login with Microsoft.” Enter your SSIS user ID with “@partner.mn.gov” at the end, then click “Next”. Type in your SSIS password and click “Sign in”. 

The first time you log in, you’ll need to choose your agency’s database from the drop-down field. Once you’ve selected it, click “Continue” to open the time entry screen. 

If you ever need to change the database, click on your initials in the top right corner to view the menu options. From the menu, choose “Change Database”, then pick from the list. 

Keep in mind, if you don’t use the web app for 15 minutes, you’ll be logged out. After 13 minutes, a message will warn you, giving you time to refresh before that happens. 

Now that we’re logged in, let’s talk about some of the changes and new features in the web app. 

What’s new in time entry 

The first thing to notice is a change in the Date field. By default, it will show the current date and 12:00 AM for the time. But there’s a new feature built into the field. We’ve added the ability to enter “natural text” to reference a date. For example, you can enter “two days ago” or “last week” and the web app will fill in the date for you. Of course, you can still manually enter a date using the two-digit month, two-digit day, and four-digit year format, or use the calendar to pick it as well. 

Drop-Down fields 

As we scroll down, let’s look at the drop-down fields. These now include little directions that guide you, like letting you know if another field needs to be selected first. You’ll also see short descriptions in other fields. 

Another new feature is the ability to search a drop-down. You can type either part of the text or, if you know it, the code for the option. As you type, the list narrows down to match. For example, as we type “family” into the Service drop-down, the list narrows to only display options with “Family” in the text. 

As we continue, you’ll see an “X” appear to the right of the field. Clicking it will reset that field and any fields dependent on it. Let’s choose a Workgroup, Service and Activity. If we reset Workgroup with the “X,” the dependent fields, including Program, Service, and Activity reset too. Fields like Duration, Note, and Purpose stay the same, so you’ll want to double-check those if you reset any fields. 

Next, we’ll look at the Regarding and Allocate Time areas. 

Regarding and Allocate Time 

In the Regarding area, when you add more than one person, the Duration is split evenly, just like in SSIS. However, there are changes to how Allocate time works in the web app. 

If you look at the bottom of the Regarding section after clicking “Allocate time”, you’ll see a message explaining the difference. In SSIS, if you change the time allocated to a participant and click “Calculate”, SSIS updates the time allocated to the other selected participants. However, with the web app, as you change the allocated time, the Duration field updates with the new total. 

For example, if you change the time for one person, the total Duration updates to match. When you click “Done”, the “Duration” field above updates as well. You’ll even see a confirmation message stating “Duration was updated to reflect the allocated time”. 

But, if we go back and update the “Duration”, the allocated time for each person gets updated as well. Doing this will prompt the message “Time allocations were reset because the duration was changed”. 

Notes 

The last change we’ll look at is the Note field. You’ll see a button with four arrows pointing outward in the top right. Click that to expand the Note box to full screen. This makes it easier to see when you’re typing longer notes. When you’re done, just hit the Escape key or click the button again to shrink it back down. 

Completing the entry 

Let’s fill in the rest of this entry and scroll to the bottom. There you’ll see two options: Reset or Submit. If you try to submit but missed a required field,, the web app will take you to the first missing field with a red warning underneath it. If everything is complete, you’ll see a success message and a button to create a new record. The button resets the form so you can start fresh. Clicking the Reset button does the same thing, but without saving the entry. 

Logging out and exiting the web app 

After completing your entries and when you’re ready to log out, go back to your initials in the top right, open the menu, and choose Logout. You’ll then pick the account to sign out of. For extra security, it’s a good idea to close the web app by closing the browser tab, or all tabs if you’ll no longer be using the browser. Depending on your settings, you may only need to enter your password next time. 

Before we finish, let’s take a quick look at the mobile version. 

Web App Mobile Version 

One benefit of the web app is that you can save it to the home screen on your mobile device. To do so, check out the SSIS Worker Documentation page under the “SSIS Time Web App” section. 

The mobile version works the same way as the browser version, but with just a few differences, such as tapping instead of clicking. Another difference is that if you open the web app from your home screen, it will remember your username unless you specifically tell the web app to forget it. You may also notice that there’s no address bar if you open it from your home screen. 

Otherwise, the mobile version has all the features and benefits found in the browser version: the “natural text”, drop-down searches, the “X” buttons, Duration updates, and the option to create a new entry once you’ve submitted the last one. 

You’ll also log out the same you would in the browser, by tapping your initials in the top right, and choosing Logout. For security purposes, you’ll also want to make sure you close the web app by closing your mobile browser tabs or “hard closing” the web app using the process specific to your mobile device. 

Finishing up 

That’s it for the new time entry web app! Other than the changes we just covered, the process is pretty much the same as before—only now it’s easier and more flexible. For more documentation, including how to add the web app to your desktop or mobile device, go to the SSIS Worker Documentation site and find “SSIS Time Entry Web App”. 

If you have any problems, contact your mentor or supervisor first. If you’re a mentor or supervisor, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click “Contact Us” to send an email to the SSIS Help Desk.  

This is just the beginning. We’ll be adding more features in the future, and we’ll share new videos to walk you through them. 

We’d love to hear your feedback and ideas! Visit the Time Entry Transformation Engagement HQ website to sign up and share your ideas. 

Thanks for watching!