Tracking R&D time: why Excel puts your funding at risk

Introduction

In research and development laboratories, tracking the time spent on scientific projects is often viewed as a secondary administrative task.

Yet it plays a strategic role.

Whether for managing projects, justifying public funding, or promoting scientific activity, tracking R&D work hours is becoming a major challenge.

And yet, in many laboratories, this tracking relies on a simple… Excel spreadsheet.

A simplistic choice that can quickly become a risk for project and funding management.

01 | Why time tracking is strategic in R&D

In a laboratory, scientists devote their time to a wide range of activities:

• experiments
• analyzing results
• writing reports
• scientific meetings
• developing new methods

All of these activities form the core of research work.

But they also represent research costs that must be properly allocated to projects.

Reliable time tracking makes it possible to:

• measure the progress of scientific projects
• identify the resources used
• improve R&D project management
• justify the use of public funding

This becomes particularly critical when the company benefits, for example, from schemes such as the Research Tax Credit (CIR).

⚠️ In the event of an audit, the authorities expect clear and structured traceability of the time spent on research activities.

02 | The limitations of Excel for lab time tracking

Excel is often the first tool used for tracking time in R&D.

Easy to set up and accessible to everyone, it seems sufficient at first.

But as soon as the business grows, its limitations quickly become apparent.

Time-consuming and insecure data entry

With Excel, time tracking relies entirely on manual data entry.

A single Excel file shared among multiple employees multiplies the risks:

• ❌ accidental deletions,
• ❌ formula errors,
• ❌ inconsistencies with the activities actually performed in the lab,
• ❌ untracked changes or version conflicts.

But the risk doesn't stop there.

Unlike a specialized tool, Excel does not issue any alerts in case of anomalies:

• ❌ inconsistent hours,
• ❌ exceeding working hours,
• ❌ entries on weekends or holidays, ...

And all too often, these issues only come to light at the worst possible moment: during an audit or when asked to provide justification.

Traceability that's hard to demonstrate

In R&D, it's not enough to simply state the number of hours spent on a project. You must be able to link that time to actual, dated, and justifiable work.

During an audit, it is therefore necessary to demonstrate precisely:

• Who worked on which project
• What activities were carried out and what the results were
• When and how long it took

With Excel, data is often editable and difficult to verify.

The credibility of the tracking can then be called into question.

A limited view of projects

An Excel spreadsheet allows you to tally hours, but it provides only a partial view of scientific activity.

Excel does not allow for easy linking of time spent to the operations carried out in the lab:

• the experiments conducted
• the results obtained
• the resources used

Time tracking then becomes disconnected from actual scientific activity.

03 | Streamlining time tracking in the lab

View time spent by project

To improve project success, time tracking must be integrated into a comprehensive project management system.

The goal is not simply to count hours. It is about linking that time to operational activities.

This allows scientific managers to:

• track the actual progress of projects
• identify the most time-consuming activities
• adjust resource allocation

The data generated by the teams then becomes a true strategic asset.

Securing funding

The traceability of research activities becomes much more robust.

Information is linked to projects and easily exportable.

In the event of an audit, the laboratory has evidence in the form of reliable and consistent documentation.

04 | Laby's approach

With laboratory management software like Laby:

• ✅ Each employee has a personalized space to log their hours
• ✅ Time limits can be set based on user profiles
• ✅ Logged times are linked to projects and procedures performed in the lab
• ✅ Time calculations are automated by: person, team, project, or activity
• ✅ A time period can be locked to prevent subsequent changes
• ✅ Timesheets can be exported to Excel with a single click

Time tracking becomes data linked to scientific activities to ensure the consistency and traceability of the information entered.

Conclusion

Time tracking in research and development should not be viewed as an administrative burden.

When properly structured, it becomes a valuable tool for scientific and financial management.

Switching from Excel to a tailored system allows you to:

• secure R&D funding
• improve scientific project management
• enhance the traceability of research activities

In other words, it creates an environment where teams can focus on what matters most:

advancing research and innovation.