Recruitment Timesheet Checks Before Payroll and Billing
Compare approved timesheets, placement details and pay and charge rates before payroll and invoicing. Keep exceptions and approval with your team.
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Compare the approved timesheet with the correct placement, work period and authorised pay and charge rates. Show disagreements and missing information to the payroll team before a batch is approved. Start by checking the controls and integrations your ATS and payroll software already provide.
Check the existing ATS-to-payroll handover
Start with the applicant tracking system (ATS) and payroll software the agency uses. A pre-payroll check needs to follow the actual route from placement to timesheet, payroll and billing. Ask who approves each step and where a change becomes effective. An exported placement and an approved timesheet are different events.
For agencies using JobAdder and Astute Payroll, Astute documents an existing integration. Its guide describes sending a placement after the approval and export options are selected, with errors returned to the placement. Check that connection and its configuration before proposing another way to transfer the same records.
The published field mapping includes candidate and client rates, rate type and approver details. Use it as a starting checklist, then confirm the mapping and available history in the agency's own account. A field's presence in one system does not establish that the receiving record is current or complete.
Match the placement, period and rate basis
Use stable identifiers to connect a worker's timesheet to the correct placement. Names alone are a weak match when a person has several assignments or a customer has similar trading names. Keep the original identifiers alongside any imported copy.
Compare the same work period and unit. Hours, days and fixed fees should remain distinct. The payroll team must confirm which authorised rate applies to the period being checked. If the source cannot establish that, show the rate as unconfirmed rather than substituting the latest value.
| Check | What to establish |
|---|---|
| Identity | The worker, placement and customer refer to the same assignment. |
| Approval | The timesheet has the required approval for this payroll process. |
| Period and units | Dates, hours or days match the period and rate basis being reviewed. |
| Rates | Pay and charge values come from the authorised source for that work period. |
| Repeat processing | An amended or re-exported sheet is not treated as another original. |
Give the reviewer the evidence behind a flag
An exception should show the two values being compared, their sources, the reason for the flag and the person responsible for resolving it. Include a link or reference to the source timesheet and placement so the payroll team can inspect them.
Keep missing information separate from a confirmed mismatch. A rate that was not retrieved is unknown; it is not zero. A late export may need another check, while a changed placement may need a payroll decision. Those cases should not share a generic error label.
AI can help suggest a record match or summarise an exception. Keep the numerical comparison tied to explicit rules and approved records. The agency's payroll team owns applicable rates, corrections and the decision to release payroll or an invoice.
Test amendments and retries before using a live batch
Check a normal timesheet, an amended sheet, a placement change and a repeated import. Agree how each case should appear and who signs it off. Preserve the input version and review decision so an exception can be explained later.
JobAdder's developer tools describe API access and a sandbox option. Confirm the agency's access and test arrangement before using live records. The scope should name the fields the check needs, its refresh timing and how a failed import is surfaced.
Begin with one payroll cycle and compare the proposed exception list with the team's existing review. A custom check is worth assessing when it exposes a defined gap after the native controls have been tested. It should support the authorised reviewer throughout the process.
Sources
Vendor documentation checked 5 November 2026. Capabilities and account permissions can change; check the linked documentation when scoping a project.
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