Product Feedback: Critical Gap in WIP & Time Tracking

Submitted By: Eric Randall

Feature Area: QBO Accountant / Time Tracking & Invoicing

Client Type: Professional Services (Law, Engineering, Accounting)

Priority: High (Churn Risk / Reversion to Manual Workflows)

The Problem: "All-or-Nothing" WIP Consumption

Currently, when an accountant pulls Work-In-Progress (WIP) from QuickBooks Time onto a client invoice, the system does not support partial invoicing of time entries without losing data.

The Workflow Failure:

Selection: The user pulls $100 worth of WIP onto an invoice.

Adjustment: For billing reasons, the user manually reduces that line item to $50 (intending to "write down" the current bill or defer the remaining $50 to next month).

Data Loss: QBO treats the entire time entry as "billed." The remaining $50 in WIP is not returned to the "Unbilled" bucket; it essentially vanishes from the reporting cycle.

User Impact & "Negative Automation"

Reversion to Manual Tools: The client (Brittany) has moved from a 1-day billing cycle to a 3-day cycle and is forced to track WIP in Excel to ensure she doesn't lose billable revenue.

Internal Notes Exposure: A secondary "known issue" was reported where raw WIP descriptions (internal staff notes not meant for clients) were automatically pulled and sent on invoices without a review gate.

Adoption Barrier: This makes it impossible for the firm to recommend QBO to mid-market clients (Law/Eng) who "live and die by the WIP."

Requested Resolution (User Stories)

Partial Billing: "As a firm owner, I need to be able to invoice a portion of a time entry and have the remaining balance stay in the 'Unbilled WIP' report for the next billing cycle."

WIP Protection: "As a user, I need the system to warn me if an adjustment to an invoice line item will result in the permanent clearing of unbilled time."

Review Gate: Ensure that automated workflows never pull raw WIP descriptions into client-facing documents without an explicit approval step.

Link to recording: https://intuit.zoom.us/rec/play/zcNw9ZJkZxHV2z1KnsW3IswvbbBxZ6nMSjqj26QllqJCApefSCnREsNRutdq9naaUHbUwAuDlO7qdbE.fFOQ3s3EFewT_4yn?eagerLoadZvaPages=sidemenu.billing.plan_management&accessLevel=meeting&canPlayFromShare=true&from=share_recording_detail&continueMode=true&componentName=rec-play&originRequestUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fintuit.zoom.us%2Frec%2Fshare%2F-btWdDQCTi8gj8qr1oieX0mPeLu7jA2dgt4v3-6CqpE_N3vDY1w16_ysesdHTRXM.AqP3dwjEjosrOgWz

Password: ju%U!R7#

17:33 – 17:38: She introduces the problem by explaining her workflow (TSheets to QBO) and states clearly: "I can't invoice partial WIP."

17:40 – 18:04: She details the "workaround" she currently uses, which involves breaking time into segments in TSheets or leaving manual notes to herself.

18:35 – 18:53: This is where she explains the data loss—specifically that if she has $100 in WIP and changes the invoice to $50, the remaining $50 is "Gone."