Hours Breakdown
Hours Breakdown
Embedded Files
Each Researcher needs to keep track of their hours worked for ACLED in the Hours Breakdown sheet provided. The Hours Breakdown (HB) should be submitted to the Research Manager together with the data each week and as well together with the invoice at the end of the month.
Change Log
Change Log
March 2025
March 2025
Starting in March 2025 we will ask all researchers to run their completed Hours Breakdown template through an Hours Breakdown error checking app prior to submitting.
July 2024
July 2024
Some of the column names have been simplified.
Some desk names have been changed to better reflect the current teams. Larger regions with multiple desks have been broken down into their sub-regions. Below is a full list of the former names followed by the new names. RMs in charge of those regions are noted in brackets.
Africa -> Northwest_Africa (Claude), Southeast_Africa (Bianca),
Cabo_Ligado and Ethiopia_Peace_Observatory remain the same (Bianca)
Latin America -> Central_America (Maria Fernanda), South_America (Julia)
East Asia Pacific -> East_Asia_Pacific (Laura), East_and_Southeast_Asia (Hangyu)
Europe -> Eastern_Europe (Magda), Russia_Ukraine (Olha), Western_Europe (Giulia)
Middle East -> Middle_East_General (Salma), Gulf (Valentin), Syria_Iraq (Muaz)
South_Asia (Aastha) remains the same
North_America (Kieran) remains the same
The Date Worked column has been separated into a month and day column. This was done due to standard date formats having difficulty translating across different versions of Excel. The default month will be set to the invoiced month. Changing the month to something other than the invoiced month should only be done in rare circumstances with the approval of Finance.
The following columns are all now drop-down menu only and pull from standardized lists: coder, country, additional_country, desk, and project. You cannot overwrite these options. If you want a new custom country list please ask your Research Manager to request it.
For the country and additional_country columns we have removed the option to input sub-regions or assignment names (e.g. US - Mountain; India (J&K); etc.). This change was made in order to better integrate the Hours Breakdown outputs with other tools. If you formerly selected one of these sub-region or assignment names, please simply select the country name going forward (e.g. former “US - Mountain” would now select simply “United States”).
Any column which should only have numeric values is now limited to only numeric values.
Red highlighting will appear if you enter something that you shouldn’t. Most cases should be obvious upon review. Some examples include:
explanation_other_hours is blank despite there being hour in the other_hours column
total_hours in a day is greater than 24
project is blank despite there being entries in the sp_coding_information section
coder is blank but other columns are filled in
country or desk is blank despite there being hours recorded
Days Fully Covered (Fill in on day of submission only) column has been removed entirely.
Some tips:
To insert a new row you must first highlight the entire row by selecting the row number on the far left. More detailed instructions below in Coder Information section.
Only the first cell of the coder column is a drop-down menu. Select your name first and it will pre-fill the rest of the cells.
Be accurate in your hour reporting: coding hours go into coding_hours column, sourcing hours go into sourcing_hours column, etc.
March 2021
March 2021
The sheet is divided into four sections and real-time coding and backcoding is tracked separately.
There is no need to copy a row if you worked on several tasks during the same day. The only exception is if you worked on multiple desks/special projects during the same day.
You do not need to enter the number of reports sourced or events coded anymore, and we no longer distinguish between Nexis and non-Nexis sourcing.
There is a new column called “Days Fully Covered” which is used to gain a very broad statistic on project progress.
As before Researchers who review their own data before submitting should track their hours in the ‘Review’ column. When ARMs or Researchers help with "final review" of data coded by other coders they should report their hours in the ‘Other Tasks’ column.
How to find the newest Hours Breakdown
How to find the newest Hours Breakdown
Important: You can find the most up to date version of the Hours Breakdown in the shared drive "Researcher Resources" – "Invoices". You must make sure you are always using the most up to date Hours Breakdown file, as the data team adds new projects on a regular basis. You can't find your name or a project, please refer to the FAQ's below.
How to fill it in the Hours Breakdown
How to fill it in the Hours Breakdown
The Hours Breakdown is divided into four parts:
general_information
rt_coding_information
sp_coding_information
other_information
1. general_information
1. general_information
The first section general_information contains columns that applies to all the other sections. For example, month and day will apply for the hours recorded in the Realtime and Backcoding sections, and the desk and projects you worked for.
coder
In the first column, choose your name from the drop-down menu in the first cell of the row; the formulas automatically fill in the rest of that column.
Please let the finance team (finance@acleddata.com) know if your name is not written correctly or if you want it to be displayed differently.
month and day
These rows will be pre-filled in your Hours Breakdown.
The default month will be set to the invoiced month (e.g: July). You will also see the previous month (e.g.: June) and the next month (e.g.: August), but selecting these months should only be done in rare circumstances with the previous approval of Finance.
If you did not work on a particular day, you can leave the row empty. No need to delete it, this will not affect your totals.
desk
Select the desk or special project you worked for from the drop-down menu.
If you worked on projects for multiple desks/special projects, you need to add a separate row for each desk/special project you worked on during a single day. For example, if you worked for two different desks on 3 July, you should have two rows for 3 July. These dates do not need to be in chronological order.
Please refer to the grey box below on how to insert a new row.
country
Select the country(ies) you covered for real-time coding. The list contains popular groupings of countries as well as individual countries.
If you worked on additional countries, use the next column additional_country to add additional countries. You are not required to create a separate row if you worked on multiple countries in the same region/project.
additional _country
Use this column only if you worked on additional countries or country groupings which are not listed in column country, for example, in case you are covering for another coder.
If you are unable to add all your countries in these columns, please add a note in the comments column that you were unable to select all of them, and we will look into creating an additional grouping for the next Hours Breakdown.
Insert a new row
Insert a new row
To insert a new row you must right-click on the row number (the grey numbers on the left side of the sheet) then click ‘Insert’.
Row insertion will NOT work if you try to do it by right-clicking in a particular cell.
IMPORTANT: if you create a new row, some auto-filled cells will need to be manually filled in. You can start typing and hit enter when you see the appropriate name/value. Also drag down the total_hours column.
2. rt_coding_information
2. rt_coding_information
This section combines the old "Weekly Realtime Data" and the "General Desk Tasks" sections.
All hours spent on real-time coding assignments should be tracked in the rt_coding_information section. Please note that this section should include any time spent on the real-time coverage of sources that are also being backcoded. This section also contains hours spent on communications, analysis, and hours spent on smaller projects such as test sourcing, shadow sourcing, reading guides, helping RM, training, etc.
Always record your hours to the nearest quarter-hour, i.e. X.00, X.25, X.5, X.75. For example, if you worked 3 hours and 15 minutes you would record 3.25 in the sheet.
rt_coding_hours
Fill in the hours spent on coding events from articles collected in the source file.
This includes all coding-related tasks, such as researching new actors, locations, and sources. See some further information about the reporting of coding hours below.
rt_sourcing_hours
Fill in the hours spent on reviewing sources, constructing your source file and filling in the source checklist in the Events Tool. See some further information about the reporting of sourcing hours below.
rt_review_hours
Fill in hours spent on time reviewing your submission data once you’ve produced it.
Researchers should spend no more than 1-hour maximum on review each week. See some further information about what the review entails below.
SRA review of submitted real-time data should be tracked in the other_hours column of the rt_coding_information section.
analysis_hours
Put in the total amount of hours spent working on/writing up analyses for regional overviews and other ACLED publications.
communications_hours
Fill in the hours you spent on communicating with the team, such as meetings, calls, Slack, email.
other_hours
Fill in the number of hours worked on tasks that do not fit within any of the other columns, e.g. reviewing feedback; test sourcing; reading guides; helping RM; training, etc.
SRAs should also track their cleaning/review of all data (realtime and supplemental/backcoding) in this column.
explanation_other_hours
Provide a short description of the other hours per activity and put the number of hours spent on that activity in brackets, for example: Test sourcing (1); reading guide (0.5). For SRA cleaning/review, write: Review of realtime data (2); or Review of supplemental/backcoding data (3).
3. sp_coding_information
3. sp_coding_information
All hours spent on larger supplemental/backcoding projects should be added to the second section sp_coding_information (previously named ‘Supplemental/Backcoding’). *Please note that any time spent on the realtime coverage of sources which are also being backcoded should be recorded as part of your hours in the rt_coding_information section of the Hours Breakdown.
project
Select the appropriate project name from the drop-down menu.
The list only contains larger, approved projects. All hours spent on test sourcing tasks, shadow sourcing, spot-checks, cleaning old data, etc should be reported in the other_hours column. Message your RM if you do not see your project listed in the project column -- remember that this column is linked to the desk, so if you worked on a backcoding project that is a part of a different region from your realtime coding, you must separate them out onto two rows.
sp_coding_hours
Fill in the hours spent on coding the articles collected in the source file.
This includes all coding-related tasks, such as researching new actors, locations, and sources. See some further information below.
sp_sourcing_hours
Fill in the hours spent on reviewing sources, constructing your source file and filling in the source checklist on the Events Tool. See some further information below.
sp_review_hours
Fill in hours spent on time reviewing your submission data once you’ve produced it. Researchers should spend no more than 1-hour maximum on review each week.
This column should also be used for any time spent on cleaning or spot-checking of project data, as instructed by the RM. However, when SRAs help with desk review, it should be tracked in the other column of the rt_coding_information section.
4. other_information
4. other_information
Two further general columns can be found on the last section at the end of the sheet:
total_hours
The total of hours you worked on that day is auto-calculated based on the hours provided in the previous sections.
IMPORTANT: if you create a new row, you will need to drag down the formula from the previous row in the total_hours column.
comments
Use it to explain elements or point out issues if you think that is needed.
Video: Hours Breakdown
Video: Hours Breakdown
(6:36 min)
Manual Reviewing Templates for Common Errors
Manual Reviewing Templates for Common Errors
You should treat the Hours Breakdown and the entered data as equivalent to the events data you code: it should be submitted on time and without errors. We have designed the template to help you ensure that everything is correct:
- Highlighted cells
Review any highlighted cells. Cells may be highlighted for any of the following reasons:
“date_worked” isn't in this month or last month
“explanation other hours” is blank but “other hours” has something in it
“total hours” in a day is greater than 24
"project" is blank despite there being entries in the "sp" columns
"desk" is filled in but "name" is blank
hours are filled in but "name" is blank
"country" is blank but there are coding/sourcing/analysis hours
"desk" is blank but there are hours
- Locked fields
The following fields are “locked”, meaning that Researchers should not be able to add any of the following, and will receive an error message if they attempt to do so:
Non-date values in the "date_worked" column (needs to be in DD-MM-YYYY format).
Non-numeric values in any of the hours columns (e.g. you have to type '1' instead of "one")
- Conditional drop-down menus
The following are conditional drop-down menus, meaning that options will only appear if another options is selected:
The "country" and "additional country" drop-down menus will be blank until the "desk" field is completed
The "project" drop-down menu will be blank until the "desk" field is completed.
- Inserting new rows
You can INSERT rows if you need multiple entries for a single day, but row insertion will NOT work if you try to do it by right-clicking in a particular cell. Instead you need to right-click on the row numbers. See further above in the grey box titled "Inserting new row."
App-based Review of Templates
App-based Review of Templates
It is MANDATORY to put your Hours Breakdown template through the Hours Breakdown Error Checking app. This app will check your completed template for basic errors (e.g. you forgot to include your name in a given row). It will NOT ensure the hours you entered are actually correct or match your invoice.
To use the app you should:
Complete your Hours Breakdown template for the month, ensuring to check for the common errors mentioned above. Remember to save the template.
Open the app and upload your completed template.
If a pop-up appears, it means that you are uploading a file without the correct columns. You should be sure that you are using the newest version of the template (see FAQ 1 below).
If you uploaded a valid completed template, a table will appear in the main body of the app.
(a) If the table is empty except for the header, then congratulations! There were no obvious errors in your submission. You can proceed by submitting the Hours Breakdown file in the normal invoicing form. Remember: a lack of flags does not mean that your Hours Breakdown necessarily matches your invoice.
(b If there are flags in the table then they will appear on the left-hand side next to the relevant row. There may be multiple flags per row.
You should address each flag by making the corresponding change in your Hours Breakdown template. For instance, if the flag column says "You have not entered a valid country name" you should change the value in the country column to one of the options in the drop-down menu.
After making the changes to your Hours Breakdown template be sure to SAVE your changes. You should then upload this updated file to the app and recheck for flags.
Repeat the above steps until no flags in the table, at which point you can proceed with your submission.
Troubleshooting and FAQ
Troubleshooting and FAQ
FAQ 1: I am a new Researcher and my name doesn’t appear in the dropdown menu and/or a new project at my desk added isn’t in the template.
FAQ 1: I am a new Researcher and my name doesn’t appear in the dropdown menu and/or a new project at my desk added isn’t in the template.
You can find the most up to date version of the Hours Breakdown in the shared drive "Researcher Resources > Invoices". However, the names and project names are pulled from our standardized tables, and the HB template is only updated on Monday and Thursday. This means that after a new Researcher is added, it may take a week or more for their name to appear in the template (their name needs to work its way through our systems). Meanwhile, our suggestion is to:
Wait a week or so and the new name or project name should appear in the template
In the meantime, you can fill in the template but leave the name blank, then copy over that data into the new template when your name becomes available
Similarly, you can fill in the template while leaving the project blank, but while leaving yourself a note in the ‘comment’ column that the project should be added. When the project is added to the template you can then copy over the information to the new template and fill in the project column with the now-available project.
If the problem persists or if it is urgent (e.g. you need to immediately submit your template because it’s near the end of the month) then please reach out to your RM, who will then contact the Data team using the ‘data-management-help’ slack channel
FAQ 2: My departing Researcher’s name doesn’t appear in the dropdown menu.
FAQ 2: My departing Researcher’s name doesn’t appear in the dropdown menu.
Researcher names in the dropdown menu of the template are pulled from standardized lists. If a Researcher leaves, their name is removed from the list and therefore will be removed from the template (once the template is regenerated on Monday and Thursday). However, this may pose problems if a Researcher does not download the template on the 1st of the month, works for a couple weeks before leaving, then tries to fill in their template at the end of the month (i.e. their name will be gone). In this case please reahc out to your RM who will provide you with an older version of the HB.
FAQ 3: I want to code multiple countries for one day, but the combination of countries is not available in the country dropdown menu.
FAQ 3: I want to code multiple countries for one day, but the combination of countries is not available in the country dropdown menu.
In this case you can just create multiple rows for a single day, see the grey box above on how to insert a new row. If you use the list of countries on a regular basis your RM might consider asking for a new list of custom countries to be created, please get in touch with your RM to discuss this further.
FAQ 4: I can’t insert a new row in the Hours Breakdown.
FAQ 4: I can’t insert a new row in the Hours Breakdown.
Please try inserting a row by clicking on the row number (the dark grey number on the left side of the sheet) rather than on a random cell in a given row.
FAQ 5: I can’t change anything in the "day" column.
FAQ 5: I can’t change anything in the "day" column.
This is likely happening because you do not have macros enabled. Please see a discussion of macros, including links showing you how to enable macros for your file and/or on your laptop here.
FAQ 6: Which calls and meetings can I bill for?
FAQ 6: Which calls and meetings can I bill for?
You can bill for any hours spent on mandatory activities. This includes calls with your RM, team meetings with your desk or the 'All-ACLED Calls'. However, optional events like the 'ACLED Conflict Calls' or happy hours, are not billable since they are not mandatory.
Additional information on Coding Procedures and the reporting of hours
Additional information on Coding Procedures and the reporting of hours
Sourcing
Sourcing
The sourcing columns of the hours breakdown should cover all time spent reviewing sources, constructing your source file, and doing any additional research related to sourcing (although this should be kept to a minimum generally outside of exceptional cases or where you’ve received approval from the RM). The sourcing columns include time spent filling in the source checklist tab on the Events Tool, which should be done as you source.
Coding
Coding
The coding columns of the hours breakdown should cover all time spent coding the articles collected in the source file, this includes reading the article in detail and writing your Notes. It also includes any coding-related tasks, such as researching new actors, locations, and sources as they come up in your coding. If your method of working does not allow you to easily split your hours between coding and sourcing, reach out to your RM.
Note that generally it is expected that a new researcher should be able to complete 5 events/hour of coding initially, and that new researchers will reach an efficiency of ~8-10 events/hour of coding by around the end of their first or second month of work (e.g. 100 events shouldn’t take more than 10 hours to code on average for an experienced researcher).
If you are finding that your efficiency is less than 5 events/hours, please make sure to keep track of roughly how long different parts of the coding process are taking you and do your best to identify any particular aspects of the coding that take you more time than others (e.g. identifying new locations, researching new actors, determining the right event type, writing notes, etc). Once you have an idea of where you may be losing time, please bring this up with your RM as they will be able to advise you on how to improve or potentially save you time by suggesting new tools/methods.
Review
Review
The time spent reviewing your data once you’ve produced it should be tracked in the Review column. Researchers should generally spend no more than 1-hour maximum on reviewing each submission. This should include:
Checking the Review tab of the Events Tool and resolving any issues highlighted.
Performing a spell-check of your Event Notes in the Events tab using Excel’s Spelling tool. You should select your notes column and then hit spelling, and fix any errors that Excel flags. Person and place names can be ignored or added to the dictionary so they aren’t flagged in future reviews.
Upload the data to the Error Checking App and address the flags in the Events Tool.
Beyond this, events should be coded in a way that requires little extra review, so it should not be necessary to spend any significant additional time looking them over after the fact.
If there are additional issues you feel you need to review after completing your coding, please make sure to do this within the 1-hour available to you after dealing with any highlighting in the ET and completing your spell-check. Beyond this, please reach out to your RM for approval to spend further time on review. If you are submitting more than 100 events in a given week, allowances will be made for additional time spent reviewing.
Tip: Tools to track your time
Tip: Tools to track your time
Many Researchers use an extension or app to track the time you spent, examples include Clockify (https://clockify.me/), Toggle (https://toggl.com/) WorkingHours for Windows (https://workinghoursapp.com/).
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