Manually Uploading Starting Accrual Balances

Hero Schedule allows you to set up initial accrual balances for your employees efficiently. This is especially useful when transitioning to Hero Schedule, ensuring all vacation, sick, personal day, and personal time balances are accurately reflected from day one.

There are two primary methods for setting up these balances: importing via a spreadsheet (recommended for multiple employees) and manually adjusting individual balances.

Option 1: Importing Accrual Balances with a Spreadsheet (Recommended)

This method is the most efficient way to set up starting balances for many employees at once.

Setting Up the Import File

1. Download the Template:
   • Navigate to Menu > Setup > Employees.
   • Click the Import button.
   • Then, click Download Template.
   • Open this Excel file. You will primarily use the Accrual Trxs tab.
2. Populate the Template with Your Data:
   • Employee Name: This field requires the exact format Last Name, First Name. To ensure accuracy, we highly recommend exporting your current employee list (from Menu > Setup > Employees, click Export) and copying names directly from that spreadsheet into your template - making sure to use the "Lastname, Firstname" format (e.g. "Smith, John").
   • Accrual Account: Use the precise names of your accrual accounts as they appear in Hero Schedule: Vacation, Personal Time, and Sick Time.
   • Amount: Enter the current, exact balance for each employee. For instance, if an employee has 125.5 hours of vacation, enter 125.5. If an employee has no balance for a specific accrual, you can enter 0 or leave the cell blank.
   • Transaction Date: Set this to the day before your new pay period begins. For example, if your schedule starts on August 3, 2025, you would use 8/2/2025. This date ensures the balance is accurately recorded at the end of the previous period.
   • Memo: We suggest using "Starting Balance" for clarity.

3. You will list each employee multiple times—once for each accrual account for which they have a starting balance (e.g., "Doe, John" for Vacation, "Doe, John" for Sick Time, etc.). 

   EmployeeName	Account	Amount	Date	Memo
   Doe, John	Vacation	106.5	8/2/2025	Starting Balance
   Doe, John	Personal Day	24	8/2/2025	Starting Balance
   Doe, John	Sick Time	224	8/2/2025	Starting Balance

Uploading Your Data

1. Upload the Completed Template:
   • Once your spreadsheet is filled out and saved, return to Menu > Setup > Employees > Import.
   • Click Choose File and select your saved template.
   • Always perform a Test Run first. This will check for any errors without committing the data. If the test run indicates no errors (e.g., "X rows found, 0 errors"), you're ready to proceed.
   • If the test run is successful, click Import.

Verifying Balances

1. Check Accrual Balances:
   • After the import, confirm the balances by going to Menu > View Accrual Balances.
   • Ensure your date range is broad enough to include the transaction date you used (e.g., set the "To" date to 12/31/2025 to view all relevant transactions for the year).
   • The imported starting balances will also be visible on the employee timecards for the new pay period.

Option 2: Manually Adjusting Accrual Balances (for Individual Corrections)

This method is ideal for making quick, single adjustments to an employee's accrual balance or correcting a minor error.

Making a Manual Adjustment

1. Access Accrual Balances:
   • From the main menu, go to Menu > View Accrual Balances.
   • Select the specific employee whose balance you want to adjust.
2. Set the Date Range:
   • By default, the display might cover a limited period. Ensure the date range is wide enough to include your desired transaction date (e.g., set the "To" date to 12/31/2025) and click Update to view all relevant transactions.
3. Add a New Transaction:
   • Select the Accrual Account (e.g., Vacation).
   • Click the Add button.
   • Enter the Show For pay period. When adding a new employee, this is usually set to the end of the previous pay period.
   • Enter the Fixing Date (e.g., 8/2/2025).
   • Enter the Amount. This can be a positive number for an addition (like a starting balance) or a negative number for a deduction/correction (e.g., -100 if you need to reduce a balance by 100 hours).
   • Add a descriptive Memo (e.g., "Starting Balance" or "Correction").
   • Click Save.

4. After saving a manual transaction, Hero Schedule will remember your last entry. This can speed up the process if you're making several similar adjustments for different employees; you can navigate to the next employee, click "Add," and simply modify the amount and memo as needed.

Other related articles:

How to Adjust Accrual Balances

Setting up Accrual Accounts