Guided Setup configures the employee clock page, employee access, automatic pay periods, basic overtime, and timesheet reminders in one screen. It is safe to reopen later; saving it does not delete historical records.
Required access: WordPress Administrator or a user with Employee Time Logger payroll-management permission. Pro must be licensed and the Payroll master feature must be enabled.
Before you begin
- Set the WordPress timezone under Settings > General.
- Create WordPress accounts for the people who will track time.
- Identify the first day of a real pay period and the organization's pay frequency.
- Confirm whether weekly or daily overtime settings should be enabled.
- Confirm WordPress email delivery if reminders will be enabled.
Open Guided Setup
- Sign in to WordPress.
- Open Time Logger > Settings.
- Select the Guided Setup tab.
If Guided Setup is not visible, check that Pro has an Active license, the Payroll master feature is enabled under Features, and the current user has payroll-management permission.
Step 1: Select the employee time-clock page
- Open the Time clock page list.
- If a published page already contains
[employee_time_logger], select it. - Otherwise, select Create a new Employee Time Clock page.
When you choose the create option, the plugin creates and publishes a page named Employee Time Clock containing the correct shortcode. After setup, open the page in a private browser window and confirm that signed-out visitors are asked to sign in.
Step 2: Choose people who track time
- Click one name to select it.
- To select several names, use Ctrl on Windows or Command on macOS while clicking.
- Select every current employee who should appear in time, schedule, payroll, leave, kiosk, and reminder workflows.
- Include an Administrator only when that person is also an employee who records time.
Selected non-administrators receive Employee Time Logger employee access without removing existing WordPress roles. Selected administrators keep Administrator access and are separately marked as administrator-employees. Leaving an Administrator unselected keeps that person out of employee schedules, reminders, kiosk choices, and payroll totals.
Step 3: Configure automatic pay periods
- Select Automatically create current and upcoming pay periods if the plugin should maintain periods automatically.
- Choose a Frequency.
| Frequency | Use it when | Anchor guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly | Each period is seven days. | Choose the first day of a real weekly period. |
| Every two weeks | Each period is fourteen days. | Choose the first day of a known biweekly period. |
| Twice per month | Two calendar-based periods are used each month. | Review generated boundaries before launch. |
| Monthly | One period follows the monthly cadence. | Align the anchor with the intended cycle. |
- Enter the Anchor start date. Use the first day of an actual pay period, not today's date unless today is truly the first day.
- Enter Future periods to keep ready, from 1 through 24. A value such as 3 provides advance visibility without an excessive list.
Pay periods never overlap. Changing the cadence later affects future automatic generation and does not silently rewrite historical periods.
Step 4: Choose basic payroll rules and reminders
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| Enable weekly overtime | Turns on weekly overtime categorization. |
| Weekly overtime after hours | Sets the weekly threshold. Enter a decimal value such as 40 or 37.5. |
| Enable daily overtime after 8 hours | Categorizes qualifying daily minutes after eight hours as overtime. |
| Remind every employee about overdue timesheets, including zero-hour periods | Sends reminders to employees who have not submitted a required period, even when no hours were recorded. |
Enable a payroll rule only after confirming it applies to the organization and employee group. Additional double-time, reminder timing, long-shift, project, and automatic-period settings are available under Time Logger > Settings > Payroll Rules.
Save Guided Setup
- Review all four sections.
- Select Save setup and open dashboard.
- Wait for the Manager Dashboard to load.
- Confirm no error notice appears.
- Review the launch checklist and any cards reporting missing configuration.
Required follow-up configuration
- Settings > Features: disable unused modules and select sub-features.
- Settings > General: set week start, deleted-entry retention, completion email, and Lite uninstall behavior.
- Settings > Payroll Rules: review overtime, automatic periods, projects, reminders, corrections, and branding.
- Settings > Workforce Policies: configure break, lunch, and location rules when enabled.
- Settings > Notifications: configure only the alert types managers need.
- Workforce > Employees: verify Administrator-employees and Active, Inactive, or Terminated statuses.
- Workforce: configure Schedule, Time Off, Leave Profiles, Teams, and Kiosk as needed.
- Payroll: configure Projects, payroll IDs, employee rates, and export format.
Verify setup with a test employee
- Use an employee account selected during Guided Setup.
- Open the employee clock page.
- Clock in, record a break and lunch if enabled, and clock out.
- Confirm the shift appears in the employee history.
- As an administrator, open Time Logger > Dashboard > Time Entries and verify the entry.
- If payroll certification is enabled, submit the employee timesheet and approve it.
- If reminders are enabled, confirm the next scheduled run under Tools > System Status.
Common setup mistakes
| Problem | Correction |
|---|---|
| The wrong clock page was selected | Return to Guided Setup and select the published page containing the employee shortcode. |
| An employee is missing | Add the WordPress user, rerun Guided Setup, or review Workforce > Employees. |
| An Administrator appears in payroll unexpectedly | Remove Administrator-employee access under Workforce > Employees. |
| Generated periods are misaligned | Verify frequency and use the first date of a real period as the anchor. Correct empty periods before employees use them. |
| Reminder email does not arrive | Test WordPress mail and check both the Payroll Reminders sub-feature and the detailed reminder setting. |
| A setup tab is missing | Check the Pro license, current user permissions, and Feature Controls. |
Rerunning setup
You can return to Guided Setup at any time. Existing time entries, periods, approvals, schedules, leave requests, and audit records are not deleted. However, changing future-period cadence, employee selection, or overtime rules can affect future workflows. Record the reason for a material policy change and test it before the next payroll closes.
