Bureaucracy is always expensive.
My former employer once hired a firm to study our timesheet system and projects and put a price on them. It turned out to cost more to track hours than the total cost benefit to any project.
We abandoned filling out timesheets, because it was a waste of money.
I wish my current employer would do this too.
My first real job required filling out a “daily report” by 15 minute segments for items we worked each day. My first report was almost 2 pages in length and the procedure was to turn it in promptly to the manager the next morning.
I turned in my first report and my manager asked what the hell is that. I told him my daily. He said look rookie, you give me a report each day that shows your hours spent on one thing, period. I don’t need you wasting time filling some dumb..s report upper management promotes. I know who is screwing off and who is not and don’t need some f..k..g report to tell me that.
Guy had a high school degree only and was the smartest street wise manager I ever worked for.