Kaizen #187 - Building a Timer and Worklog Widget (Part 1)

Kaizen #187 - Building a Timer and Worklog Widget (Part 1)



Howdy Tech Wizards!

Welcome back to a fresh week of Kaizen! 

This time, we are diving into a two-part series where you will learn how to build a Timer and Worklog Widget for Zoho CRM. This widget helps track active work time and log multitasking sessions using Zoho CRM APIs, Client Script, Functions, and Workflows.

Why It Matters?

Zoho CRM effectively captures stage/status transitions, like tracking when a case moves from Open to In Progress or On Hold. However, in dynamic work environments, employees juggle multiple work items and engage in impromptu tasks or conversations. 

Let’s take the On Hold status as an example. 

While it can be used to indicate pauses in progress, it does not always align with real-world workflows. Consider these scenarios:

Not all interruptions justify a status change 

Moving the case to On Hold for every minor detour (to clarify something with a colleague or respond to another emergency work item) would be impractical and could lead to under reporting actual work hours. Over time, this untracked effort adds up, creating a gap in visibility.

Frequent status changes may dilute their meaning 

In many teams, On Hold signifies a legitimate blocker like waiting on customer input or an external dependency. Using it frequently to reflect quick shifts in attention could compromise that clarity. 

A timer widget solves this by:
  • Capturing hands-on work items.
  • Logging context switches (unrelated tasks) with descriptive entries.
  • Feeding structured entries into a custom module for reporting and subform sync.

Business Scenario: IT Service Desk & Ticket Resolution

A tech support team uses the Cases module to resolve customer issues. Some tickets are straightforward; others require follow-ups, escalations, or cross-team coordination. While CRM timestamps (like stage transitions or picklist tracking) track when changes happen, they do not reflect how long someone actively worked on a case.

This Timer Widget can be the ultimate solution to track down the active time spent on each case through out the day.

What are we Building?

By the end of this two-part guide, you will know how to:
  • Build a timer widget to track time per task or any CRM record.
  • Log work sessions into a custom module every time the timer is started/stopped.
  • Automatically populate a subform in the corresponding record module using workflows and Deluge functions.
  • Leverage the Reports module to analyze work patterns, SLA adherence, and productivity trends.
 In Part I, we will focus on:
-> Building and configuring the Timer Widget.
-> Capturing each timed session as a record in a custom module.

Prerequisites

1. Create a Custom Module

Create a custom module named Timer Entries to log work details and generate reports from the Reports module. A new record will be added to this module each time a timer is started.

Set up the following custom fields in the Timer Entries module:

Custom Fields
Data Type
Start Time
DateTime
End Time
DateTime
Total Duration (in mins.)
Formula 
DateBetween(${Timer Entries.Start Time},${Timer Entries.End Time},'Minutes')
Related to Case
Lookup to Cases module
Work Description
Multi Line


2. Add a custom picklist option

Add a custom picklist option called In Progress to the Status picklist field in the Cases module for precisely identifying the status of the cases. 

Follow this Add/Remove Picklist Values help section for more details. 

3. Setup Custom Views for Contextual Filtering

To streamline the widget experience and ensure users only see relevant records to associate while tracking time, set up two smart custom views—one in the Cases module and another in the Timer Entries module. 

Active Cases View (Cases Module)

Create a custom view in the Cases module to list only the active tickets the logged-in user is working on. Use the following criteria tips:
  • Use the Status field to filter records with values like In Progress, On Hold, or Escalated.
  • Use the Case Owner field to show records that are assigned only to the currently logged-in user.
This view powers the drop-down inside the widget where users select the case they want to start the timer for.
Active Timers View (Timer Entries Module)

Set up a second custom view in the Timer Entries module to track entries where the timer has been started but not yet stopped. These represent active timers. Use the following logic for criteria:
  • The End Time field is empty (i.e., timer still running).
  • Timer Entry owner field matches the logged-in user.
This view is used internally by the widget to detect if a timer is already running and update the same entry once the timer is stopped.
Follow the Managing List View help page and use the specifications shown in the following image.

Building the Timer Widget 

Step -1: Review Basics

Refer to our earlier Kaizen on CLI Installation, Creating a Widget Project, and Internal hosting of the same.

Step 2 - Develop the Widget

After initializing your widget project using CLI, implement the timer logic:

Fetching Active Cases

On page load, the populateRecordsDropdown function initiates a Get Records API call to the Cases module, using the Active Cases custom view ID. This fetches all active case records assigned to the logged-in user. 

These records are then listed in a dropdown, allowing users to quickly select the relevant case they are about to work on.

async function populateRecordsDropdown() {
            const recordsDropdown = document.getElementById("moduleRecords");
            recordsDropdown.innerHTML = ""; 

            try {
                const recordsResponse = await ZOHO.CRM.API.getAllRecords({
                    Entity: casesModule,
                    cvid: casesCVID,
                    per_page: 10
                });

                if (recordsResponse.data && recordsResponse.data.length > 0) {
                    recordsResponse.data.forEach(record => {
                        const option = document.createElement("option");
                        option.value = record.id;
                        option.textContent = record.Subject || "Unnamed Record"; 
                        recordsDropdown.appendChild(option);
                    });
                } else {
                    const placeholderOption = document.createElement("option");
                    placeholderOption.value = "";
                    placeholderOption.textContent = "No records found";
                    placeholderOption.disabled = true;
                    placeholderOption.selected = true;
                    recordsDropdown.appendChild(placeholderOption);
                }
            } catch (error) {
                console.error("Error fetching records:", error);
            }
        }

Starting the Timer and Creating an Entry

Once the user starts the timer, The createRecord function triggers a Create Record API call to log the session in the Timer Entries custom module. The record captures the start time and the related case and description (if provided).

Even if no details are entered or case is selected, a timer entry is still created with the start time. This ensures that spontaneous work sessions are tracked and not lost.

async function createRecord(startTime) {
            try {
                const workDescription = document.getElementById("workDescription").value;
                const selectedRecordId = document.getElementById("moduleRecords").value;
                const selectedRecordText = document.getElementById("moduleRecords").options[
                    document.getElementById("moduleRecords").selectedIndex
                ].text;

                const data = {
                    Start_Time: startTime,
                    Owner: currentUserId,
                    Work_Description: workDescription,
                    Related_to_Case: selectedRecordId, 
                    Name: selectedRecordText 
                };

                const response = await ZOHO.CRM.API.insertRecord({
                    Entity: timerModule,
                    APIData: data
                });

                console.log("Start time recorded successfully");
            } catch (error) {
                console.error("Error creating record:", error);
            }
        }


Stopping the Timer and Updating the Entry

When the timer is stopped, the widget uses the Active Timer Entry custom view to locate the most recent Timer Entry record created by the logged-in user that does not have an end time. 

The updateRecord is then triggered to update that active entry using the Update Record API call. It updates the End time of the session and the related case, descriptions, if it was not already provided when the timer was started.

async function updateRecord(endTime) {
            try {
                const workDescription = document.getElementById("workDescription").value;
                const selectedRecordId = document.getElementById("moduleRecords").value;

                const response = await ZOHO.CRM.API.getAllRecords({
                    Entity: timerModule,
                    cvid: timerEntriesCVID,
                    per_page: 1
                });

                const latestRecord = response.data[0];
                if (latestRecord) {
                    const recordId = latestRecord.id;
                    const data = {
                        id: recordId,
                        End_Time: endTime,
                        Work_Description: workDescription,
                        Related_to_Case: selectedRecordId 
                    };

                    await ZOHO.CRM.API.updateRecord({
                        Entity: timerModule,
                        APIData: data,
                        RecordID: recordId
                    });
                    console.log("End time updated successfully");
                }
            } catch (error) {
                console.error("Error updating record:", error);
            }
        }

Step 3 - Validate and Pack the Widget

  • Follow the steps given in the Widget help page to validate and package the widget.
  • Go to Zoho CRM > Setup > Developer Hub > Widgets and click Create New Widget.
  • Fill in the required details as shown in this image and ensure to select Button as the widget type.

Step 4 - Associate it with Flyout

  • Go to Setup > Developer Space > Client Script. Click New Script.
  • Enter a name and description for the script. Choose Command type in Category. 

  • Create a Flyout and render a widget within it using its details like the API name of the widget, title, size, and animation type. You can get the Widget API name from the widget's detail page. 
let allowedUserEmails = [];
allowedUserEmails.push('user1_email_address');
allowedUserEmails.push('user2_email_address');
allowedUserEmails.push('user3_email_address');
let currentUserEmail = $Crm.user.email;
if (allowedUserEmails.indexOf(currentUserEmail) == -1) {
    ZDK.Client.showMessage('Command access resticted', { type: 'error' });
    return false;
}
ZDK.Client.createFlyout('myFlyout', {header: 'Timer', animation_type: 4, height: '600px', width: '500px', top: '10px', left: '10px', bottom: '10px', right: '10px' });
ZDK.Client.getFlyout('myFlyout').open({ api_name: 'Timer', type: 'widget' });
return true;

Refer to Creating a Client Script help page for more details. 

Try It Out!

A complete working code sample of this widget is attached to this post.

Now, let us see how this Timer widget works:

1. Start the Timer 

Open the widget and select an active case from the dropdown. As soon as you start the timer, a new record will be automatically created in the Timer Entries module to capture the session.

2. Stop the Timer 

When the task is complete, provide a description of the work you have done and stop the timer. The same Timer Entry record (created when the timer was started) will be updated automatically with the end time and your work description.

This forms the foundation for accurate time tracking at the record level. 

In Part 2, we will show how to:

-> Use a workflow and Deluge function to transfer these entries into the Work Log subform inside the relevant Cases record.
-> Use CRM Reports to slice and dice work time for better SLA and productivity insights.

In the meantime, would you like us to address any of your pain-points or have a topic to discuss? Let us know in the comments or reach out to us via support@zohocrm.com.

Until next time, Happy Coding! 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Related Reading

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Idea
Previous Kaizen: Client Script Support for Subforms | Kaizen Collection: Directory


    • Sticky Posts

    • Kaizen #198: Using Client Script for Custom Validation in Blueprint

      Nearing 200th Kaizen Post – 1 More to the Big Two-Oh-Oh! Do you have any questions, suggestions, or topics you would like us to cover in future posts? Your insights and suggestions help us shape future content and make this series better for everyone.

    • Kaizen #226: Using ZRC in Client Script

      Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen. In today's post, lets see what is ZRC (Zoho Request Client) and how we can use ZRC methods in Client Script to get inputs from a Salesperson and update the Lead status with a single button click. In this

    • Kaizen #222 - Client Script Support for Notes Related List

      Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of Kaizen. The final Kaizen post of the year 2025 is here! With the new Client Script support for the Notes Related List, you can validate, enrich, and manage notes across modules. In this post, we’ll explore how

    • Kaizen #217 - Actions APIs : Tasks

      Welcome to another week of Kaizen! In last week's post we discussed Email Notifications APIs which act as the link between your Workflow automations and you. We have discussed how Zylker Cloud Services uses Email Notifications API in their custom dashboard.

    • Kaizen #216 - Actions APIs : Email Notifications

      Welcome to another week of Kaizen! For the last three weeks, we have been discussing Zylker's workflows. We successfully updated a dormant workflow, built a new one from the ground up and more. But our work is not finished—these automated processes are

    • Recent Topics

    • Looking for Guidance on Building a Zoho Website

      I'm exploring the possibility of building a custom website with specific features using Zoho as an alternative platform. My goal is to create something similar to https://gtasandresapk.com , with the same kind of functionality and user experience. I'd

    • Ability to add VAT to Retainer Invoices

      Hello, I've had a telephone conversation a month ago with Dinesh on this topic and my request to allow for the addition of VAT on Retainer Invoices.  It's currently not possible to add VAT to Retainer Invoices and it was mutually agreed that there is absolutely no reason why there shouldn't be, especially as TAX LAW makes VAT mandatory on each invoice in Europe!   So basically, what i'm saying is that if you don't allow us to add VAT to Retainer Invoices, than the whole Retainer Invoices becomes

    • Zoho Bookings Forge: A hands-on workshop series

      Hello all! We’re hosting a five-part, hands-on workshop series to help you optimize Zoho Bookings for your business. In these sessions, we’ll cover key features, practical use cases, and clear steps to get started or improve your current setup. Here are

    • Introducing parent-child ticketing in Zoho Desk [Early access]

      Hello Zoho Desk users! We have introduced the parent-child ticketing system to help customer service teams ensure efficient resolution of issues involving multiple, related tickets. You can now combine repetitive and interconnected tickets into parent-child

    • Introducing Workqueue: your all-in-one view to manage daily work

      Hello all, We’re excited to introduce a major productivity boost to your CRM experience: Workqueue, a dynamic, all-in-one workspace that brings every important sales activity, approval, and follow-up right to your fingertips. What is Workqueue? Sales

    • Delete button

      Hi, The delete button were hide into the three dot button. Can I display outside? why Zoho make this update?

    • Zoho Vault CLI for Developers and Automations

      Hi everyone, If you're managing credentials in scripts, CI/CD pipelines, or automation workflows, Zoho Vault's Command Line Interface (CLI) can help you securely access and manage secrets directly from your terminal. Zoho Vault was launched in 2013 as

    • Zoho Subscriptions -- Zoho Commerce integration

      Is there integration between Zoho Subscriptions and Zoho Commerce? I would like to create subscription plans in Zoho Subscritpions and list them for on my Zoho Commerce store.

    • Synching changes to Stripe when changes are made in Zoho Billing

      We have a situation where we have merged customers in Zoho BIlling and then found out later that the payment in Stripe was not updated and still associated with the old customer record. The card gets updated and billed, but that payment is still associated

    • How can I link Products in a Deal Subform to the Products Module

      Hello, I have a pricing subform on our Deals page and use a lookup field to associate a product with each line. I want to be able to look at a product page within the Products module and see a list of the deals connected to that product. I have this working

    • Help Center and SEO: Any Benefit to My Domain-Mapped Website Ranking?

      First of, I love the Help Center which I've just decided to integrate into my website to replace its old-fashioned FAQs. So much more to achieve there now! Lots of new benefits to the site visitors and to me in terms of organizing and delivering all the

    • Business Hours with lunch break

      Our business hours are: mon - fri 08:30 - 13:00, 15:00 - 18:30. How can I handle the lunch break? If I use 8:30 - 18:30 it obviously breaks SLA. Thanks

    • Automatically Update Ticket Status in Zoho Desk Based on Actions in Zoho Projects

      Hi Zoho Desk Team, Hope you’re doing well. We’re using the Zoho Desk–Zoho Projects integration to manage tasks related to customer tickets, and it works well for linking and tracking progress. However, there are a few important automation capabilities

    • Enable Free External Collaboration on Notecards in Zoho Notebook

      Hi Zoho Notebook Team, I would like to suggest a feature enhancement regarding external collaboration in Zoho Notebook. Currently, we can share notes with external users, and they are able to view the content without any issue. However, when these external

    • Zoho Commerce

      Hi, I have zoho one and use Zoho Books. I am very interested in Zoho Commerce , especially with how all is integrated but have a question. I do not want my store to show prices for customers that are not log in. Is there a way to hide the prices if not

    • Multi-currency in Zoho CRM Forecast and Reports

      As a company we have branches in 4 different countries with as many different currencies. Our Sales Teams would like to work with their local currency as much as possible. The Forecast module using only 1 currency is practically usable only by the sales

    • Zoho Sprints iOS app update: Global view, screen capture control, file encryption, tags enhancement

      Hello everyone! We are excited to introduce new features in the latest version(v2.1) of the Zoho Sprints iOS app update. Let’s take a quick look at what’s new. 1. Global view Global view brings all your project items into one centralised space. You can

    • Zoho Projects Android and iOS app update: Conditional layout rules for Tasks

      Hello everyone! Task conditional layout rules configured on the web app(projects.zoho.com) are now applied on the Zoho Projects Android and iOS app. Conditional layout rules can be set for the Add/ edit task form and it allows you to change the property

    • How to account for vat with postponed VAT accounting

      Hi everyone, looking for some help with postponed VAT accounting, I use DHL express for my imports and they used to pay the VAT for me and then invoice me. I could then log this as a bill and the VAT element from import was recorded as input VAT, all

    • Is there a way to show contact emails in the Account?

      I know I can see the emails I have sent and received on a Contact detail view, but I want to be able to see all the emails that have been sent and received between all an Accounts Contacts on the Account Detail view. That way when I see the Account detail

    • Good news! Calendar in Zoho CRM gets a face lift

      Dear Customers, We are delighted to unveil the revamped calendar UI in Zoho CRM. With a complete visual overhaul aligned with CRM for Everyone, the calendar now offers a more intuitive and flexible scheduling experience. What’s new? Distinguish activities

    • Zoho mail admin panel not opening

    • Zoho CRM WooCommerce Integrtation

      Looking for a solution for my 50 client to show detailed analytics on source of traffic that led to events, leads, conversions. Hi all, I have not been able to find a workable guide or solution to how exactly step by step integrate the Zoho CRM with WooCommerce

    • 500 internal server error on opening an iframe through a deluge script

      Hi Team I am trying to open an external url in an iframe through my deluge script which is associated to a custom button . By doing this i am getting an "Internal Server Error" . Please can you help me with this.

    • Kaizen #225 - Making Query-based Custom Related Lists Actionable with Lookups and Links

      Hello everyone! Welcome back to another post in the Kaizen series! This week, we will discuss an exciting enhancement in Queries in Zoho CRM. In Kaizen #190, we discussed how Queries bridge gaps where native related lists fall short and power custom related

    • Filter button in the Zoho Sheet Android App doesn't toggle on

      I am a new Zoho Sheets user and experiencing a specific issue with the filter functionality in the Android mobile application. Detailed Issue Description: The filter icon appears correctly in the toolbar. Upon tapping the filter icon/button, the toggle

    • Is Zoho Sites still actively being developed?

      Hello, Is Zoho Sites still actively being developed as part of the Zoho ecosystem? I noticed that the What's New page (https://www.zoho.com/sites/whats-new.html) does not show any updates since Q1 2025. We were considering migrating our website from Squarespace

    • Project Notifcatiion Emails - Milestone

      Hello: I cannot get myself, or most importantly my portal client user to recieve an email upon completion of a milestone. I have set up our 1st project. I have set up a test client user. (accepted the invitation and is listed in the system as a client

    • Zoho Forms - Feature Request - Year Field

      Hi Zoho Forms Team, You currently have the following date and time fields: Date Time Date and Time Year and Month It would be useful if you could include a "Year" field For example a recent application I completed said "What year was your house built?"

    • Integrate Excel or Zoho Sheet functions / calculations to CRM product module

      Hello Community, I hope someone more experienced can help me with this question. Our price / payment plan calculations are in an Excel spreadsheet and I would like to use all those functions / calculations in my Products module. So when we send a quote

    • Sync CRM Contacts to USER'S contacts on Office 365

      I can see that the O365 sync is transferring contacts backwards and forwards between Zoho CRM and Office365. But it has created a separate address book in Office 365 called "Zoho CRM Contacts". This address book is not used by Office/Outlook's email function

    • Manage Every Customer Conversation from Every Channel inside Zoho SalesIQ

      Your customers message you from everywhere. But are you really able to track, manage, and follow through on every conversation, without missing anything? With interactions coming in from websites, mobile apps, and messaging platforms like WhatsApp and

    • Zoho Books | Product updates | February 2026

      Hello users, We’ve rolled out new features and enhancements in Zoho Books. From Advanced Reporting Tags to the ability to mark projects as completed, explore the latest updates designed to improve your bookkeeping experience. Introducing Advanced Reporting

    • This project could not be synced because it is not associated with a primary client

      When I go to ProjectName->Finance I receive a "This project could not be synced because it is not associated with a primary client" error. The project has been associated in ZohoCRM with the client. How can I set the primary client for this project. Other

    • Update latitude & longitude address field API

      How do I update the coordinates of an address field from a widget? I can't modify the latitude and longitude of the address field. I think the problem is how I'm writing formdata variable. zoho_init.then(function (data) { var queryParams = ZOHO.CREATOR.UTIL.getQueryParams();

    • Zoho Forms - Feature Request - Past Into Scanning/OCR Field

      Hi Zoho Forms Team, You recently introduced the OCR/Scanning field which I have found great use for with one client who receives work orders as a screenshot from one customer. I want to raise a feature request here which would make that field even more

    • inability to use different primary address on invoice per location

      my company operates in two different locations with different email address. The problems then is the inability to edit the primary to suite the invoice for the second location.

    • Use Zoho Creator as a source for merge templates in Zoho Writer

      Hello all! We're excited to share that we've enhanced Zoho Creator's integration with Zoho Writer to make this combination even more powerful. You can now use Zoho Creator as a data source for mail merge templates in Zoho Writer. Making more data from

    • Anyone in Australia using Zoho Books AND has their account with NAB?

      Hi I have an account with both NAB and Suncorp. Suncorp transaction come in the next day however NAB transactions take 4-5 business days to appear. eg: A deposit made today in my Suncorp will be imported into Zoho tomorrow. A deposit made today to the NAB account will be imported maybe Saturday (Friday overnight). I have contacted both Zoho and NAB but noone seems to know why. I was just wondering if anyone else in Australia uses NAB and has this issue (or doesn't) maybe we could compare notes and

    • Detailed Balance Sheet for tax preparer

      I'm using the free edition of Zoho Books. My tax preparer is asking for "detailed" Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet reports which include all the activity and transactions within the various categories. The default reports do not include these details.

    • Next Page