From Guesswork to Confidence: Data Entry Completion

Data Entry Completion gives operators and supervisors a clear, at-a-glance view of when data entry is finished for any day or interval. This shared visibility eliminates uncertainty and reduces the chance of a missed entry.

Let's face it - Water and Wastewater operations teams are busier than ever before. New regulations and reporting needs require a constant stream of data—from daily meter readings and runtimes to water quality samples and lab results. These measurements occur at different frequencies throughout the day and across multiple facilities. Couple that with daily emergencies and adjustments, it could be easy to overlook a critical data entry through the day. Missing an entry today can lead to missed data that creates compliance issues, affects treatment decisions, and causes reporting problems at month's end.

Meanwhile, supervisors overseeing multiple sites and teams face a common challenge: there's no easy way to know when data entry is actually finished. Without visibility into completion status, teams rely on time-consuming manual check-ins or discovering gaps only when reports are due. This uncertainty leads to duplicated effort, missed entries, and potential treatment concerns when incomplete data surfaces at critical moments.

Data Entry Completion addresses this workflow gap by providing a clear, shared view of when data entry is done for any day or interval—helping operators stay organized and giving supervisors confidence in their records without constant follow-up.

How Data Completion Keeps Everyone Informed

Data Completion provides multiple layers of feedback to help operators and supervisors stay aligned:

For Operators:

• Required metrics (designated by supervisors) are marked with a red asterisk, making priorities visible at a glance
• A status bar across the top of the screen shows how many required metrics have been completed and how many are incomplete
• The status bar changes color when the operator marks the period as complete, providing immediate visual confirmation

For Supervisors:

• The Dashboard updates to reflect completion status across all facilities in the system, offering a centralized view without needing to check each site individually
• An automatic email notification is sent when data entry is marked complete, including a comprehensive summary of required data entered, the operator who completed it, date and time stamps, and the actual data values recorded

This multi-level approach ensures operators have clear guidance on what needs attention, while supervisors gain visibility across their operations without constant manual follow-up. Then if adjustments are needed, that conversation can happen today instead of at critical moments.

Marking Data Entry Complete - What it Means

Marking data entry as "Complete" lets an operator indicate they have finished entering information for a given day or interval. When attempting to complete their entry, operators are prompted to review and acknowledge any required metrics they've missed, helping to prevent accidental oversights. This action serves as a clear completion marker, not an accuracy check—Rounds does not verify the correctness of the data entered. In essence, marking as complete communicates "I've completed my data entry," not "all data is verified as accurate." While supervisors define which metrics are required, operators retain the ability to mark a period as complete even if some required fields remain empty.

Enabling and Configuring Data Entry Completion

Only Supervisors and up can turn on Data Entry Completion by site.  By clicking the pencil icon next to the Site name, the edit site panel will open. Toggle on Data Entry Completion and Save.  

 

To enable a Metric to be Required for Rounds (in Edit Mode):

1. Clicking the pencil icon by a metric.
2. Check “Required”
3. Click Save.

This will designate the metric as required for that day or all intervals.  At this time there is not an ability to require a metric for some but not all intervals for that day (this will be a future enhancement).  Here's how it looks:

 

Required metrics are identified by a red asterisk next to each metric. To help teams track data collection, a progress bar appears at the top of the page for both interval (if enabled) and daily periods, as applicable. This bar visually displays the total number of required metrics for the site, showing how many are complete and how many still need data. As operators save entries, the progress bar automatically updates, providing a clear picture of completion status in real time.

 

When all required metrics have been entered and saved, the operator can mark the daily or interval inputs as complete. They will be prompted to confirm this action before finalizing completion.

If any required metrics are missing, the user will see a list highlighting which metrics still need data. The operator should return to enter these missing values. However, it is possible to acknowledge the notification and proceed to mark the entries as complete. When data is marked complete, the progress bar will turn green and an email notification will be sent to the team.

Centralized Supervisor Visibility

From a management perspective there are two primary means of gaining insights from Data Entry Completion - Notification emails and the Dashboard

Email Notification

Data Entry Completion emails are sent using the same protocol as out-of-range notifications. These automated emails go to both the Supervisor assigned to the system and the operator who marked the site as complete. Each notification provides a concise overview of activity for the completed site, giving supervisors and operators a clear record of data entry status.

Dashboard Summary

For Rounds systems spanning multiple sites—such as treatment plants, lift stations, wells, and booster stations—each location can be individually configured for Data Entry Completion. Completion status for both daily and interval metrics (when applicable) is clearly displayed, making it easy for teams to monitor progress at a glance. The colored blocks represent intervals throughout the day: orange indicates that the interval was not marked complete within the designated timeframe, blue represents the current active interval, grey are future intervals, and the long bar displays daily metrics completion. Clicking on any of these blocks provides detailed status information based on whether the operator has marked that interval or day as complete at the specific site.

Progress Bar – Functionality and Color Indicators

The progress bar is designed to display the number of required metrics and how many have been entered in the site. This bar will follow the user scrolling down the site. It can be dismissed at any time, but will remain active at the top of the site. 

 

The color of the progress bar serves as a quick visual indicator of data entry status. The most common status colors are as follows:

• Green: Data Entry has been marked as completed for this interval or daily period.

• Light Blue: The current active interval (this can be both a time interval and a daily period) which is also not marked as completed

• Orange: The interval inputs were not marked as complete before the interval ended.

• Gray: The interval exists in the future. It is not advised to mark these as complete.

Note: The colors in the progress bar are coordinated with the interval dropdown box.

Making Data Entry Completion Work for Your Team

Data Entry Completion gives water and wastewater operations teams a simple, shared understanding of when daily data collection is finished. For operators, it provides clear expectations and a straightforward way to signal when their work at each site is done. For supervisors, it delivers visibility across multiple facilities without constant follow-up—the dashboard view and automated notifications mean you can focus your attention where it's actually needed rather than tracking down routine status updates.

Of course, tools only create value when they become part of your regular workflow. Leadership plays an important role here by defining which metrics matter most and making completion status a natural part of daily operations. When supervisors regularly check the dashboard and use completion data to support their teams, it reinforces that consistent data collection helps everyone—from treatment decisions today to compliance reporting at month's end. Start by identifying your required metrics, communicate those priorities to your team of professionals, and incorporate a quick dashboard check into your afternoon routine. The visibility and confidence that comes from knowing your data collection is on track makes the effort worthwhile.