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Sync Xero Timesheets

Sync approved Diversity Sync’d timesheets to Xero, review pay calendar and staff mappings, resolve sync errors, retry failed timesheets, and confirm the result before payroll is processed.

Written by Adam

Use Timesheets in Finance to send eligible staff timesheets from Diversity Sync’d to Xero.

Before syncing, confirm that the correct Xero organisation, pay calendar, staff mapping and pay-rate configuration are in place.

Before you begin

You need permission to:

  • Access Finance

  • Open Timesheets

  • View staff timesheets

  • Sync timesheets to Xero

  • Review Xero-related payroll configuration

Before syncing, confirm:

  • The correct Xero organisation is selected.

  • The staff member is assigned to the correct Pay Calendar.

  • The staff member has the correct Employment Type.

  • The staff member is linked to the correct Xero employee in Staff Mapping.

  • Required shift pay rates are mapped in Shift Pay Rates.

  • Required allowances are configured correctly.

  • The correct pay period is selected.

  • Eligible shifts exist within the selected period.

  • Payroll has not already been processed or finalised in Xero.

Important: Do not sync timesheets if payroll has already been processed or finalised in Xero. Follow your organisation’s payroll correction process instead.

1. Open Timesheets

  1. Select Finance from the main navigation.

  2. Select Timesheets.

  3. Confirm that the correct Xero account is being used.

  4. Select the relevant pay calendar or pay period where available.

  5. Review the staff timesheets displayed.

The page may show:

  • Staff member

  • Pay period

  • Timesheet hours

  • Mapping information

  • Sync status

  • Error information

  • Available sync actions

2. Review the timezone

Timesheet dates and times may be displayed using the applicable organisation or pay calendar timezone.

Before syncing:

  1. Review the timezone shown in Diversity Sync’d.

  2. Confirm that the dates and times match the expected pay period.

  3. Confirm that overnight or cross-timezone shifts appear correctly.

  4. Resolve unexpected timezone differences before sending payroll information to Xero.

Note: Version 8.0.0 includes expanded timezone handling across timesheets and related shift workflows. Review the displayed timezone before syncing.

3. Review the timesheets

Before selecting a sync action:

  1. Confirm the staff member.

  2. Review their total hours and allowances.

  3. Confirm that the shifts belong to the correct pay period.

  4. Check the displayed sync status.

  5. Review any warning or error shown.

  6. Confirm that the timesheet is ready to send to Xero.

Do not sync a timesheet with unresolved configuration errors.

4. Sync an individual timesheet

Where an individual sync action is available:

  1. Find the required staff member.

  2. Review their timesheet.

  3. Select the available Sync action.

  4. Wait for Diversity Sync’d to process the request.

  5. Review the resulting status.

The exact action shown may depend on the current status of the timesheet.

5. Sync multiple timesheets

Where a bulk sync action is available:

  1. Review all displayed timesheets.

  2. Confirm that each eligible staff member is ready to sync.

  3. Select the available bulk sync action.

  4. Confirm the action where prompted.

  5. Wait for processing to finish.

  6. Review the status of each staff member.

Only use a bulk sync when every included timesheet has been reviewed. The Sync All button will only sync the staff and their timesheets on the page you're viewing. The same for when search filter is applied, Sync All will only sync the staff the timesheet list is showing for a selected page. If more than one page is shown at the bottom of the last staff members timesheet, its important to navigate to each page and sync all staff for each page.

Important: Do not use a bulk sync to bypass unresolved errors. Correct each staff member’s configuration before syncing.

6. Review the sync result

After syncing, review the status displayed for each staff member.

A timesheet may:

  • Sync successfully

  • Require further configuration

  • Display an error

  • Require a retry

  • Create or update a Xero timesheet

If a timesheet already exists in Xero, Diversity Sync’d may update the existing record according to the available integration behaviour.

If no matching Xero timesheet exists, a new Xero timesheet may be created.

Review the result before continuing with payroll.

7. Understand what happens when you sync

When eligible timesheets are synced:

  • Diversity Sync’d sends the relevant timesheet information to the connected Xero organisation.

  • Staff mapping determines which Xero employee receives the timesheet.

  • Shift pay-rate mappings determine the applicable Xero earnings or pay items.

  • Allowance configuration may affect additional payroll entries.

  • Draft, leave, unavailable, or other non-eligible shift states may not be included.

  • Xero may receive the timesheet as a draft for payroll review.

Always review the resulting Xero timesheet before completing payroll.

8. Retry a failed timesheet

If a staff member displays an error:

  1. Review the error message.

  2. Identify the configuration causing the failure.

  3. Correct the issue in the relevant area.

  4. Return to Finance > Timesheets.

  5. Find the affected staff member.

  6. Select Retry where available.

  7. Wait for processing to finish.

  8. Review the updated sync status.

Common issues may involve:

  • Staff Mapping

  • Pay Calendar

  • Employment Type

  • Shift Pay Rates

  • Xero earnings or pay items

  • Xero organisation selection

  • Eligible shifts in the pay period

Important: Do not repeatedly select Retry without correcting the underlying error first.

9. Review the timesheet in Xero

After a successful sync:

  1. Open the connected Xero organisation.

  2. Find the corresponding employee.

  3. Open the relevant timesheet or pay period.

  4. Confirm the dates and hours.

  5. Review the earnings or pay items.

  6. Review any allowances.

  7. Confirm that the timesheet is attached to the correct employee.

  8. Continue with your organisation’s payroll review process.

Do not finalise payroll until the synced information has been reviewed.

Important notes

  • Always confirm the correct Xero organisation before syncing.

  • Staff must be linked to the correct Xero employee in Staff Mapping.

  • The correct Pay Calendar must be assigned.

  • The staff member’s Employment Type must be correct.

  • Required pay rates must be mapped in Shift Pay Rates.

  • Allowances must be configured correctly where applicable.

  • Review the displayed timezone before syncing.

  • Use Retry only after correcting the error that caused the sync to fail.

  • A successfully synced timesheet may still require review in Xero.

  • Do not make further payroll changes if the affected payroll period has already been processed or finalised.

  • Sync actions may differ depending on the timesheet’s current status and your permissions.

Troubleshooting

I cannot see any timesheets to sync

  1. Confirm the correct pay calendar or pay period.

  2. Confirm that eligible rostered shifts exist in the selected period.

  3. Check the staff member’s Pay Calendar.

  4. Confirm that the staff member is active.

  5. Confirm that your role has access to Finance > Timesheets.

  6. Refresh the page.

Nothing is syncing

Check that:

  • The correct Xero organisation is selected.

  • The Xero integration is connected.

  • The staff member is linked in Staff Mapping.

  • The pay period contains eligible shifts.

  • Required pay rates are mapped.

  • Payroll has not already been processed.

Correct any configuration issue before trying again.

I see a missing shift pay rate mapping error

  1. Open Finance.

  2. Select Shift Pay Rates.

  3. Find the pay rate used by the affected shift.

  4. Map it to the correct Xero earnings or pay item.

  5. Save the change.

  6. Return to Timesheets.

  7. Select Retry beside the affected staff member.

The staff member is mapped, but the timesheet still will not sync

Check:

  • The correct Xero employee is selected in Staff Mapping.

  • The correct Pay Calendar is assigned.

  • The Employment Type is correct.

  • Required Xero earnings or pay items are mapped.

  • Eligible shifts exist in the selected pay period.

  • The correct Xero organisation is selected.

  • The displayed timezone and pay period are correct.

After correcting the issue:

  1. Return to Finance > Timesheets.

  2. Find the staff member.

  3. Select Retry.

  4. Review the updated status.

The wrong Xero employee received the timesheet

  1. Stop the payroll review for the affected record.

  2. Open Finance > Staff Mapping.

  3. Find the Diversity Sync’d staff member.

  4. Review the mapped Xero employee.

  5. Correct the mapping.

  6. Follow your organisation’s payroll correction process for the incorrectly synced record.

  7. Return to Timesheets only when the mapping is correct.

The Xero timesheet was created as a draft

This may be expected.

  1. Open Xero.

  2. Review the draft timesheet.

  3. Confirm the staff member.

  4. Confirm the dates and hours.

  5. Review the earnings or pay items.

  6. Continue with your organisation’s payroll process.

The timesheet shows the wrong dates or hours

  • Review the timezone displayed in Diversity Sync’d.

  • Confirm the selected pay period.

  • Review the rostered shifts.

  • Check overnight shifts.

  • Confirm any clock adjustments.

  • Correct the underlying shift or timesheet information before syncing.

Retry does not fix the error

  • Read the current error message again.

  • Confirm that the configuration change was saved.

  • Refresh Timesheets.

  • Review Staff Mapping.

  • Review Shift Pay Rates.

  • Review the staff member’s Pay Calendar and Employment Type.

  • Confirm the correct Xero organisation.

  • Do not repeatedly retry an unchanged configuration.

Payroll has already been processed

Do not make further changes through the normal timesheet sync workflow.

Follow your organisation’s payroll correction process or contact the authorised payroll administrator.

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