Quick reference CPDFlow tracks two distinct hours figures: your actual hours logged (everything you have genuinely spent time on, including in-progress work) and your completed CPD hours (what counts in your formal CIMA submission). They should converge as you mark activities complete. If you see a gap and a warning, it means you have timer time on activities that are not yet marked done.
14.1 The two hours figures
CPDFlow deliberately shows two different hours figures depending on context.
Actual hours logged
Used on the dashboard, cycle progress, readiness checker, and PDF progress report.
This is the most complete picture of your effort:
- If you have used the timer on an activity, those timer hours count — regardless of whether the activity is marked complete
- If you completed an activity without using the timer, CPDFlow uses the planned duration you entered as the best estimate
- If an activity is planned but you have not started it and have no timer time, it contributes 0
This figure gives you an honest view of how your year is progressing, including work you are mid-way through.
Completed CPD hours
Used on the CIMA audit report and the evidence bundle — evidence mode.
This is what goes into your formal submission:
- Only activities you have marked as Completed are included
- Timer sessions on in-progress activities are excluded
- Completed activities with no timer use your planned duration as the duration figure
This distinction is intentional. CIMA’s monitoring process reviews your submitted record as evidence of completed development. Work you started but did not finish should not appear in a submission you are signing off as complete.
Evidence bundle: evidence mode vs WIP mode
The evidence bundle export is the one place where CPDFlow lets you choose which calculation applies — because its audience changes depending on why you are exporting it.
Evidence mode uses the same calculation as the CIMA audit report: only completed activities are included, and in-progress timer time is excluded. Use this when the bundle is going to CIMA, an employer, or anyone who needs to see your formal, signed-off record.
WIP (work in progress) mode uses the same calculation as the dashboard: completed activities plus timer hours on any activity you have started but not yet finished. Use this for mid-cycle check-ins — a conversation with a line manager, a mentoring session, or your own progress review — where the honest picture of invested time matters more than the formal submission boundary.
The useful consequence is that WIP mode will almost always show a higher hours figure than evidence mode during an active cycle. That gap is not a problem to fix; it is the time you have genuinely spent but not yet formally wrapped up. As you mark activities complete, the two figures converge.
14.2 The three activity tiers
How your hours are counted depends on the state of each activity:
| Activity state | Timer used? | Hours counted in progress tracking | Hours counted in CIMA submission |
|---|---|---|---|
| Planned / In Progress | Yes | Timer hours | 0 — not yet complete |
| Planned / In Progress | No | 0 | 0 |
| Completed | Yes | Timer hours | Timer hours |
| Completed | No timer | Planned duration | Planned duration |
The most important column is the last one. Only completed activities appear in your CIMA submission.
14.3 The timer-at-risk warning
CPDFlow shows an amber warning when you have timer hours on activities that are not yet marked complete. You will see this on:
- The dashboard hours row
- The readiness checker panel
- The cycle close wizard (advisory, non-blocking)
The warning looks like:
“2h 30m in progress — mark activities complete to count towards your CIMA submission”
This means you have logged that time via the timer, and it is showing in your progress tracking, but it will not appear in your audit report until you mark those activities as completed.
What to do: Open the flagged activity (or activities), confirm the work is done, write a reflective statement if needed, and set the status to Completed. CPDFlow will then include that time in your formal record.
14.4 Marking activities complete before closing a cycle
Before you seal a cycle, CPDFlow checks whether you have unclosed timer hours. The close wizard will show an advisory notice (it will not block the close, but it is strongly recommended you address it first).
To resolve it:
- Go to Activities (or find the flagged activities via the readiness checklist)
- Open each in-progress activity with timer time logged
- Set the status to Completed — add a reflective statement if not already written
- Return to Cycle Close — the advisory should clear
Once the cycle is sealed, its record is permanent. Timer hours on activities that were still in progress at seal time will not appear in the audit report for that cycle.
14.5 Frequently asked questions
Does CPDFlow have a minimum hours target?
CPDFlow does not impose one. CIMA recommends approximately 20 hours of CPD per year, and CPDFlow uses that as a default target for the readiness checker — but you can adjust the target in your cycle settings. CIMA itself does not enforce a minimum in the same way for all member types.
My dashboard shows more hours than my audit report — is that a bug?
Almost certainly not. Check whether you have in-progress activities with timer time. If so, that is the gap — the dashboard includes those hours; the audit report does not. Mark those activities complete and the figures will align.
I completed an activity without using the timer. Will the duration I entered be accurate?
CPDFlow uses your planned duration as the best estimate for completed activities with no timer record. CIMA does not require time-tracking precision — a reasonable estimate supported by the dates and your reflective statement is sufficient. If you know the actual time was significantly different, you can edit the activity’s duration before closing your cycle.
Can I edit hours after closing?
No. Once a cycle is sealed, it is a read-only record. This is what makes it audit-ready. If you need to correct an error, contact CPDFlow support before sealing — or note the correction in your next cycle’s evaluation.