The evolution of technology has come with new and improved ways of doing things, especially where workforce management, in terms of time and attendance systems, are concerned. New innovative software is making this process simpler and more efficient, which has a significant impact on business profitability and employee productivity. But, as with all technology, you need to find the right fit for your unique business needs, which is why we have highlighted 5 factors that you need to consider before buying into a system.
What are time and attendance systems?
In simple terms, time and attendance systems are time clocking in and out systems used by employers and employees to track and manage their time. The evolution of these systems has meant that this technology now takes things a step further. These systems don’t just manage the clocking of time but can monitor mobile employees via geolocation and GPS tracking, manage paid time off, create schedules and rosters, provide insights through reporting, and give you, as an employer, real-time data related to your employees such as where they are, the hours they have worked, overtime and more.
Why is this important? As they say, time is money, which is why employees’ time needs to be tracked and managed effectively. This is especially the case within the cleaning services industry, where employees are spread out across several locations and jobs. You need to ensure that your employees are at the right location for the right number of hours doing the contracted work required. If not, this could cost your business more in terms of overtime and even hamper your customer service experience. Also, today’s time and attendance systems often seamlessly integrate into your payroll solution, improving efficiency and accuracy.
Types of time and attendance management systems
On the market currently, there are several different types of time and attendance systems being used. Each fulfills a different need or business requirement. The top three time tracking software options include:
- Timecards – this is the new digital spin on the traditionally used punch clocks. A timecard system automates time tracking using a timecard which employees will need to swipe.
- Proximity cards, badges, and key fobs – these tracking systems rely on different readers that will scan and identify employees’ cards, badges, or key fobs. These not only track clocking in and out but your employee’s movements in the workplace as well.
- Biometric systems – are an innovative time and attendance tracking system that utilises facial recognition, fingerprints, eye scanning, and more to ensure that the right person is clocking into the correct location.
5 factors you need to look out for when considering a time and attendance system for your business
From the above, it is clear that time and attendance systems come in various different forms, which makes choosing the right option often a tough decision. To make this process a little less complicated, our team at EasyRoster has highlighted the top 5 factors that you need to consider when choosing one of these systems for your business and its unique needs. These include:
- Flexible time-tracking across locations – due to the nature of the cleaning services industry you need to have a system that not only tracks your employees and their hours but also tracks this across multiple locations.
- Employee scheduling solutions – when choosing a time and attendance system, you need to look for a solution that extends beyond clocking technology and includes scheduling and PTO management functions. This reduces the number of solutions you need to utilise to ensure effective time management by employees.
- Accurate tracking – time and attendance systems need to accurately track time to ensure efficiency as well as allow for scheduling and rostering. The scheduling of your workforce makes tracking time and employee attendance that much easier as you can compare the number of hours scheduled to the number of actual hours worked and how this impacts your profit. This helps to identify issues, problems, or opportunities for improvement.
- Ease of use – you need to look for a solution that is user-friendly, accessible, and easy for all employees to use.
- Seamless automated integrations – the solution chosen should seamlessly and automatically integrate with your payroll software and Human Resource programs. This will allow for the correct payments to be made regarding time off, leave, overtime, absenteeism, and more.
The result of the above factors is essentially a reduction in human error, as these processes are automated. This means fewer errors related to calculations, a lower risk of non-compliance, and improved efficiency. By choosing one solution that fulfills all your needs and integrates into your current systems, you can save costs and boost productivity. The benefits to your business, when utilising the right time and attendance systems, can only increase profitability.
What makes Adapt IT EasyRoster the perfect time and attendance solution for your business?
The EasyRoster software will empower you as an operations manager to manage staff deployments in near real-time from the office and, at the same time, record the added details automatically. This makes tracking employee time and attendance that much easier and simpler to execute.
This employee check-in functionality is conducted either with biometric machines (fingerprint or facial recognition) or proximity card technologies. This ensures that the scheduled employee arrives at and leaves the right locations at the right times and is working the correct hours.
Not only does this software ensure simple and effective employee time and attendance management, but it also enables effortless and efficient staff scheduling across all contract locations, which can be done automatically and manually.
EasyRoster integrates seamlessly into workplace payroll systems and ensures that your Human Resource department has all the necessary information related to your employees’ hours, holidays, sick leave, employee absences, overtime, etc. This not only saves time but increases productivity which significantly impacts business success and profitability.
Conclusion
Time and attendance systems fulfil a vital role in many businesses, including cleaning service companies. Finding the right system for your unique business needs is critical to the success of the implementation of this kind of system.
One of the solutions that ticks all the boxes for this specific industry is EasyRoster due to the features mentioned above. For more on EasyRoster and how it can simplify your employee time and attendance tracking, book a demo today.
As a Senior Product Manager at Adapt IT, I lead the division responsible for one of our flagship products, EasyRoster. Our primary focus is to empower organisations with top-tier Workforce Management Software, enabling them to optimise operational efficiency and streamline processes.
With over 12 years of experience in the industry, I have collaborated with clients across 25+ countries, delivering training sessions and offering labor efficiency consultations to diverse groups of professionals.
In my capacity as Senior Product Manager, I oversee a multidisciplinary team that together, strive to create innovative solutions and maintain our commitment to excellence in the realm of workforce management.
