What Are Time And Attendance Systems? How To Set Up One 

Monitoring the time and attendance of your employees is crucial in your company. This process helps you determine how much your staff works and how long they take breaks. In addition, you can also identify if there’s an employee who isn’t working correctly or stealing from your workplace. 

However, manually tracking the attendance of your workforce can be time-consuming and prone to human error. With the latest time and attendance systems, receive real-time updates on the whereabouts of your staff to ensure they’re productive in their tasks. Also, your employees will be more efficient since they don’t have to waste their time looking for paper punch cards. 

That said, you must read this article to learn how to set up an advanced time and attendance systems in your organization. 

• Research The Right System

If you have an inefficient timekeeping system in place, you won’t have any idea when your employees are working or not. In addition, your staff can easily manipulate the system. For instance, they can leave early and punch in late, which means that you’ll pay employees for more hours than their actual performance. 

To avoid this costly and fraudulent workplace situation, you must conduct in-depth research to find the most effective time and attendance systems. This process requires you to assess your company’s timekeeping needs and the type of modern equipment you’ll require. Also, ensure to look for time clocks that are easy to set up and configure so you won’t have to seek assistance from your information technology (IT) team. 

Among the options you’ll explore, it’s helpful to incorporate staff management software that enhances accuracy and security in tracking employee attendance. These systems are often tailored to accommodate different location time zones, highlighting the importance of selecting one that aligns with your business requirements. For instance, SenseHR staff management software in the UK stands out by streamlining this aspect, ensuring that compensation aligns with the actual hours worked. These software options do more than just track time; they help you manage your team better. They’re easy to use, which means you don’t need to ask your IT team for help to get started. This simplicity makes it easier for you and your team to keep track of work hours without any hassle.

• Develop Overtime Rules

Your new system will track employees’ daily in and out attendance. However, without creating overtime rules ahead of time within your new system, some inaccuracies may arise. For example, if an employee has been working overtime for several straight weeks and then clocks in late one day, the system will still be clocking that person out at the same time as everyone else, even though they’ve already worked extra hours that week. 

You must consider several factors when developing overtime rules in your new system. For instance, if you have salaried employees who are required to work overtime, you may add them to the system. You can either add a timecard or allow them to log their time and attendance through an online portal.

• Calculate Cost Savings

A time and attendance system is a smart investment that’ll help your business save money. Therefore, understanding how much it will cost to implement is vital. Thus, you need to calculate cost savings to help you determine how much money you can expect to save by switching to a new system. Also, you should identify how long it might take for you to recover those costs so you can find a system that best matches your budget. 

When considering cost-saving measures, it’s crucial to consider your company’s budget and resources. Next, create a list of features you wish to have in your system; some companies might need more advanced features than others, while some might not. After that, assess the type of workforce you have and know if they are already using mobile devices to accommodate this innovation. 

• Set Up A Comprehensive Payroll System

Neglecting to set up a comprehensive payroll system when integrating a new time and attendance system can negatively impact your company. For instance, if you use multiple systems to calculate your employees’ salaries, you risk errors leading to inaccurate paychecks. Similarly, you might be unable to monitor your worker’s tax deductions, including the benefits they’re entitled to. 

The first thing to consider is the period that you want to have payroll reports generated. Most companies will have a monthly or bi-weekly payroll cycle, but some may even have weekly paychecks. After that, ensure your payroll software is compatible with your new system so you can link the two databases together. 

• Train Employees For System Usage

Failing to train your employees as you implement a new time and attendance system might affect the workflow within the workplace. If your staff doesn’t know how to use the latest technology, there might be a higher number of absences and increased payroll costs. In addition, they might take longer than usual to clock in, which may cause issues for managers who need coverage during those periods. 

To begin developing a training program for your employees, you need to get the approval of your human resources (HR) department. Instead of relying on managers’ instruction, you must provide access to all your employees so they may learn how to use it. After that, assign a mentor to guide your employees through the process and answer any questions along the way. 

Key Takeaway

Time-tracking systems allow you to monitor your employee’s time-sensitive performance, which is vital to boosting productivity. Therefore, you should invest in it and follow these five tips when setting up this technology.