4 Key Features Your Time and Attendance Software Should Have
In today’s technology-ridden business world, you can’t throw a stone without hitting a dozen different software-as-a-service options that are designed to make your life easier and increase efficiency in the office. With that being the case, how do you sort out the quality services from the bad? Well, it takes a lot of research, which I imagine is why you’re here. Today we’re going to look at what features make a quality Time and Attendance software. But first, let’s make sure we’re all on the same page. Put simply, Time and Attendance software allows you to track and calculate employee time. The specifics behind this can vary widely, as some timekeeping software will sync with your payroll, others will keep you in compliance with overtime requirements, etc. However, there are four primary features that every Time and Attendance software should have: The ability to set up rounding rules and exceptions, simplified scheduling options, informed reporting, and employee self-service. With these four features at your disposal, you’ll be ready to revamp your timekeeping process and simplify your daily workload.
Implementing Exceptions
As a company administrator, you should have the ability to edit your employee punches and create system notes. These can be used to note when an employee forgets to punch out or leaves early for a family emergency, or whatever the case may be. Whenever an employee clocks in outside of their allotted time frame (or doesn’t clock in altogether), the punch will be flagged so you can keep tabs on when your employees are showing up outside of their scheduled time. At that point, you can choose to approve the punch or adjust it to your preference, and if the issue persists regularly, you can speak to the employee directly to root out the issue. When implementing your Time and Attendance software, you’ll have the ability to dictate exactly what your exceptions and rounding rules are, so they can be tailored to your company’s needs.
Simplified Scheduling
The aforementioned rounding rules and exceptions are all going to be based on your employee schedules. Because of that, it’s important that your Time and Attendance software allows for an easy-to-use scheduling software. Your software should allow you to edit your schedules directly from the time card authorization screen, thus allowing you to adjust schedules at the last minute. This is a great way for you to avoid dealing with red flags that might pop up if you call somebody off, ask somebody to come in early, or make other adjustments as necessary.
Every company is different, so there isn’t a one-size-fits-all method for scheduling employees. Make sure your Time and Attendance software has a variety of options to build out your schedules. Some methods include:
Quick Scheduling: This option makes it easier to schedule all your employees. You’ll have the ability to view your employees and make sure you have the coverage you need. If you have staggered employee schedules, you can verify you have enough employees for the entire day at a glance. If you have an employee who calls in sick, you can easily see who else is available to work, who is on vacation, and who is already working. Once you find somebody to cover the shift, you simply add them to the schedule and you don’t have to worry about this person being flagged when they go to clock in.
Company Schedules: If your schedules are pretty straightforward and don’t move around often, Company Schedules lets you build and keep a static schedule. You can adjust it as necessary, but this option is great for companies will low turnover and not a lot of shift changes.
Group Schedules: With this method, you can build in your shift needs on certain days for specific departments or locations, and then schedule your employees that are available to the specific shifts. This is a great option for retail, restaurants and home health care.
There are many variations of these schedule building options, so the important thing is that your timekeeping software offers you a number of methods so you can ensure you’re using the scheduling feature that is best catered to your company’s needs.
Informed Reports
Reports can be one of the most useful tools when it comes to running your business effectively, so your timekeeping software should have an intuitive reporting feature that gives you all of the information you could possibly need right at your fingertips. Relating to Time and Attendance specifically, the most popular report that you are likely going to run is the “approaching overtime” report. This gives you a detailed breakdown of those employees who are coming close to surpassing the overtime threshold. With this knowledge at your disposal, you will have the ability to confront those employees and see why they’re working extra hours and make steps to adjust their behavior accordingly.
Other popular reports include employee exemptions and missing punches, but make sure you find a timekeeping software that allows you to create custom reports since not all businesses are the same and you never know what kind of information you’ll need available to you at a moment’s notice. Your Timekeeping software that offers this feature typically lets you create a template so you can rerun the report at any time.
Employee Self Service
Your Time and Attendance software should have an Employee Self Service that helps your employees succeed. This can often be a portal where your employees can access to clock in and out of their shifts and track their own behavior such as when they’re punching in and out and how many hours they’ve worked. This prevents them from having to bother their supervisors for any information regarding their schedule or hours since all of this information is right at their fingertips. This is also where the employee can manage their leave management. They’ll get a breakdown of how many PTO days they have available, their recent time off activity, and what requests have been approved or are pending. This will eliminate the need for them to interrupt your day and help them keep a closer eye on the state of their paid time off.
If you’re shopping around for a Time and Attendance software, make sure these features are all present and fully functioning. Timekeeping is a major aspect of running a business, so having a quality software is important. If you want more information on what Dominion has to offer in regards to Time and Attendance, check out our e-book Why Dominion’s Time and Attendance Software is Key to Your Success, or request a personalized demo below.
