Make Sure Your Employee Time Clock Solution Fits Your Business

Do your workers still use the phrase “punch clock” to refer to the tool they use to clock in and out? While some businesses use handwritten timesheets to record entries rather than a traditional punch clock, the phrase is still used by a lot of employees. But, even if the language around your workplace is a bit outdated, your time clock shouldn’t be.

Time clocks have evolved

Back in the ‘90s, most companies still used paper timesheets to track time. Paper was portable, and the process was simple for workers to use. They could fill in their time and attendance information how and when they wanted to, even if it meant scratching down notes later in the day—or even later in the week.

This type of flexibility might have been great for workers, but it came with serious risks for businesses:

• Paper timesheets were easy to lose.
• Handwriting was sometimes tricky to read.
• Memory lapses led to human error.
• Sometimes, employees would just make up numbers they couldn’t remember.
• Paper didn’t exactly integrate with payroll systems.

Today, very few companies use paper as a way to track time and attendance. And, modern time clock systems offer advanced features, plus amazing flexibility for workers and employee groups. However, not all systems meet the needs of every kind of business.

How do you know if your timeclock solution is a good fit? Below, we’ll explore two key questions related to flexibility and scalability as you consider time and attendance options.

What are your time clock needs?

Every business and organization is different. And there are a variety of time clocks on the market. When you’re selecting a time and attendance solution, you want one that will work for people at all levels of your organization, including leadership, management, payroll, hourly workers, salaried employees and more.

As you consider different solutions, here are some questions to ask and answer up front:

• How many employees do you currently have?
• Are you in a period of growth? If so, can you project what your employee roster will look like a year from now?
• Do you need one universal time clock solution that can handle employees at multiple locations?

From there, consider these two key questions as you review time and attendance options, and land on the solution that fits your needs:

1. How do you define flexibility?
   Most time clock solutions promise various levels of ease and simplicity. But what do those words mean for your business? How will your employees access your time clock? Is it via a specific workstation? A kiosk? On a smart phone or tablet?

• • A flexible time clock solution, allows employees clock in and out multiple ways, including swiping an RFID proximity badge, entering a Personal Identification Number or PIN on a keypad, or biometrically with a fingerprint.
  • Flexibility can also mean that your time clock solution lets managers easily generate timecard and attendance reports, and track key information related to schedules, vacation, and PTO accruals.
  • Meanwhile, an advanced time clock solution can offer additional administrative functionality, such as easy payroll integration, and tracking labor distribution and productivity according to departments or project codes.

2. What does scalability look like for your organization?
   As product features evolve, the success of any time clock solution comes down to how well it meets your needs. Knowing that your time clock solution is flexible and cost-effective are important considerations so that the system can grow with your business. It also ensures the right fit so you aren’t buying a time and attendance system that is either more than you need, or not enough to handle your workforce. Some questions to ask include:

• • How much of a learning curve can your people handle right now?
  • Do you want a solution that’s ready right out of the box?
  • Do you want a monthly contract or would you prefer to own your time clock solution outright?

The way you track time can affect nearly every facet of your business. That includes payroll, employee engagement, overtime and more. As your organization evolves, you want a solution that will continue to meet your business needs. Certain features that might be out of scope today could be essential in the very near future.

Whether you’re choosing time and attendance solution that helps prevent time clock fraud, offers biometric entry, or syncs up with payroll or other human resource management systems, it’s important to consider where you are today and where your business might be tomorrow.