Wasp Barcode Technologies: The Barcode Solution People

Indicators of exceptional time clock systems

Exceptional time clock systems account for your labor expenses with minimal hands-on adjustments or computations. Since human capital is the largest investment your business will make, it makes sense to implement an effective system that continuously monitors payroll. For the savvy business owner, the best time clock systems are automated. Gone are the days of complex calculations and time consuming payroll preparation; you have a business to run. The following four characteristics of exceptional time clock systems make time and attendance tracking the least of your business concerns:

Usability

Time clock systems include features that make them more or less user-friendly. For the most accurate payroll, implement a system that is easy for employees to use every day. Biometric time clock systems use an employee’s fingerprint to capture the time punch. Fingerprint systems are the most user-friendly time clock systems - when was the last time you left home without your finger? Is buddy punching a problem for you? In addition to usability, biometric systems are the most secure time clock systems. Since fingerprints are unique to each employee, you will have confidence in the system’s ability to accurately track employee time & attendance. Biometric time clock systems are not the only option. Exceptional time clock systems that use RFID or barcode technology to track time & attendance work, for the most part, the same way. The usability of biometric is unsurpassed and should be considered first.

Features

The main reason you will love (or loathe) your time clock system is its ability to meet your needs. In addition to tracking hours spent on the job, exceptional time clock systems track time-off, holidays and other variations in labor expenses. Features of exceptional time clock systems take the guess-work and manual number crunching out of the equation. One company reported increased productivity thanks to the features of their time clock system: break-time became more flexible when the new time clock system was implemented. Thanks to the new system, employees focused on the quality of their work instead of the time on the clock. An employee can now complete a task before leaving for lunch instead of re-engaging the same work after a break; which would require re-opening software programs, recalling the appropriate resources needed to complete the task, determining where it was left off, and completing. Getting more accomplished: a welcome surprise to leadership!

Reporting

The biggest benefit of your time clock system will be the time it saves your HR administrators. Fix payroll before it becomes a problem with missing punches report. A missing punches report generates each time “punch” needed to complete payroll for a certain time period. This can be generated proactively so payroll processing is on time and accurate for each pay period. Payroll processing is probably not the same (hours or wages) for every employee. Group level summary reports are helpful for each labor “group” you have set up in the system. This makes it easy to keep track of time and attendance variations for each wage group and their associated time and attendance expectations.

Support

Using a time clock system as a component of your payroll process means sooner or later you might need support. Does the manufacturer of your time clock system stand behind its solution? You will need assistance with setting up your new system, learning to use the system, and in the event of an emergency.  Some manufacturers include a try-before-you-buy system to test the system before you commit to the investment. Shameless plug: Wasp offers free unlimited technical support and complimentary getting started training for the WaspTime Time & Attendance solution. Whatever you decide to use to track employee time and attendance, beware: all time clock systems are not created equal. Think about it. You might be surprised how much time your free time sheet template actually costs.