The Importance of Time & Attendance Systems for the Remote Workforce

Whether you’ve always had a remote element to your workforce, or the “new normal” has forced you to create one, your managers are at a disadvantage when it comes to productivity. With more distractions, challenges to remain productive and trust each employee is optimizing their time effectively, employee/employer dynamics are strained. 

While it might seem time and attendance systems would add to this strain, they help create a more trusting work environment for both sides. Managers know their team is remaining productive, while employees don’t feel they have to prove they aren’t taking advantage of the situation.

Here’s why time and attendance systems are so important for the remote workforce.

What A Time and Attendance System Tracks

Time and attendance systems manage the basics of recording start and stop times for employees. However, they can also be used by managers to improve:  

• Workforce management needs using analytics
• Scheduling with accurate records of hours worked
• Payroll accuracies
• Projections for future hours and budgeting
• Cost control associated to not only hours worked, but hours dedicated to time and attendance administration
• Capacity management both in the short and long term

When your managers have access to a centralized time and attendance system they have more control over each employee, the hours they work, the projects they are available to complete, the type of assignments they work on, and setting parameters to help employees stick to their usual schedules and productivity expectations.

Improved Flexibility

Once workers are remote, it becomes easier for workers to manage their own time. For example, when working from home many workers might prefer the option to time out and then return to work once dinner is finished, homework is done, or the kids are asleep. Workers who might otherwise have gone home to manage home demands are more available to commit to completing their tasks when their work hours become more flexible. With a remote employee time clock, you know when the work has been completed, and they have the freedom to manage their own overtime.

Accurate Tracking

Remote employee time tracking provides in and out times to reduce errors and conflict. It also reduces the time and effort on your HR team’s part to manage disputes over time worked. Workers are paid only for their time on the job and avoid inaccuracies associated with recording timesheets manually.

Accountability and Productivity

With the right time and attendance system in place, your managers have the tools they need to:

• Review and improve remote worker time management
• Overcome common workflow bottlenecks to improve productivity
• Understand where employee engagement and productivity are lagging and find solutions to resolve related issues
• Ensure accountability across all departments to improve supervision
• Fill security gaps to avoid cyber attacks
• Implement employee access authorization based on worker roles
• Reduce human error

Paypro’s customized solutions provide organizations with the tools required to meet the changing demands of a remote workforce from one easy-to-use dashboard.

Easier Employee Access

Remote workers might experience frustration when not provided access to their records. With an online time and attendance system, they can view their own records whether it is to check how much vacation time they have left, if a certain medical treatment is covered by their benefits, or to make quick updates to their personal records. They can also check-in when they think there might be a discrepancy of hours paid and alleviate the issues more quickly thanks to accurate record keeping.

Cost Control

Time and attendance systems can be customized to help you maintain control over costs associated with special projects. You can limit hours and allocate time spent more effectively so you can ensure you remain aligned with predicted costs. Adjustments can be made, or employees can be informed when they are running out of time based on budgets.

More Effective Scheduling

In hand with providing more flexibility, managers can become more effective at scheduling. For example, if your customer service team works remotely, you can use the busiest times to accurately schedule more people for peak demand times and reduce staff during downtimes. Staff work only when they are needed or remain the most productive. You can anticipate your staffing needs weeks in advance and avoid issues such as conflicting schedules. By streamlining your system with other aspects of your employee leave and holiday schedules you are never caught off guard with staff shortages.

While a remote workforce might not seem as productive, with the right time and attendance system you will maintain control and improve productivity optics.

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About the Author

Kayla is the Marketing Manager at Paypro Corporation overseeing all inbound and outbound marketing and sales efforts. She has 7+ years of experience working within the B2B and SaaS based solutions space and thrives on creating messaging and campaigns that introduce products and services to those who need them most.