Category: Technology

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Labor analytics: A how-to guide for company leadership

astronaut with a magnifying glass

Summary

  • Requesting and collecting data in real-time allows your management to make better business decisions and keep costs low.

  • Focus on gathering insights that will ultimately address your business needs.

  • With labor analytics, variety is key. Use and collect data from multiple sources.

Data plays a vital function in all aspects of running a business. It is used in everything, from analyzing and predicting product performance to segmenting and understanding your customers in order to optimize the user experience. 

So naturally, data has an important role to play in workforce management through the process of labor analytics – also known as workforce analytics. Through labor analytics, HR professionals gather and analyze workforce data to:

  • Understand what new roles and functions a company should seek to fill and which ones it should cut. 
  • Understand what roles and functions might require a reduction or elimination altogether.
  • Forecasting the value and success a prospective employee can bring to a company.
  • Obtain actionable insights on how to better manage labor costs.
  • Gain a deeper understanding of the employee experience and what positively boosts employee engagement.
  • Optimize business strategy in a way that increases performance and productivity.
  • Make data-driven business decisions on fair and cost-effective worker compensation and incentives.

The good news is that most businesses already have access to massive amounts of workforce data – the catch is that gathering and making sense of this data can be tricky. But in the end, the benefit of utilizing labor analytics significantly outweighs the effort spent organizing the data. 

Research shows the positive impact that workforce analytics has on business outcomes. Case studies show that companies that use labor analytics say they have a clearer understanding of their workforce needs and can identify employees with high potential. They have also noted an improvement in retention rates and are generally happier with their human resources. 

Webinar: How to Stop Employee Turnover

Since the pandemic, attracting talent has never been trickier, and the benefits of labor analytics cannot be overstated. Following these four steps will help you optimize your labor analytics process and put your business in a better position for success.  

Gather analytics data in real-time

It is essential that your C-suite decision-makers have access to labor analytics in real-time, before they need to make critical business decisions. Visibility like this improves response time to frontline labor issues and ensures a more efficient allocation of resources. 

Real-time analytics give managers a clear picture of labor costs as a percentage of revenue across all locatins and throughout the day, allowing them to see where and when their workforce is struggling. This way, they can make better decisions regarding staffing levels, absenteeism, overtime, and more.

Whitepaper: Workforce Analytics

Connect labor analytics with business needs

While organizations should always make decisions on the most current data available, having too much data can hinder decision-making. Labor analysis shouldn’t be aimless in scope. Each research activity should address a specific question that needs answering by the organization. In other words, business outcomes need to guide the analytics process in the right direction.

Use multiple types of data and analytics

To best utilize data analytics, using multiple, targeted sources of data — including business-appropriate performance analytics and HR/talent management analytics — is important. But it’s not enough. In workforce analytics, variety is key.

Internal reports focus on metrics such as completed training hours or satisfaction with training. Predictive modeling uses statistical analysis to project the outcome of various actions. And external benchmarking allows an organization to compare itself against the industry-standard. Incorporating data from a variety of analytics types gives the business a more robust viewpoint, allowing for better-informed decision-making.

Avoid common data analytics mistakes 

Organizations should be sure to avoid common pitfalls when using analytics. The data needs to be organized and cleaned, and organizations should start with small, simple projects rather than something big to help get leadership buy-in. 

They should also be careful not to confuse correlation with causation in research results. For example, if data shows that older employees are more successful at a task than younger employees, that may have nothing to do with age demographics but with years of experience. 

Data literacy – “the ability to read, write, and communicate data in context” — is a vital skill for any business today, according to 2019 Gartner research. Some companies may still have ways to go to maximize the potential of their labor analytics. Hiring a chief data officer or data scientist or outsourcing analytics capabilities to a vendor can help make sense of the data that’s collected. 

The growing importance of data analytics is inevitable. For the unprepared company, this may be intimidating. Getting leadership buy-in and using data analytics strategically to achieve a specific business outcome can help. But once the organization gets a handle on its labor analytics function, it can expect promising business outcomes. 

Optimize your labor analytics process with Workforce.com

Utilizing labor analytics tools like Workforce.com makes it easier to turn your data into real-time, actionable insights. These insights help you more efficiently tackle frontline labor issues like:

  • Predicting future hiring requirements
  • Understanding current staffing needs
  • Managing compensation and overtime
  • Understanding and optimizing employee engagement

If you’re interested in using workforce management software to improve both your labor analytics and your bottom line, check out our webinar below featuring exclusive research from a Forrester TEI report:

Building a Business Case for WFM Software

For more information, get in touch with us now. 

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Why tattleware isn’t the solution for underperforming teams

Summary

  • Tattleware is not just intrusive; it is also ineffective, as your employees still have access to their own devices.

  • Employees who are being monitored can feel stressed and resentful, leading to higher turnover rates and lower productivity.

  • The use of tattleware makes your organization vulnerable to undesirable legal situations.

Employee monitoring has long been a topic of much interest and debate. In an attempt to find out the extent of employee productivity, employers have sought ways to keep tabs on their workers — from Henry Ford’s 1914 Sociological Department that was used to monitor practically every aspect (work and personal) of Ford workers’ lives to Elon Musk contracting a PR firm to monitor Tesla employees’ Facebook activity. 

As hybrid and remote work become more commonplace — spurred on by the COVID-19 pandemic — more employers are turning to employee monitoring software, also known as tattleware or bossware. Without the ability to physically see their employees hard at work at their desks, companies are turning to different apps, monitoring tools, and surveillance software.

According to a survey conducted by the IDC, 67.6% of North American employers with more than 500 employees are currently using employee monitoring software. In another study, ExpressVPN found that 78% of the employers it surveyed are using monitoring tools. 

Tattleware and monitoring software can take on many different forms. Some examples include monitoring:

  • When an employee steps away from their computer
  • Employees’ online activity (websites visited, time spent using specific software like Slack, etc.) 
  • What employees are typing and what keystrokes are being used
  • The topics of discussion amongst employees by taking screenshots or even screen recordings
  • The facial expressions of remote workers during video calls using video analytics tools (this supposedly helps employers determine who is contributing more than others in meetings) 
  • What employees are doing by watching and listening in through their laptop webcams or microphones

We spoke with Jon Hyman, a partner in the Employment & Labor practice at Wickens Herzer Panza, to get his take on the topic. He believes that “employers that try to regulate employees’ use of workplace technologies in this way are fighting a Sisyphean battle.” It is a futile and harmful practice that uses tech to police and punish employers instead of effectively addressing productivity issues.

Enforcement will always be a losing battle

One issue with tattleware is that it is actually quite ineffective in doing what it ultimately sets out to do – keep tabs on your employees. 

“I hate this type of employee monitoring. I call it the iPhone-ification of the American workforce,” says Hyman. “No matter your policy trying to monitor your technology and your employees’ related productivity, if your employees can take their smartphones out of their pockets to circumvent your efforts, how can you effectively police anything? Why have a policy you cannot police and enforce? It’s also incredibly creepy and intrusive.”

You have a performance issue, not a tech issue

Tattleware supposedly makes it easier for employers to identify employees who are slacking. But knowing the time spent on work tasks or whether they’re streaming the World Cup on another tab doesn’t tell you anything about why productivity is suffering. 

“Instead of regulating an issue you cannot hope to control, treat employees’ use of technology for what it is — a performance issue,” Hyman explains. “If an employee is not performing up to standards because he or she is spending too much time on non-work activities, then address the performance problem. Counsel, discipline, and ultimately layoff if the performance does not improve.” 

Employee monitoring breeds resentment and reduces employee engagement

“A slacking employee, however, will not become a star performer just because you limit their social media access, keep an eye on how often they shop on Amazon, or log their Spotify playlists,” Hyman says. Instead, “they will just find another way to slack off and will resent you for your intrusion of their privacy. Instead of wasting your resources to fight a battle you cannot win, reapportion them to win battles worth fighting.”

In its survey, ExpressVPN found that the use of tattleware can have negative effects on employee mental health and wellbeing. Most employees surveyed felt stress and anxiety about their employers monitoring their activities. Thirty-two percent of respondents said that they didn’t take breaks as often for fear of repercussions. 

The very tools that are meant to be addressing dips in productivity are ultimately breeding distrust amongst workers, reducing performance and employee engagement. 

In a period where employees are resigning in droves, how wise is it for your company to gain a reputation for spying on their staff? 

Employee monitoring can leave you vulnerable to legal issues

Although there are many employee monitoring service providers out there that work within the law, using tattleware can land you in some unpleasant legal situations. 

According to the law firm Skadden, there are five potential legal issues to consider before implementing tattleware:

  • Invasion of privacy. An employee could take legal action against you if your monitoring activities are found to be highly offensive or end up revealing facts about their personal lives outside of work. 
  • Unfair labor practice charges. Under the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, employers can be charged if their monitoring reveals information about labor organizing efforts. 
  • Employment discrimination. Tools like facial recognition software may reveal characteristics about employees that are legally protected. Facial expression tools may not take cultural differences into account and make unfair assumptions about certain staff members. 
  • Unpaid wages and overtime. Just because an employee isn’t at their computer, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t working. Using monitoring software to pay hourly employees could result in unpaid wages and overtime for time spent doing things like reading, writing, taking phone calls, etc. 
  • Workplace injuries. Monitoring software can lead to overworked and burnt-out employees. Physical injury may also occur. In March 2022, a large e-commerce company using monitoring tools was fined $60,000 for causing employees’ joint and muscle injuries. These injuries were a result of employees overworking in order to meet deliverables.   

Build an environment of trust instead of fear

“We ask so much of our employees, even more so during COVID. The 9-to-5 is no longer relevant. If my employee, who is giving up nights and weekends for me, wants to spend a few minutes during the workday posting to Facebook, or checking the score of last night’s game, or buying something on Amazon, I just don’t care. I only care when it reaches the level of distraction and impacts performance. Then, however, we are treating the performance problem, not the technology problem—which is the appropriate and practical solution.”

“To put it another way, if you don’t trust your employees enough to do their jobs, why are you employing them in the first place?” Hyman concludes. Ultimately, spying on your employees damages your reputation and breeds mistrust. A happy, productive, and engaged workforce is attainable through trust, transparency, and capable leadership.

An engaged workforce is a productive workforce

The best way to ensure your team stays productive and maintains good performance is to keep them engaged. Workforce management software sets you up to get the basics of employee engagement right. 

Scheduling must be done in a way that is fair, efficient, and transparent. It must be flexible, allowing for adjustments like shift swaps and shift bids to be made on the fly. You also need a precise time and attendance system in place that makes it easy for employees to review their hours and see what they’re owed.

For more tips on how to drive employee engagement, watch our webinar – How to Drive Engagement for Hourly Employees

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4 Ways to Maximize HR and WFM Data

Technology and cloud-based applications and platforms enable companies to gather more data, but can they use it to make more effective HR and business decisions?

Virgin Media exemplified how to turn HR data to improve the candidate experience and recruitment process, ultimately reducing a potential loss in revenue equivalent to $5.4 million per year.

Another example is Lake Elsinore Storm, a minor league baseball affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They can track different WFM data, giving them information on how labor dollars are being spent. Using Workforce.com, they see labor costs and revenue per week, per team, and per individual. Because of this visibility and system, they can spot gaps and potential opportunities that help them not just be more efficient with costs, but more importantly, improve customer engagement.

However, the same cannot be said for other organizations, and most are still looking for the best way to utilize and make sense of their data better. In fact, according to a Workforce.com study, 64% of respondents say that labor analytics is a priority when they are evaluating any new software for their organization. It’s a clear indication of a gap between how organizations want to utilize data and how they currently do so. 

How to Maximize HR and WFM Data

1. Have everything in one place

Integration is key to ensure accuracy, access information fast, and analyze information alongside relevant metrics. 

“Over a really long period of time, everything seems fine. And I think it’s true for most HR data. No one really needs it for anyone. No one’s asking, so people tend to forget that this is important. And then there’ll be some event—something regrettable and unexpected. When that does happen, not having this data correct and accessible becomes very, very expensive,” Josh Cameron, Chief Strategy Officer at Workforce.com, said. 

When COVID-19 first hit, HR departments were suddenly being asked for a lot of information regarding employee statuses, PTO balances, and pay rates. “Instead of having a week to work it out, HR teams need to provide information right away. We certainly saw that in the market and saw organizations wanting to implement systems really fast to handle all of that,” Cameron shared. 

Webinar: The Hidden Cost of Bad HR Data

When HR and WFM data are integrated and can be found in a single place, it would be one less thing organizations need to deal with when something unexpected happens. 

2. Automate what you can

A good place to start is employee onboarding. A digital and automated onboarding system helps you keep track of employee information from the get-go. This helps keep everything in one place without too much paperwork. An efficient system stays on top of qualifications, certifications, and employee pay rates and alerts HR teams and managers when they need to be revisited. 

3. Optimize operations with data

WFM data can be powerful when used to optimize operations, and it begins with access to vital data and ensuring that frontline managers can use it too. 

It’s all about having access to crucial data in real-time and being able to make decisions on the fly. Typically, managers receive an end-of-week report on their labor analytics, but the crucial decision point has passed by then. When they have a real-time view of their operations, they’re able to adjust according to how the day goes. 

Read: Labor analytics and reporting starts with access to the right data

Access to WFM data can also help managers build cost-efficient employee schedules based on historical data and metrics. It takes out the guesswork and ensures that there are enough employees scheduled to meet the day’s demands. 

4. Avoid compliance issues

When HR and WFM data are tracked and analyzed correctly, they can prevent compliance issues from happening.  Leveraging data for HR compliance is about preventing potential violations. It means having the information to make sure everything is compliant—from wages, implementing schedules, to workplace policies. But at the same time, it’s also about not having to scramble getting information when it’s requested by authorities.

An integrated system is vital to realize the positive impact of data on your organization. When systems are integrated, consolidating a vast amount of information proves to be much easier. Ultimately, integration allows teams to generate reports fast, act on them quickly, and stay agile if something unexpected happens. 

Workforce.com can sync with any platform an organization uses, allowing for scheduling driven by actual labor insights, automated employee onboarding, custom BI reporting, and easier labor compliance, among others. See it in action by trying Workforce.com today. 

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How to prevent workforce management system outages: mitigation through redundancy

Summary

  • Workforce management data breaches and outages are a very real threat

  • Businesses should build redundancy and backup plans into their systems

  • It comes down to choosing vendors with reliable data and network security

In light of the ransomware attack on Kronos (UKG) that caused disrupted operations for thousands of businesses across the nation, it is worth reflecting on how to properly build redundancy into a workforce management system so as to mitigate the pitfalls that come with mass system outages.  

As many unfortunate companies and employees experienced with the Kronos (UKG) data breach, having vital attendance, scheduling, and payroll systems shut down and remain inoperable for weeks can be disastrous. Without proper contingency plans and security measures in place, workforce management system failures can result in payroll running late, chaotic scheduling, extremely inaccurate timekeeping, and the potential for sensitive employee information to be leaked. 

Okay, now take a deep breath.

Outages and data breaches do not need to be so stressful or debilitating. Here are several measures you can take to build redundancy into your workforce management system to keep your business running smoothly in the event of a technological emergency. 

Have a business continuity plan

Essentially, this is a document that outlines in detail how a company will remain in operation during a sudden system disruption or outage. A continuity plan like this needs to be mapped out and understood by all parties well in advance to any sort of outage in order for it to work. Drafting up a plan in the moment of failure will do very little good and most likely add to the confusion and stress of the situation, so be sure to put one in place ahead of time. 

To create a business continuity plan, take the three following steps:

  • Identify key business functions. In the case of workforce management systems, these would usually be timekeeping, scheduling, and compliance.
  • Determine the minimum downtime for each function. This will help you gauge the urgency at which measures need to be taken to address outages. It will also clearly define a timeline for when replacement systems may need to be brought in. 
  • Create a plan to maintain operations. Here is where you actually decide on the temporary processes your company will take to continue scheduling and timekeeping. These are usually manual processes taking the form of paper-based tools and simple spreadsheets. In other cases, you might have backup software or hardware. 

Use best-of-breed software

This is undoubtedly the best way to ensure your workforce management system is failure-proof.

When using a traditional all-in-one software system that handles everything ranging from scheduling to payroll processing, you are susceptible to a single point of failure. As soon as an all-encompassing platform like this has a data breach and crashes, your company can be left without the ability to run a single critical business function for up to several weeks.

Instead, companies should use a suite of best-of-breed softwares from a variety of different vendors. Enlisting multiple platforms to perform different functions eliminates the risk of a single point of failure. For instance, if your specialized time and attendance system goes down, you are still left with the ability to use your payroll system which operates on a completely different server. In this case, all you would need to do is document time manually which then you can still plug in for payroll. 

Regularly export timesheets, schedules, and other relevant data

There are many precautionary measures that can be taken during normal business operations that can help mitigate damages from an outage. Exporting timesheets and schedules to store separately from your workforce management cloud is simple, efficient, and often, very useful. 

By routinely exporting and keeping former timesheets and schedules on hand, you effectively create a paper trail which you can use in case of ill-timed audits during an outage. These offline records can also be used as references for when you need to manually create previously automated schedules and timesheets. It’s always a good idea to have business-as-usual models available while in the midst of enacting a business continuity plan. 

Ensure systems have strong IT security infrastructure

Finally, at its core, a workforce management system simply needs to have reliable data and network security. Your business won’t need to suffer the damaging effects of software outages if the software doesn’t become compromised in the first place. 

While data breaches and system outages can happen to anyone, the likelihood of them happening is far lower in systems with proven track records of safety and reliability. You should look for past instances where a provider has fallen short in its IT security and use those red flags to help you choose a secure workforce management platform.

Proper workforce management IT systems should be SOC-2 certified so as to ensure maximum client data security. The system’s online infrastructure should also be hosted in a virtual private cloud, helping to safely isolate it from potential network breaches. 

You should also be sure that your workforce management system runs daily data backups as well as Point in Time Restore points. All backup data should be stored on a separate cloud server too, so that a single outage will not compromise the entire system and all its data.

Don’t let your business remain unprepared for workforce management and payroll system outages. These nightmares can happen to anyone, and the fallout can be severe without proper protocols and backup plans in place. If you’d like to find out more about what to do in the event of a system data breach or failure, contact us today. We’d love to chat.

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Kronos (UKG) data breach leaves businesses in the dark for “several weeks”

Summary

  • Workforce management company Kronos (UKG) suffers ransomware data breach

  • Kronos Private Cloud applications to be offline for “several weeks”

  • Impacted businesses seeking timekeeping and payroll alternatives ahead of busy holiday season

Christmas came a little early this year for thousands of businesses using Kronos attendance systems – this time delivered by the horrific Krampus, however, not jolly ol’ St. Nick. 

Kronos (UKG), a large workforce management and HR software provider, announced yesterday that they suffered a ransomware attack over the weekend on Dec. 11. The attack impacts UKG solutions using the Kronos Private Cloud, namely Workforce Central, UKG TeleStaff, Healthcare Extensions, and Banking Scheduling Solutions. 

The applications will be unavailable for “several weeks” while Kronos works to resolve the breach – unfortunate timing for businesses heading into the final stretch of the holiday season. Many will be left without the necessary capabilities to account for overtime, apply bonus payments, adjust for shift differential pay, and simply run payroll on time. 

For many organizations, the breach likely compromised sensitive employee information such as names, addresses, social security numbers, and employee IDs.

People everywhere are very alarmed about the breach, with their concerns even outperforming the search intent of avid PlayStation gamers and night sky fanatics, according to Google. That’s when you know things are serious. 

 

A Kronos representative has suggested clients “evaluate and implement alternative business continuity protocols related to the affected UKG solutions.” As such, many are reverting to rudimentary pen and paper practices to stay on top of attendance and scheduling, while others still are seeking entirely new workforce management systems. 

The breach comes as a surprise seeing as Kronos is such a long-standing and well-established brand in its field, with its origins dating all the way back to the 1970s. Some of its major clients include Puma, Tesla, Clemson University, and the MTA.

Ever since their merging with Ultimate Software to form UKG in 2020, the elderly company has struggled to update its outdated time clocks and hardware systems to keep up with newly emerging workforce management solutions. This latest security breach will undoubtedly prove a major setback in building customer trust heading into the new year of a still-young decade. 

In light of this recent ransomware attack, businesses should reevaluate the security of their workforce management systems. With a national labor shortage currently reducing employee engagement and satisfaction, businesses are already on thin ice with staff. The last thing they need right now is for their timekeeping systems to shut down. Employees are not very forgiving when it comes to the accuracy and timeliness of their pay – something Kronos and its clients are about to experience firsthand. 

The safety of employee information and the reliability of payroll is of the utmost importance when it comes to workforce management practices. If having your workforce management and payroll processes offline for weeks at a time is damaging to your business, then it’s probably time to make a change. Don’t let Krampus ruin the holidays for you or your company next year – be sure to invest in modern-day workforce solutions with top of the line data security.

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6 reasons to choose best-of-breed software

Summary

  • All-in-one systems stretch themselves too thin, underperforming in most areas and severely limiting what businesses can achieve.

  • A best-of-breed approach lets businesses mix and match a variety of specialized softwares, integrating them seamlessly with open API.

  • There are 6 key reasons why businesses should choose best-of-breed over all- in-one. 

For some, one of the cardinal sins of showering is using the notorious 3-in-1 wash. This unholy combination of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash is often a useless attempt at solving a nonexistent problem of inconvenience. Not only is it a lazy way to somehow make showering easier, but the three components counteract one another, in the end proving less effective at their designated functions when combined than they would as standalone products. 

Most likely you would not sacrifice the expertise of specificity for mere convenience in the case of personal hygiene – shouldn’t it be the same when it comes to software solutions?

All-in-one vs best-of-breed systems

The 3-in-1 wash of the software world is the classic all-in-one ERP system. These systems consolidate all the core business functions of a company into a single platform provided by one vendor. They provide basic capabilities for all departments, forcing every user to adapt to a shallow, yet serviceable, experience. 

The problem with these all-in-one software suites is that users between departments have very different needs. Oftentimes, these systems lack depth in many areas, leading to overall inconsistent user operation and mediocre functionality across the board. Instead of focusing on a specific core competency, these all-in-one systems build out a “features checklist” over time in order to upsell customers.

It’s a “jack of all trades and master of none” situation, if you will.  

The alternative is to select an array of software solutions from multiple vendors who each have a definable core competency. For instance, a company would buy dedicated workforce management software for scheduling and attendance, top of the line HCM software for human resources, a specialized CRM platform for sales, and DBMS system for finance and accounting. Each platform integrates seamlessly with one another, creating a software stack that provides the benefit of an all-in-one system without all the limitations. This best-of-breed approach makes up for what all-in-one suites lack in capability, flexibility, and depth.

For a long time, the debate between a best-of-breed stack like this v.s. an all-in-one system was hotly contested. However, in recent years, the debate is becoming somewhat of a non-issue, as the best-of-breed approach is becoming standard practice. In fact, according to a 2019 Gartner survey, only 29% of businesses preferred all-in-one systems; this percentage will only shrink as we move further ahead into the future. 

6 reasons for choosing best-of-breed

Selecting best-of-breed solutions from multiple software vendors is the smartest and most effective way to take a business to the next level. Here are the reasons why this approach is far superior to utilizing an all-in-one suite:

In-depth tools and functionality

Best-of-breed software comes with richer and more diverse tools due to its specialized nature. The expertise of the software empowers businesses with increased functionality to maximize performance within a particular niche.  

Vendor flexibility

With the best-of-breed approach, it is easy for a business to remove or consolidate systems over time as required. If something goes wrong in one area, that vendor can easily be swapped or paired with another while keeping all other systems in place. With an all-in-one system, changing vendors affects the entire company. 

Frequent updates

Best-of-breed software prides itself on retaining the title “best.” To do this, it needs to constantly stay up to date on consumer feedback and market trends, and react accordingly by rolling out new features and improvements. As a client, it’s always nice to be on the receiving end of these continual updates. 

Scalability

Having systems that are adaptable to change is critical. Best-of-breed software is designed to work for all clients ranging from small businesses to large corporations. As such, it is flexible from right from the beginning, capable of scaling as necessary to whatever changes a client goes through.

Seamless integrations

Open API is the standard now for best-of-breed software, allowing for easy integration and data exchange between vendors. For instance, the right workforce management system usually integrates perfectly with most payroll platforms, busting the data re-entry myth surrounding the use of best-of-breed. At this point, API integration is so advanced that a collection of best-of-breed vendors almost feels like a single system.

Faster implementation 

Rolling out an all-in-one system requires an enormous amount of time and near-endless planning. It is much quicker to implement a best-of-breed system for a specific part of a business. There are fewer moving parts, fewer people involved, and lower training costs. 

 

We are living in modern times. Modern times call for the specialization of labor; as such, best-of-breed software increasingly proves to be the right choice. Just as a general practitioner should not perform brain surgery, all-in-one software should not try to handle specialized functions that are far beyond their capabilities. Workforce management is one such area that often gets overlooked and lumped into underwhelming all-in-one systems – do not settle for this. 

Businesses everywhere should understand this and enlist the help of multiple software solutions that are best in breed. A software that does one thing, and does it well, benefits a company tremendously; the benefit is only compounded when other specialized vendors are brought into the equation. 

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Simple shift replacement: A home run for the Lake Elsinore Storm

Summary

  • Last-minute schedule changes are difficult to manage without the right technology

  • Modern workforce management solutions make shift replacements easy

  • Minor league baseball team the Lake Elsinore Storm use Workforce.com’s shift replacement tool constantly

Uh oh, looks like Last Minute Linus can’t make it to his prep cook shift tonight. To make matters worse, it is a Friday – the busiest night of the week. Someone needs to cover his shift. So begins the feverish process of cold calling and texting dozens of employees to find a shift replacement. Sounds familiar, right?

If so, that’s a problem. There is simply no reason to overcomplicate replacing employee shifts. However, many in the hospitality industry are doing just this.

Businesses struggling with schedule changes

According to a study from earlier this year, 69% of schedules are made on paper or word processors. Because of this, navigating scheduling logistics is taking far too long. About 29% of employers say approving schedule changes and shift swaps takes the most time in the scheduling process. When dealing with shift replacements, 75% of managers claim to only call, text, or email employees to communicate. 

Combing through your phone and email contact lists like this takes valuable time, as does manually updating schedules with every last-minute change. 

Fortunately, there is an easier way to orchestrate all of this. 

Easy shift swapping

Workforce.com facilitates easy shift replacements all in one place for every employee and manager to see. No more texting seven different people to figure out who can cover who. Right from their phone, an employee can signal a need for a shift swap; this sends a notification to all their team members. These team members can then view information about the available shift and decide for themselves if they will claim it or not. Once a swap happens, all a manager needs to do is review and approve it with one click. Boom. It’s that easy.

Also Read: Shift swap software empowers managers and employees to take charge of scheduling

Utilizing efficient shift replacement technology benefits both employers and employees. According to a whitepaper published by Workforce.com, shift replacement tools empower managers to reduce overtime and lower under/overstaffing. For employees, the technology provides a better work/life balance as well as the ability to build camaraderie through more effective communication.

Time savings in Minor League Baseball

Many businesses know firsthand the positive impact shift replacement software has on their scheduling efficiency. Recently, we reached out to the Lake Elsinore Storm, a minor league baseball affiliate of the San Diego Padres, to hear about their experience using Workforce.com. 


“One of my favorite features is the shift replacement feature where I can see who’s not available for a shift and who is available to pick it up and don’t have to worry about reaching out to people,” says Katie, an HR generalist for the team. The Storm has a heavy emphasis on hospitality, employing a staff of over for a variety of roles encompassing restaurant service, ticketing, concessions, and groundskeeping. 

Before implementing the software, Katie found that personally overseeing shift replacements was eating up a lot of her time. This has since changed with the switch to Workforce.com: “I don’t have to worry about reaching out to people last minute, getting on the phone, sending emails. I know that it just shows up on someone’s phone and they can pick it up.”

Right there lies the real beauty of Workforce.com’s shift replacement feature; it empowers employees with the ability to take part in the scheduling process. Through this empowerment, unnecessary work is offloaded from the manager directly to the employee, saving time and money while maximizing convenience.

For Lake Elsinore Storm, the time savings brought about by key features such as shift replacement were well recognized across upper management. “It’s almost like we have another assistant or another employee working with us that is really intelligent and smart and knows what it’s doing … it’s really a time-saver,” states Christine Kavic, the Storm’s CFO.

The Storm have many different employee teams set up on Workforce.com, each serving different areas of hospitality. From the taproom staff to stadium maintenance crew, all teams work in unison to make game days go smoothly. Because of this variety, Lake Elsinore Storm management understands more than most what it takes to efficiently schedule a workforce in the hospitality industry. A result of this is high customer satisfaction through exceptional service to the public – something the team prioritizes. 

“Without Workforce.com, we could not do what we do best, and that is entertain the community,” says Kavic. 

Experience it for yourself

Replacing shifts shouldn’t be a hassle; in fact, it should be the easiest part of scheduling. Since Workforce.com’s shift replacement tool has been a big hit (sorry, I had to do it) in baseball stadium management, maybe it’s time you try it for free to see how it works. You won’t believe how simple it is.

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Data and WFM Technology: The Essentials of Leading a Successful Team

Anticipating changes is part of running a business, and the past year has magnified how important that is. But what does it actually take for businesses to stay agile and prepare for the most unexpected things? Quick answer: Access to real-time data and being able to act on it. However, it’s not as simple for most organizations. 

97% of respondents to a Deloitte survey said that they need additional information on some aspect of their workforce. However, only 11% of organizations were able to produce information on their workforce in real-time—and this challenge has been around even before the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Given today’s landscape, organizations need to have the mechanisms in place that enable them to use data to stay ahead even amid unexpected circumstances. The question is, how and where do they start?

Why keeping everything in one place is essential

The key to having access to every vital data point is keeping them in one place or having the means to see all of them at a glance. It starts with having an integrated workforce management system. 

“There are cases when organizations use separate platforms for clocking in, building employee schedules, and tracking time and attendance. Such practice can create silos, resulting in inaccuracies, and affect the integrity of workforce data,” Travis Kohlmeyer, vice president of sales at Workforce.com. 

Organizations can run into different risks when implementing various platforms for processes that could otherwise be done on a single system. Cross-checking data from separate software can be time-consuming and prone to errors that can even become costly compliance violations. Complexities can also happen later on, especially when these systems update and become difficult to integrate with each other. Scalability is also a potential roadblock because it can be challenging to work with different vendors as you grow your business and your requirements change. “It’s just not sustainable and can be costly in the long run,” Kohlmeyer said. 

Having a myriad of different tools and systems can also be difficult for frontline teams to use and counterproductive. “Employees should love to use the tools provided, or they generally won’t use them at all,” Tasmin Trezise, president of Workforce.com said. One of the biggest trends in workforce management is emphasizing ease of use, especially for frontline teams. “We will continue to see the rise of native SaaS cloud applications over clunky enterprise workforce management software with organizations preferring improved frontline manager/employee mobility options and ease of use. Simple and modern UI has long been missing from workforce management solutions. Organizations need to solve their problems and complete tasks in the easiest and quickest way possible,” Trezise explained. 

Workforce data is vital to staying agile, but at the core of it is an integrated workforce management system. When systems are well integrated, it’s easier to gather data and build algorithms that can automate processes or provide insights into how your team or organization is doing. 

In Workforce.com, for instance, managers can do auto-scheduling based on demand and other relevant information. The platform does this by integrating with the different systems an organization uses for appointments, reservations, events, sales volumes, to name a few. Algorithms are then created from information from these systems to anticipate staffing levels needed to meet demand and stay cost-efficient. 

Workforce.com also equips managers and frontline teams to make data-driven decisions on the fly. Because the platform is well integrated, it shows data about the operations in real-time, allowing managers to make adjustments in operations as the day goes. 

It’s also essential to check in on your team and get their feedback and sentiment on how things are going in the frontline. Workforce.com makes this easy for managers and leaders through functionalities like shift rating and feedback and shift questions. These features allow for timely feedback and help managers spot and address issues more quickly. In addition, data gathered from these functionalities can be easily compiled, which decision-makers can use to improve performance and employee engagement.

 

The secret to successful system integrations

The most advisable thing for organizations is to use a single platform for workforce management—which is time and attendance tracking and employee scheduling at its core. “These are the fundamental functions involved in workforce management, and workflow would be more seamless if they are all done on a single platform. This system can then be integrated to other systems that the organizations use such as payroll, appointment systems, POS, and internally built platforms,” Kohlmeyer advised. 

Simplified workforce management and robust integrations are two of the most crucial factors that companies should be on the lookout for when thinking about implementing a WFM platform or any system for managing their teams. “The first part is having a powerful platform that simplifies workforce management, and the second part is making sure that it’s robust enough to be customized according to unique operational needs and variables. Of course, the second part will only be possible if the WFM platform can integrate to other systems a company uses,” Kohlmeyer said. 

Workforce.com has an open API, which means that it can sync into most systems and software. “Its increased adoption is expected to bring huge advancements in workforce analytics and promote internal innovation, integration,  and personalization. By leveraging the power of connectivity, enterprises can quickly eliminate the chaos of using multiple applications leading to rapid innovation and deeper insights into their workforces,” Trezise remarked. 

Leveraging technology and interconnectivity can bring a lot of wins to any organization. It can bring about increased revenue, more significant labor cost savings, resilience in times of market volatility, and an engaged workforce.

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8 Pros & Cons of Biometric Time Clocks

xYou arrive for work, walk up to the door and look into the scanner. Infra-red light maps the unique patterns of your retina and, in the literal blink of an eye, your presence is verified, logged, and the door unlocks. This scenario used to be limited to high-security government installations and blockbuster spy movies, but the use of biometrics such as fingerprints and retinal scans to access everyday workplaces is fast becoming the norm.

In a 2019 study, more than a quarter of small North American businesses were using thumbprint scanners as a way of confirming identity, a number that leaps to over 40% for companies with more than 1,000 employees. Even retinal scanners, with their lingering science-fiction reputation, are being used by more than 10% of companies.

Biometrics is a rapidly evolving technology, and if you are considering investing in a biometric time clock system for your business, there are some pros and cons to weigh before making a decision.

The benefits of a biometric time clock

Biometrics offers considerable advantages over analog time clock systems such as punch cards or keycards, and it can improve accuracy, efficiency, and security across your locations.

Biometrics eliminates “buddy punching”

The biggest advantage from a company perspective is that biometric time clocks only work for the employee in question. This makes the common fraudulent practice of “buddy punching,” in which shift workers clock in and out for each other, all but impossible. Whether using fingerprints, palm prints, or retinal scans, biometrics requires the relevant person to be physically present. The only way to clock in for an absent colleague using this system would be to have their eyeballs or fingers, and there aren’t many work buddies willing to go that far to shave a few hours of their working day!

Biometrics improves on-site security

This also means an increase in security and safety. You can be sure that the person gaining access to your premises under a biometric system is who they say they are. It isn’t foolproof—employees can still hold the door open and allow others access—but the chances of anyone using a lost or stolen keycode or card to enter your workplace is gone.

Biometrics streamlines shift changes

Biometric time clocks can also increase efficiency in several areas. Employees don’t need to remember passcodes or keep track of a physical key card, which means your company doesn’t need to spend time and resources providing and managing those measures. The shift change process can also be sped up, as employees can clock in and out more quickly without typing in codes or fumbling in wallets for cards, reducing time-wasting bottlenecks.

Connecting biometric time clock systems to time and attendance software has advantages for employees, too. Being able to prove beyond doubt that they were on-site at specific times means that claims for unpaid overtime are much easier to prove. That, in turn, gives your managers the tools to ensure that payroll is correct, reducing the risk of wage and hour lawsuits.

 

The potential pitfalls of a biometric time clock

Biometrics is still an evolving technology, and it may still produce practical and legal hurdles for businesses to handle. If you introduce a biometric time clock now, you will need to consider a new range of accessibility issues as well as taking on additional data admin work with the possibility of further changes in the future.

Biometrics can limit access for disabled employees

Where employees with disabilities are concerned, companies should be especially alert to their practical access needs. If an eye-level retinal scanner is used to access the workplace, how will that impact wheelchair users? If access is via a palm or fingerprint reader, how will employees with limited or no visibility know where to place their hands? The Americans with Disabilities Act requires companies to make all reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities to access premises, even just for job interviews. While there have been exploratory studies raising concern on this issue, there has yet to be a test case involving biometrics. You don’t want your company to be the one setting that precedent.

Biometrics can require new data handling systems

Data privacy is already something companies need to be on top of, and the use of biometrics will only increase that burden. Although there is no federal law governing the use and storage of biometric data, several states have enacted their own, and it is only a matter of time before others follow suit. Texas and Washington have laws governing general biometric data use, while New York has labor legislation that covers it specifically for workplaces. Passed in 2008, the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) is the leading template for this kind of legislation, so it is useful to be familiar with what it requires from employers.

Under BIPA, companies must have a publicly available written policy that lays out how biometric data will be used, stored, and deleted. Employees must be sent written confirmation that their biometrics are being collected and how long they will be stored. Employees must also give written consent for this to happen and give separate consent for this data to be shared with third parties. Employee biometric data must be safeguarded and should not be used for profit-making.

Biometric data law violations are costly

As of 2018, more than 50 companies were facing lawsuits filed under BIPA with penalties that can quickly stack up—$1,000 per violation caused by negligence, such as inadequate data security, and $5,000 for every deliberate infraction, such as selling the data to third parties. There have been some high-profile results. Early in 2021, Walmart was hit with a $10 million settlement following a BIPA class-action suit involving 21,677 employees who used a palm scanner when handling cash register drawers without being asked for consent.

In another 2018 case, Smith Senior Living settled a lawsuit brought by an employee who was not made aware that her fingerprint data used to clock in and out of shifts was being stored in a database by Kronos Inc., the external supplier of the biometric systems. Any biometric time clock that shares data with an external platform—such as time and attendance software—means you should get explicit consent from employees to avoid legal exposure.

 

Biometric time clocks require companies to earn trust

Since biometric data is uniquely personal, it stands to reason that people will see the collection and use of that data in more personal terms. As an employer introducing biometric time clocks, the onus will be on you to build trust and put systems in place that reassure your staff you can be trusted with this information.

Legal challenges such as the one Walmart faced are likely the thin end of the wedge when it comes to concern from the general public over the use of biometrics. A 2018 survey found that 69% of respondents felt there were strong arguments against biometrics, with worries about the data itself being the most common.

A case was brought against Honeywell in 2015 for encouraging employees to sign up for a wellness program that included biometric screening in order to qualify for health insurance. The tests included cholesterol, waist size, and smoking history. Those who opted not to take part risked thousands of dollars in penalties and lost contributions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed the suit saying it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act by forcing employees with disabilities to reveal medical information for purposes not required by their work.

Although the Honeywell case was not related to biometric time clocks, it is inevitable that some employees will see any introduction of biometrics into the workplace as a prelude to punitive personal scrutiny. These are paranoid times, especially where matters of health and privacy are concerned, and some may even assume that their data will be misused regardless. It’s up to you to convince them this isn’t the case.

 

Biometric time clocks aren’t vital for every business—yet

Although the use of biometric time clocks is growing, with the pandemic driving takeup of contact-free retinal scanners in particular, that doesn’t mean it’s the right call for every business to adopt this technology. Biometric time clocks are especially useful for businesses that rely on hourly shift workers. Keeping track of lots of staff coming and going, without causing bottlenecks as people clock in and out, is a boon to companies operating on that model. Producing accurate data for payroll and efficient staff management is another bonus.

This is also a system that can be implemented gradually, used for access to specific locations that need additional layers of security or accountability. Or it may not be right for your business at all, right now. Biometrics in the workplace, whether for time clock purposes or other reasons, requires the introduction of new data security systems and the additional admin load of handling employee consent and the deletion of data when staff leave. Add in the still-evolving legislative landscape where biometric data is concerned, and adopting a “wait and see” approach is a valid strategy.

Whatever you choose, this is a technology that managers need to be familiar with as it appears in more everyday workplaces and will no doubt play a much larger role in the future. For those who do invest in biometric time clocks now, be assured that Workforce’s time and attendance software will integrate with your new system for a complete and secure solution.

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Time and Attendance Challenges and How to Solve Them

At the core of workforce management is employee schedules and making sure that they are accurately implemented. Tracking time and attendance is crucial to this. It seems elementary, but it tends to become challenging and complicated when different factors are at play, such as business size, various locations, labor regulations, and unique operations and processes.

Here are common challenges that companies face when accurately tracking time and attendance and ways to solve them.

Outdated and inefficient WFM platforms

The biggest roadblock companies have to contend with is an outdated system not just for tracking employee clock ins, but for managing their workforce in general. 

According to a Workforce.com study, the top time and attendance challenges that companies face with their current platforms include:

  • Manual errors (48%).
  • Lack of integration between HR and payroll (40%).
  • The inability to demonstrate compliance with wage and hour laws (19%). 

WFM platforms should take out the complexities of these areas and make processes smoother and not the other way around. However, most companies experience the pain points of dealing with WFM platforms that complicate processes instead of simplifying them, which results in heavy admin work, manual errors, and compliance risks. 

How to solve: Go for a robust platform that can provide efficiency with every area of workforce management, beginning with time and attendance tracking.

A WFM platform may claim to have the most advanced features, but it will not be of much help if it can’t integrate with your operations and existing systems. “Integration is key to automating time and attendance tracking, employee scheduling, labor compliance, and reporting. It’s only through integrations that you can truly customize the platform to suit your needs and goals. However, a WFM platform that can do that for you is hard to come by. That’s why it pays to do your due diligence before implementing a WFM platform in your organization,” explained Travis Kohlmeyer, vice president of sales at Workforce.com.

How Workforce.com can help:

  • Open API –  Workforce.com can easily integrate with other software and systems, even those that are internally built within organizations. Through this, the platform can generate algorithms that help simplify and automate time and attendance tracking, labor forecasting, employee scheduling, labor compliance, payroll, and reporting.

Ensuring that employees are at the right place at the right time

It can be challenging for businesses operating in multiple sites to ensure that staff are where they should be, especially when you do it through inefficient systems. Time theft, gaps in operations, and inaccuracies in payroll are the typical results of not keeping track of employee locations and clock ins the right way.

How to solve: Use a time and attendance technology that can record GPS locations upon clock ins and set geofences. Such functionality makes record-keeping more efficient and closes the gap for inaccuracies and errors. “Efficient time and attendance tracking will never happen after the fact. Managers need to have a system that will provide them with complete oversight of all their locations and teams—from who’s clocking in and where, who’s running late, and who’s about to go overtime—and all of this should be in real-time,” Kohlmeyer explained.

How Workforce.com can help:

  • GPS Tracking –  Workforce.com can record the GPS coordinates of employee clock ins. It is automatically recorded on the timesheet and can be easily verified by managers.

  • Geofencing – Workforce.com enables organizations to set geofences where employees can record clock ins. Being able to impose such limitations helps time and attendance tracking more efficiently and also avoids time theft. When an employee tries to clock in outside the geofence, the platform flags it and notifies the managers. It can also prompt employees to state why they are away from their scheduled location.
  • Shift questions – Shift questions can be posted for employees to answer before clocking in or out. It can be asked when specific criteria are met, for instance, when an employee clocks in a location where they’re not scheduled to work.

  • Workforce.com dashboard – Managers have a single view of upcoming shifts, employees who are clocked in, late, or have yet to be in their assigned locations and shifts.
  • Key alerts – Managers are notified about their teams’ time and attendance and any last-minute absences they need to fill. Just the same, Workforce.com also informs employees when schedules are coming up and reminds them to clock in for their shift.

Tracking attendance of staff who work in multiple locations in a day

Some companies have employees assigned to work in different locations in a single day, which can be troublesome for managers to track and easily result in payroll or compliance issues.

“We’ve come across companies that are having problems with keeping track of their staff who work in multiple locations in a day. They needed a system that can automatically note such clock ins without having any issues once the timesheets are exported to their payroll system,” Kohlmeyer shared. 

How to solve: Provide employees a fast and straightforward way to record their clock ins, even when they move from one location to another. 

How Workforce.com can help:

  • GPS clock ins – Employees who need to work in two or more different locations in a day can record their start and end times using their own mobile device via Workforce.com’s mobile app via GPS clock in functionality. All they need to do is go on the app before starting and ending work in one location and repeat the process in the following location they’re scheduled to work. Workforce.com automatically logs that information on the timesheet, which can be easily verifiable and exported to payroll.

Ensuring employees take their breaks

Failure to assign and track employee break times is a common risk for non-compliance, especially for businesses operating in locations that have strict rules around breaks. 

How to solve: Have a system in place that helps managers schedule the appropriate break times for each employee according to their employee classification and laws that apply in the area of business. Likewise, it’s crucial to have a system in place that prompts employees to take their breaks. 

How Workforce.com can help:

  • Easy access to data and analytics – Workforce.com provides easy access to all of your data and information. That being said, you can easily see time and attendance records and identify whether or not employees used or recorded their break hours. This can be helpful in case authorities check on your compliance when it comes to employee breaks. When you have access to your information, it’s easy to find lapses or identify whether there’s non-compliance or not.
  • Alerts and notifications for breaks – The Workforce.com platform sends alerts to employees and managers about breaks—prompting staff to take them and notifying managers in case team members didn’t do so.
  • Scheduling alerts – Workforce.com flags potential mistakes with assigning break durations to employees during scheduling. This ensures that managers assign the correct break times to the right employee in accordance with labor laws.

The ideal platform for tracking time and attendance

Organizations experience difficulties with time and attendance tracking because they don’t use the right system in the first place. The ideal system is not a one-size-fits-all software but a WFM platform that can quickly adapt to how your organization works and changes. 

Workforce.com is a robust WFM platform that simplifies the core elements of workforce management, ensuring that the factors unique to how you operate are taken into account, resulting in more efficient schedules, lower labor spend, increased profitability, and compliance to labor rules. 

See Workforce.com in action. Book a call or try it for free.