Technology Archives - Page 4 of 26

September 15, 2020June 29, 2023

Cloud workforce management saves on costs, resources and time

While cloud-based human resources applications are now the standard for new buyers, many organizations still use on-premise systems, according to Sierra-Cedar’s “2019-20 HR Systems Survey.”

The report noted that 40 percent of organizations still use at least one on-premise HR application, and that number is decreasing at a relatively slow rate. Meanwhile, 70 percent of organizations use at least one cloud HR system, the report stated.

Organizations that aren’t investing in cloud workforce management systems may be missing out on many advantages.

“If you’re not in the cloud right now or if you’re not on the path to the cloud, then you are considerably behind,” said Wilson Silva, senior vice president of outsourcing at Alight Solutions. “You’re missing out on the opportunity for many workplace benefits.”

Also read: Unify those far away workplaces with global mobility tools

Simplify the data entry process

Typically with a cloud workforce management system, a big benefit is that organizations just have to deal with one source of information, Silva said. A manager could enter a data element in one place, and that can be considered for multiple processes. They don’t need to use several competing platforms and make sure they are all in sync with the correct shared information.

A united platform allows managers to be more efficient with data entry and focus on the quality of data entry rather than the amount of time it takes to sync up multiple platforms with the same data, he added.

More frequent updates

Most cloud-based workforce management systems come with automatic updates multiple times a year, unlike older types of workforce management platforms for which organizations must wait a year or more for more hands-on updates, Silva said.

Anything that allows you to adopt new functionality and apply it in a timely manner is a strong benefit for any organization, he added.

Compliance with new laws

While cloud-based software can’t do all the compliance work for a manager, it can make their job much easier, Silva said. For example, with payroll, cloud workforce management systems can consider tax rates of different geographies. And the cloud allows companies to more quickly address legislative changes.

The ongoing update piece of this also allows companies to feel comfortable that they are on the same page as competitors, said Jake Soliman, vice president of cloud services solutions at Alight Solutions. They have access to the same functions and features as others.

Given this standardization of much of the workforce management process, organizations can more easily benchmark themselves against their competitors and see where they stand.

”This is what the software delivers. ‘This is the best practice for 90 percent plus. Let’s use it as our benchmark and use it for a more standardized process.’ It can be that driving engine behind helping HR to be as efficient and standardized across the globe as they can,” he said.

Easing the workload of your workforce

The cloud essentially allows organizations to offload infrastructure onto a third party, Soliman said. The costs, resources, time and expertise that in-house IT or HR departments used to save for maintaining a workforce management system can now be used for something else.

“You get out of what might not be a core competency for your organization, and are able to move that into a company that specializes in that delivery. It’s a cost save and a resource save as well,” he said.

Better data security

While some people might worry about the safety of their information in the cloud, the reality is that for cloud workforce management systems, data security is usually better than the old way of doing things, Soliman said.

Also read: Labor analytics add power to workforce management tools

“Do your due diligence and put your security team on it, and I think you will be pleasantly surprised that their standards are more likely than not better than what you’re running now,” he said. For cloud based systems, he added, “they all understand their business is predicated on data security, and one breach could be catastrophic to their organization. So their budget and their attention to controls are above and beyond what most would do on their own.”

There’s always the implication that “outside my network” means “not safe,” but that’s just not true, Silva said.

“It is possible to have your data outside of your network or in the cloud and it is just as safe if not safer for them as when it was in your network,” he added. “Where you find potential for breaches is when the data is when somebody is handling data outside the cloud or passing spreadsheets around.”

Rely on the experts

For the customer who hasn’t moved on to the cloud yet, there’s no need to do the switch alone, Soliman said.

“Having the in-house resources can be daunting, but having a partner help build that design and run it is becoming much more commonplace,” he added.

Having someone who has expertise in deployment is critical, Silva said. Whether an organization chooses to rely on the vendor’s expertise, there are many consultancies that also help clients maneuver the cloud because learning a new software takes time, he added.

“It’s not just a data entry system. It’s a transactional system, and understanding the configuration and workflow that goes with it is sometimes harder than it may seem,” he said. “If people view that an HR or payroll system is simply ‘You just enter data in,’ I think they find out pretty quickly that’s not the case. The skill set around it is a whole lot more challenging.

“So get some help,” he added. “It’ll make your project way more successful.”

The future of the cloud

Wilson noted that there is a level of maturity in the cloud software marketplace now. Large players have either through acquisitions or in-house developments created comprehensive services that offer everything including HCM, payroll, compensation, time tracking, performance and recruiting. But now rather than building out their product offerings they’re moving on to analytics and benchmarking.

The question software companies are seeking to answer is, “How do you leverage the data that companies input to give them analytics on how to drive performance?” Wilson said. How can analytics help drive value through data companies already have?

The next direction he sees things going is benchmarking, he added.

Also read: Labor analytics: A how-to guide for company leadership

“It’s not just about the ability to let customers utilize data, but the question now is, ‘I have this metric or insight. But is this good or bad?’ ” he said. Cloud systems can allow companies to compare themselves to what competitors are doing. An organization can assess “if I’m doing well or not based upon what other companies have the ability to do.”

August 31, 2020June 29, 2023

Workforce tracking solutions do not always track with company culture

Workforce tracking solutions for employers continues to grow, especially as remote work has become more commonplace in 2020.

One reason for this is that organizations worry that employees aren’t as productive when they’re working remotely and that managers can’t peek around the office to see who’s working and who’s online shopping, said Matt Stevenson, partner and leader of Mercer’s Workforce Strategy and Analytics practice.

Additionally, now there’s just more data as more people work online. For example, with more health care delivered through telehealth now, he said, there’s much more data on patient interactions that used to just be recorded in doctors’ notes. And it’s possible to connect this data with actual patient outcomes.

Also read: Labor analytics add power to workforce management tools

In health care and beyond, organizations are beginning to invest more in this technology, Stevenson said. As workforce tracking becomes more commonplace, there are some key considerations employers must keep in mind to use it correctly.

Track productivity, not activity

There is a lot of metadata that organizations and vendors can track, like how many clicks per day or meetings per day an employee has. Either party can tap into this data and interpret it, but one important consideration is they are tracking the right thing, said Matt Stevenson, partner and leader of Mercer’s Workforce Strategy and Analytics practice.

“if your’e just tracking activity and micromanaging activity, that probably won’t end well. But if you have a way of seeing whether activity is a leading indicator of productivity, that’s fantastic,” Stevenson said.

He gave the example of judging athletes’ “productivity” by how much time they spent on the field rather than how many goals they scored. There is a big distinction between activity and productivity, and it can be a difficult distinction to make in the workplace.

Also read: Monitor Responsibly: How Employers Are Using Workplace Surveillance Devices

Consider how much you trust who you’ve hired

John Lacy, chief operating officer at Idea Grove, said that at his organization, they do not believe in workforce tracking. Rather, there should be a culture of trust.

“We don’t believe monitoring tools of that nature are necessary to ensure people are doing their jobs. It comes down to the culture we’re building. When we looked at going fully remote, that question came up as not so much ‘What technology do we need to track them?’ but ‘How will we know work is getting done?’ and ‘How will we know we’re still meeting client needs?’ ” he said.

“It came back to that level of trust,” he added. “If we don’t trust [employees] to do what they need to do — whether they’re working at the office or from a remote location — we believe we’ve hired the wrong person.”

To ensure that people are getting work done, Idea Grove instead uses a series of tech tools that help with project management. Team members track their progress on projects with the project tracking tool Teamwork. They communicate with each other via Slack. And the organization regularly gets employee feedback about how employees are feeling about the office culture through the culture tracking tool Officevibe.

Lacy also said that the organization uses The Great Game of Business to help educate employees on how to run a business, how their work contributes to the organization and how exactly their successes can lead to rewards and bonuses.

“A philosophy I truly believe in is that everyone can understand business. It’s not that hard,” he said. “A lot of companies hide that from their employees, but we want to empower employees with that knowledge so that they understand that if they want long-term employment with the company, we have to make sure we have a company that is healthy, profitable and engaging, and they can participate in that directly.”

Avoid micromanaging

A real risk of workforce tracking is the presence of micromanaging, Stevenson said. He suggested “nudging” as a solution to micromanaging.

For example, perhaps a company found out that employees’ sending emails after 10 p.m. led to burnout and lower productivity. If a manager finds out through workforce tracking that an employee is regularly sending emails at this time, the solution wouldn’t be to have a stern discussion with the employee and tell them to stop. Rather, the employee could receive “nudges” through pop-ups on their computer that encourage them to sign off at a certain time.

Also read: Employee performance shines bright with valuable, continuous shift feedback

There’s a good deal of research supporting that nudges help with behavior change rather than direct orders. Stevenson said.

With this logic, what organizations should do first is find that link between activity and productivity. Once they’ve figured out that link, they could use that insight to create nudges rather than try to directly guide employee behavior, he added.

“It’s a two-fold problem,” he explained. “What predicts the things you care about, and if you have those predictions, what do you do about it without making things worse?”

The conversation about micromanaging ultimately comes back to trust, Lacy said.

“Everything starts with culture,” he said. “If you’re in an environment where trust is not the baseline, I could see a more command-and-control type manager having trouble with not knowing if everyone’s doing what they need to do.”

“My advice to them is to take an inward look,” he added. “What is it about your internal self that is not trusting your team to get its work done?”

How to calm employee’s concerns

Some employees may have concerns about workforce tracking, which comes down to is company culture and how employee data is being used, Stevenson said. Some cultures may breed more suspicion in employees while others are more trusting.

Also read: Give managers the time they need to sharpen up their all-around skills

Things get tougher in organizations where there is a more adversarial relationship between employees and employer. “And, in my personal opinion, that’s where you may see more labor organizations showing up,” Stevenson said.

He gave the historical example of Henry Ford and the creation of assembly lines. Strikes would often happen when factory operators sped up production. A similar trend happened with coal miners, who were paid by their output of coal every hour. They would strike when the number was supposed to go up, if they were concerned it was unsafe for them to do so.

Using “speeding up the assembly line” as a metaphor for “increasing productivity” in the 21st century, Stevenson said that when organizations attempt to “speed it up” by tracking emails or whatever other metric, people notice.

“If you’re the sort of organization that will take this data to speed up the assembly line, you’ll get pushback,” he said. “If you’re on the sort that will use this data to make the product on the assembly line better then you won’t get push back.”

Further, he added, sometimes it’s legitimate to speed up the assembly line and look for higher productivity. What’s key here is how an organization shares the benefit of increased productivity. If it speeds up productivity and shares the profits with employees, those employees may very well be satisfied. But if profits mostly go somewhere else, like to shareholders or executives, then there will be less of a positive reaction, he said.

August 18, 2020

Phishing attacks are yet another COVID-19 issue that needs to be on your radar

According to the Detroit Free Press, cybercriminals are exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic to try to access people’s computers and steal their data.

The scheme?

Cyber criminals are targeting employees who are working remotely with fraudulent termination phishing emails and invites to video teleconference meetings, according to federal authorities. As part of the phishing email or text, you might be asked to click on a link to receive more information about a severance package. If you fall for it, and click on a link, you might end up downloading malicious code onto your computer to allow the hacker to create a backdoor to access information. … One area of particular concern going forward involves fraud relating to scammers who are attempting to impersonate contact tracers who will alert you to the possibility that you were near someone who tested positive for COVID-19.

The criminals are hoping that the urgent nature of the emails tied to issues of importance related to the pandemic will cause people to click that link before they realize they made a dangerous mistake.

What can you do to protect your employees and your corporate information on their WFH and other devices? Now is the time to reinforce the importance of cybersecurity awareness for your employees. The tips that I’ve previously shared here are still as relevant as ever.

August 17, 2020June 29, 2023

Labor analytics add power to workforce management tools

Employing labor data analytics typically leads to more informed business decisions. From labor forecasting to measuring employee morale, data analytics allows for more precise and impactful results.

The advantages of implementing workforce management solutions also are clear. Automating time and pay calculations and empowering employees through mobile apps give managers valuable tools to control scheduling, compensation costs and organizational needs.

Using both resources powers the ability to make even stronger choices for workforce management.

Power tools with the power of analytics

Backing workforce management tools with the power of labor analytics creates a formidable partnership. This can help save money, establish formal business practices and remove the guesswork hindering management and operational issues. Employers can make more informed talent decisions, and:

Predict future hiring requirements.
Calculate current staffing needs.
Analyze compensation and overtime.
Optimize employee engagement.

Also read: Labor analytics: A how-to guide for company leadership

Predict future hiring requirements

The growth of an organization can be hobbled by its ability to find qualified employees. Since there are times when hiring comes in a flurry, recruiting becomes post the position, make the hire and pray they work out. Oftentimes new hires are not as productive as the existing staff and can cut into the team’s productivity. Forecasting labor needs through analytics establishes measured hiring practices. And implementing tools such as Workforce.com’s shift ratings and feedback solution provides managers with the ability to carefully balance veteran staff with new hires.

Calculate current staffing needs

Managers can get burned by being overstaffed and understaffed if they rely on traditional shift patterns and gut instinct. Overstaffing creates disillusioned employees with little to do, a lack of focus and a negative attitude toward co-workers. Productivity suffers and compensation costs needlessly soar. Conversely, understaffing leads to employee stress, burnout, poor performance, rattled customers and high turnover. Shift feedback tools help managers forecast their needs and curb chronic overstaffing and understaffing.

Analyze compensation and overtime

Few things catch an employer’s eye faster than seeing overtime on the compensation ledger. And like melting snow off a mountaintop, their irritation trickles down to frontline managers. Indeed some overtime can be justified, but there are workforce management solutions to adjust scheduling to seasonal or even hourly rushes that will manage compensation costs and limit unneeded overtime.

Optimize employee engagement
An engaged workforce produces a happy workplace. Balancing staffing needs and incorporating flex schedules builds confidence that management is looking out for their interests. Allowing employees to provide feedback also gives them a voice in organizational operations.

The Workforce.com Shift Rating and Feedback mobile app prompts staff once a week to provide their insights on common workplace topics. Their feedback in turn helps managers rate staff and build skill profiles. Those profiles benefit managers by pairing employees with varying skill levels as they build out schedules. Managers making quick, informed decisions gives employees the knowledge that their input has provided valuable guidance.

When workforce analytics and tools are functioning well, it’s not only the business that benefits. Employees want to take more initiative. Empower them with workforce management mobile solutions to solve problems. For example, they can:

Communicate their needs for scheduling and time off.
Quickly swap shifts on their own.
Get and provide feedback that can improve their performance and drive organizational productivity.
Develop their skills and utilize their potential.
Build camaraderie across the team.

Equip executives and managers with the analytics and tools they need to understand labor issues and make more informed decisions. Implement Workforce.com’s shift ratings and feedback solution to quickly and easily bolster your employee and scheduling analytics.

August 11, 2020June 29, 2023

Unify those far away workplaces with global mobility tools

Expanding from a domestic business to a global entity is an exciting prospect. Yet tapping into new worldwide markets brings a unique set of workforce management challenges.

Success depends on a variety of factors but it ultimately comes down to building a consistent, equitable plan to manage employees at home and abroad. Implementing a workforce management software solution that can track and facilitate the needs of a global workforce is crucial to successfully developing an organization’s worldwide ambitions.

A global workforce balancing act

How executives supervise their workforce in one country may vastly differ in another nation for many reasons. What motivates an employee in Argentina will likely vary from a worker with the same title and responsibilities in Belarus or Pakistan.

Studies also have shown that while a population in one country prefers a particular management style, that same approach probably is not as effective in another country. Other differences can include:

Holiday celebrations.

Social attitudes.

Cultural backgrounds.

Language and currency.

Unifying global employees

Despite the myriad differences that come with managing a global workforce, there are common bonds and responsibilities all employees share.

Also read: Global workforce management is complex but more relevant in the remote workplace

They all work for the same organization. As such, human resources leaders should work with heads of other departments and regional managers to create uniform workforce management precedents, policies and standards that cross all borders and incorporate relevant and useful tools for all employees to use no matter where they are located.

Technology and a global workforce management system

When choosing an automated workforce management solution for a global company, organizations should seek ease of use through mobility tools that can quickly show a return on investment. Workforce management software enables savings by:

Controlling labor costs — Workforce management software cuts costs beginning with the initial clock in by eliminating time theft due to employee fraud. Automating payroll processes also minimizes the need for supervisors to make interpretations and ensures strict compliance with corporate policies.
Boosting employee productivity — Managers can monitor when their employees punch in and when they actually begin work. A mobile solution can help spot an excessive time lag and can immediately investigate the causes no matter where the employee is located.
Minimizing risk — Implementing a global workforce management system can provide key regulatory requirements up front and provide alerts to ensure organizations can comply with regional regulations consistently and with confidence.

Mobile solutions ease the burden

Managers need to know where global staff is at any given moment. Whether it’s due to crisis communications during a natural disaster or monitoring employee safety through their whereabouts on a particular job site, mobile workforce management solutions allow managers to quickly identify and assess staff safety and location through a platform’s photo-verified clock in system.

GPS also plays a key role in global workforce management. Timesheets can automatically sync GPS locations of all employees when they clock in and clock out, so there’s no need to worry about an employee’s whereabouts.

For a number of organizations operating in industries that function globally, pay rates also can get complicated. By implementing the Workforce.com platform, employees’ GPS clock in data automatically assigns pay rates depending on registered location, saving employers valuable time and payroll administrators the headache and complexities of computing pay.

Integrate Workforce.com’s time clock app with payroll and POS systems already in use and have those far-away employees available in an instant via your mobile device.

August 8, 2020October 28, 2020

Connecting to community with Grand Finale Desserts and Pastries

Justin Raha of Grand Finale Desserts and Pastries knows exactly why his business has been so successful.

Starting out as a baker’s apprentice with a passion for pastry, Raha eventually founded Grand Finale, starting out with a focus on wedding cakes and chocolate. He diversified to include more types of baked goods and pastries. Now, the small business employs five people and enjoys a good reputation among the local community of Grand Haven, Michigan.

Locals supporting local

“We use Michigan blueberries, Michigan strawberries, Michigan raspberries. We use dried fruit and we try to use Michigan sugar, and we get Michigan eggs, and so everything that we’re getting we’re trying to get as local as possible.” These ingredients are what makes Grand FInale’s treats so special, Raha said. The result? Quality products at affordable prices, with the added bonus of supporting other local businesses in the area.

Raha’s commitment to using local ingredients and participating in community events has solidified Grand Finale’s charm — they aren’t just another bakery in the area, but a recognizable name in the neighborhood.

Also read: Building a safety policy was vital to Shawmut Design and Construction’s health

“We give back to the community a lot which is really big. We have a really strong local community that is all about growth and support of each other and different tasks, fundraisers, organizations, and groups,” Raha said. “And so any opportunity we can to help out more for our community we try to do that, which has gotten really substantial in kick back toward our business because people see that we give back to the community and donate to them. Because of that they tend to want to come to us.”

Smoother payroll with time clock software

Raha found Workforce.com through the mobile app store and thought to try it out. After trying a few other apps, he found Workforce.com the most user-friendly and affordable for Grand Finale’s needs, especially the notification aspect that allows requests to come in through email. Now, the small business has been using Workforce.com’s time clock software for over a year, as well as the employee scheduling features to keep track of operations.

While employee schedules are consistent, what the time clock software has done for them is make shift durations much easier to track. With all the data about when employees clock in and out, calculating wages is faster — Raha just sends the timesheets over to his accountant, and a process that used to take an hour now lasts 15 minutes.

Sweet gestures

Whether it’s the local farmers’ market, events supporting mental health programs or environmental fundraisers, Grand Finale Desserts and Pastries is there to lift the spirits of anyone who tries their baked treats. Building trust between small business owners and customers over time, through authenticity and visible effort are the key ingredients to the bakery’s success.

“They know we’re good,” Raha said. “They know that their money is going to stay local and get back into the community.”

August 5, 2020July 13, 2022

The risks of not utilizing labor forecasting

Labor forecasting promises many benefits to employers with a large amount of hourly workers. Still, many organizations have yet to utilize this process to inform their decisions on scheduling shifts.

The risks of overstaffing or understaffing are very real, and organizations should be aware of what exactly they’re risking by not trying to create smarter schedules.

Also read: Labor analytics: A how-to guide for company leadership

Exempt vs. non-exempt workers

Understaffing poses a significant risk pertaining to exempt/non-exempt classifications under wage-hour law, said Gary Pearce, chief risk architect at risk reduction platform Aclaimant. This is especially relevant when exempt, salaried staff members are working long hours because not enough people have been scheduled to work that day.

“These people will be far more willing to challenge their exempt status, and there will be no shortage of attorneys ready to convert their case to a class action,” he said.

Employers cannot silently stand by and knowingly allow wage-hour law violations to happen, Pearce added. They have the responsibility to do something about it.

Also read: Labor analytics add power to workforce management tools

“If frazzled employees are too busy to take uninterrupted meal or rest periods that they are entitled to, or the culture of the workplace is that it is acceptable for non-exempt workers to be asked to finish up work off the clock at home, or stay late but not record all work time in exchange for some future promise, then the employer is again highly susceptible to a class-action lawsuit,” he said.

Workers’ compensation concerns

Understaffing often leads to overworked and tired workers, which can increase the likelihood of people getting hurt on the job, Pearce said. Not only is this a worker safety risk, but it can open up the employer to workers’ compensation costs that could have been avoided.

Overstaffing also introduces its own risks. “Inexperienced workers are time and again shown to be far more susceptible to injury, and an overstaffing situation might make this more likely,” Pearce said.

He added that as staffing levels rise, employers need to spend more on workplace costs like training, protective equipment, benefits and whatever other support HR offers employees.

Impact on unemployment costs

Pearce said that the impact of staffing levels on unemployment insurance costs can be significant. Understaffing can cause turnover when workers start feeling stressed or burned out and overstaffing may lead to a situation where employees don’t feel they’re being challenged. In cases like this, an uptick in unemployment claims may follow, Pearce said.

“While truly voluntary resignations can be challenged, the system is structured to give claimants the benefit of the doubt and many employers lose challenges either because they are too busy to show up for hearings, or they don’t have sufficient documentation to back up their claims, or they fail to recognize the claimant’s side of the story,” he said. “Unemployment systems vary but there is an experience rating aspect to all of them, meaning that employers with higher claim volume will pay more in unemployment taxes than those with lower volume.”

Complying with the WARN Act and predictive scheduling laws

There are a few ways in which overstaffing or understaffing can get employers in a difficult situation regarding various laws, Pearce said. With overstaffing, an employer may face a situation where headcount is too high and they must do a mass layoff — thus triggering employer obligations under the WARN Act, which requires employers to provide advance notice in qualified plant closings and mass layoffs.

Understaffing may inspire a whole different range of legal hurdles with predictive scheduling laws. When managers want to bring people in with short notice due to headcount shortages, employers may have to pay penalties for unexpected schedule changes, for example.

Keeping workers engaged

Worker alienation is at the heart of these risks, Pearce said.

“If an organization is materially understaffed or overstaffed, it is promoting this alienation and risking becoming nothing more than a commoditized counterparty to be financially optimized in the short run, since the employee has no stake in the long run,” he said, adding that how a company treats its employees can make a difference. “Engaged, happy workers aren’t as likely to obsess with real or perceived harms or seek legal redress for their grievances.”

Here’s where labor forecasting software comes in, by making it easier for employers to avoid these legal risks and by making it more likely that employees can have an appropriate workload and feel satisfied with their schedule.

“Accurate labor forecasting can not only help to control costs while meeting changing customer needs, but [can] also be a key element in controlling unnecessary workplace risks and meeting the employer’s basic obligations to its employees,” Pearce said.

July 23, 2020June 29, 2023

7 steps for introducing new tech solutions to reluctant employees

Getting employees enthusiastic about new technology can be simple if everyone is eager to learn how to use new tools. However, some people may be reluctant to use new tech tools, especially if those tools would significantly change how they work. Whether you’re switching to a new platform or implementing tech that automates manual processes, there will always be someone who is hesitant and has doubts or anxieties about new tech.

You’ve spent weeks researching new tech solutions to implement in the office. You’ve done the calculations on ROI and how much it could help boost productivity. However, no matter how efficient a new technology solution is, it will not be as effective if the key users are not 100 percent on board.

Also read: How technology can help your employee engagement strategy

Here are some important steps to keep in mind when trying to win them over. And it begins long before you actually introduce new solutions.

Keep them in the conversation

As the shot caller of this particular decision, the final say on implementing this new tool is yours and yours alone. But it’s still important to broadcast the changes to all those affected by your plans. Clearly declare why you think change is necessary, why the current status quo isn’t working or how it could greatly be improved. Then gather feedback.

As you research and narrow down your choices for a solution, keep these employees part of the conversation and keep them informed about your thought process. Let them know the benefits and disadvantages you believe are most important for the company’s needs.

Not only will this help inform what kind of solution would work best for your team, but it will help you identify early on who may be hesitant about replacing old processes for new ones.

Find your advocates

Just as announcing your plans early on can help identify employees with doubts, you’ll also find those who are enthusiastic about change and will make great advocates of the tech.

Identify these individuals and recruit them as your advocates who will champion the changes and be leaders. Have them be among the first to train with the solution. These advocates will boost morale among others about the software and also help train everyone else on how to use it.

Communicate the value

Be sure you’re expressly clear with employees about the value a new tech solution will bring, not just to the company, but to them as employees. Long-time employees can feel anxious about how their roles will change when new tech solutions are introduced, so it’s important to convey how much of a positive impact this can have on their career growth.

For example, if it’s a tool that’s meant to save time on certain processes, reassure them that they can now spend their time on more productive tasks for the company.

Create a roadmap

Big changes don’t happen overnight, nor should they. When you’re ready to roll out your new solution, you need to come up with a solid plan to transition from your old process to the new one. Create a clear timetable with dates and stages of implementation. Then stick to it. If plans change, be transparent and keep your team informed.

Stages can include an exploratory period, the first round of training, a pilot period with a handful of users starting to use the solution, a second round of training with everyone involved and a hard deadline when the solution is completely implemented.

Give them time

There are growing pains that come with all changes. Give some time to employees who at first struggle with new tech. This is where your advocates come in, who can lead the charge and help out their coworkers who have a tougher time adapting to the change. As long as people are willing to learn, it’s worth it to invest in additional training and compromise with them. They may prefer to get their work done the traditional way while they’re still learning the new way.

Incentivize change

Sometimes it’s necessary to sweeten the deal. Incentivize employees to take part in the process of implementing a new solution. This can easily be done by providing lunch with training sessions or implementing a reward program for users of the solution.

Continue listening and changing

After a successful implementation, you still have a long road of adapting your office’s workflow to one that seamlessly integrates your new solution into your everyday processes. As employees get used to the new way of doing things, continue taking in their feedback. Accept new ideas about how the solution can be used in different ways that both improve efficiency and accommodate employees who are used to doing things in certain ways.

Summary

Changing, adapting, and implementing new tools to grow your company is the reality of business. There are some people that are more reluctant to change, but it’s important to provide a means to take those baby steps toward new ideas so they can continue helping the business become more successful. Throughout all the mentioned steps above, communication is key and will lead to a much smoother transition than an unexpected, abrupt shift in how people do their jobs.

July 22, 2020June 29, 2023

Labor forecasting requires a stronger analytics skillset

scheduling; time and attendance; forecasting

Labor forecasting — or accurately planning schedules — is a key part of running successful shifts and avoiding the negative consequences of overstaffing or understaffing. And the rise of predictive scheduling laws has added a slight bump to the road as managers strive to create schedules up to two weeks in advance.

Meanwhile, the full potential of analytics in labor forecasting has yet to be realized. In the past year, only 21.1 percent of organizations have used workforce analytics to inform decisions about scheduling shifts, according to the Workforce Business Intelligence Board’s “2020 HR State of the Industry Survey,” developed by Workforce.com’s research team.

Also read: How to avoid overstaffing through wage tracker software

Typical companies overstaff, said Matt Stevenson, partner and leader of Mercer’s Workforce Strategy and Analytics practice. But focusing more on forecasting allows the organization to be more fine-tuned in staffing and be more exact in planning their HR spend.

Labor forecasting by industry

The complexities of labor forecasting vary by industry, Stevenson said. It’s more straightforward for industries like manufacturing, where the number of workers needed likely depends on how many workers are needed per piece of equipment. Restaurants and retail exist somewhere in the middle of this spectrum and often rely on historical experience or data.

Health care systems are where it gets extraordinarily difficult, Stevenson said. With a highly specialized job like a neurosurgeon, for example, there’s no way for an emergency room to know for sure if they’ll need one or 10 on staff for the week.

Organizations can attempt to automate this function or analyze historical data, but the reality is that the more accurate and specific someone wants to get with staffing, the more detailed the process has to be.

Also read: Labor analytics add power to workforce management tools

‘Project-ize’ workplace initiatives

Scott Georgia, vice president of professional services delivery management and transformation at Alight Solutions, suggested that managers create specific projects within initiatives, allowing them to more carefully analyze resource demands for each initiative and estimate the number of hours per week that each initiative will require.

“This can take some time, but the investment is worth the end result and will allow better visibility into staffing demands, conflicting initiatives and the ability to aid in department priorities,” he said.

Georgia also suggested that managers gain an understanding of employees’ day-to-day workload, the individual activities that go into that and how many hours per week employees spend on each activity.

Managers can then combine the summarized data points from these first two steps to understand the workload of every employee in the department. They can layer in historical data for further comparison and to help provide data-driven insights.

“The combined data will provide key insights into what employees are working on, how much they are working on and any staffing capacity or over-allocations,” Georgia said. “Review the data on a monthly basis or more frequently to make data-driven decisions and assignments.”

More sophisticated forecasting

Labor forecasting has typically been done through the finance department, but that’s starting to change, Stevenson said. Organizations have the opportunity to be more sophisticated in their demand forecasting — the process in which the historical data or predictive analytics is used to develop an estimate of expected customer demand.

It’s not as black and white as the company needs a certain number of employees to complete a specific amount of work. The type of employee can impact demand forecasting, Stevenson said. Maybe an employee who has worked longer at this job completes tasks quicker or has fewer errors, for example.

In the past, understanding the impacts that different employees have on getting the job done was mostly done by gut, Stevenson said. But now organizations may have this data stored in their administrative systems. To take advantage of this data, it requires access to a system that collects this information and someone with analytical skills on the team.

The types of organizations doing this typically have been manufacturing companies, since this skill set is generally something that industrial engineers are competent in, Stevenson said. It’s now moving to retail as well, but not as much with health care, whose unique challenges make the shift difficult.

The makeup of an analytics team

A team or an individual who is able to do this work typically has three areas of expertise or skillsets, Stevenson said.

The first is the ability to aggregate data from a variety of systems since there has yet to be a single system that can do everything. This is the most basic skill. The second is the ability to understand what the numbers mean and communicate takeaways to the operations team, which will ultimately be the team responsible for the outcomes. The final ability is having specific labor forecasting software or statistical skill to predict demand and labor increasingly better as time goes on.

A lot of software does the job of aggregating the data, but it’s ultimately up to people with specialized skillsets to come up with actionable insights that continually improve forecasting.

Usually, at most it’s a third of the solution for labor forecasting, he said — not to underestimate the time it can save people by aggregating data. “It will make your job easier, but it won’t replace you,” he said.

The toughest part of this for people building this skillset is that it’s difficult to separate data that is interesting from data that is also useful, he said. Teaching that more investigative research skill is not something that many undergraduate schools do, at least not in an analytics program.

Still, he said she’s seeing more people specialize within these analytics skills. There can be a lucrative career path there, he said.

Georgia added that to be successful at labor forecasting, a team needs a manager who is curious and who is willing to ask tough forecasting questions. If the current data isn’t available, they’ll have the drive to find the answer.

“This curiosity creates a drive to utilize and visualize the data in creative ways,” he said.

July 21, 2020June 29, 2023

How to effectively use data analytics for workforce success

There’s a lot of emphasis put on data-driven decision making. But how do organizations start that process? Serena Huang, global head of people analytics at the Kraft Heinz Co., shared some helpful insights into how leaders can use data to better understand the workforce and improve overall management and performance.

Workforce recently caught up with her, and she shared her thoughts on how to use data analytics and gather information and employee feedback for better workforce management.

Workforce: What do leaders need to know about the relationship between strategic business planning and data analytics?

Serena Huang: I’d encourage leaders to think of data analytics as a new mindset and a new language rather than a new tool from IT. There are several areas where analytics can improve business planning, such as more accurate demand forecasting and a better understanding of consumer behaviors.

WF: What is the importance of using analytics in managing people? How did the COVID-19 pandemic highlight this?

Huang: It’s always been important to use analytics in managing people. Many companies would say that “people are their most important asset” and even the most technologically advanced companies cannot operate without people. Instead of relying on intuition, analytics can help organizations make more informed decisions faster and at scale.

Employees’ health, safety and engagement have never been more important. The pandemic has provided an opportunity for HR to become heroes by caring for employees and ensuring business continuity. At Kraft Heinz, this is critical because our employees are crucial to making food that everyone needs. We have a responsibility around the world to feed people, and our employees make it happen.

WF: What are the common misconceptions about people analytics and its role in workforce management?

Huang: One of the biggest misconceptions is that data must be perfect before you can do analytics. I always recommend starting with the business problem rather than the data. You’d be surprised how much usable data already exists. Another misconception is that you need data scientists or know how to code to start doing people analytics. It is much more important to focus on the right questions before hiring a data scientist or learning how to model.

Also read: Labor data analytics can inform better talent decisions

WF: How can organizations effectively use and make sense of the data they have?

Huang: Visualizations and dashboards are great ways to turn data into insights. To know where to start, it’s best to align with business leaders on solving problems.

For example, in workforce management, companies often have significant data on time and attendance, so a starting point can be using analytics to optimize labor costs. If there are different systems, it’s helpful to choose a country or location that needs the most help and start with a pilot.

To create the most value, it’s important to monitor data quality on an ongoing basis.

WF: How can organizations track the right type of data for their workforce? How can they identify metrics of success?

Huang: It’s crucial to stay closely connected with the leadership team on strategy and business problems. If you can figure out the top three to five pain points, you can then frame questions to answer and think about what data you’d need.

The metrics of success will vary from one problem to another. I’d recommend thinking in different time frames and ask yourself what success looks like in six months, 12 months, and two to three years.

WF: How can managers use data to improve productivity and boost employee engagement?

Huang: Managers can certainly leverage surveys if they have a large organization. Often organizations conduct engagement surveys on a regular basis, so start with existing surveys for potential areas of improvement.

For managers with smaller teams, it is most beneficial to conduct regular check-ins and one-on-ones. Managers must create an environment where there is psychological safety, so team members feel comfortable sharing concerns openly.

WF: What are different ways companies can collect feedback or listen to their employees, especially in the era of remote work?

Huang: There are several ways companies can listen to employees, including surveys, virtual focus groups, and Q&A during employee town halls. It’s helpful to monitor the participation rates as it could signal overload if participation decreases. It’s also important to encourage managers to connect with their team members directly on a regular basis in addition to this corporate-level feedback.

WF: What are the factors to consider when choosing the right tools, methods or technology to measure and improve employee engagement?

Huang: A good starting point will include an evaluation of how many employees, how many languages, local legal requirements, reporting/analytics for users, text analytics capabilities. In my article published on LinkedIn, I explain why there isn’t the “right” number of times to pulse employees, and it depends on how quickly the business leaders can act on feedback.

WF: What do you think the future of work will look like given current times?

Huang: It’s hard to predict what will be a temporary rather than permanent shift in the future of work, but I see more focus on flexibility, diversity and inclusion, well-being and skills development.

Data from COVID HR-Pulse show that fewer than 50 percent of companies had a remote work program before the pandemic, and now office employees have been working virtually for months. Employees will demand more flexibility, and organizations can use flexibility to attract new hires.

We have seen different businesses get creative during the pandemic. At Kraft Heinz, we’re focused on being agile at scale because we believe that agile and nimble organizations will outperform those that cannot pivot quickly when needed. To be truly agile in workforce planning, an organization should know the skill sets needed to deliver business results and the skills its workforce currently has.

Also read: A midterm outlook on the future of the workplace

The recent tragedies have brought diversity and inclusion front and center for many organizations. Companies that can create an inclusive environment where everyone belongs will continue to be able to attract and retain talent.

While mental health remains a difficult topic to discuss, especially in a corporate setting, the pandemic has made it more critical to talk about this topic. We will likely see a focus on employee well-being extend beyond the pandemic.