Time and Attendance Blog, Workforce Management Software

Powerful, Flexible and Cost-effective Time & Attendance Solution

Competition continues to increase in today’s business landscape. To stay ahead, companies need to get to market quicker, streamline business process and do a better job of matching up supply with demand. The elimination of manual tasks comes with the implementation of an employee time and attendance system. With an ATS time tracking solution managing your business processes, your organization can shift its focus on growing sales and retaining customers.

What Can ATS TimeWork Do For Your Organization?
TimeWork provides the foundation to improve business efficiency, payroll calculations, and overall productivity for a broad range of industries including: manufacturing, healthcare, oil & gas, transportation & logistics, industrial machinery and retail. The solution delivers the complete package, with fully embedded tools for data integration with:

Talent Management
Payroll
Human Resources Information Systems
Supply chain
Customer Relationship Management
Production and Job Costing
Employee Scheduling
Labour Analytics
Purchasing and Inventory
Financials
Business Intelligence

The application was developed by workforce management software experts with more than 25 years of experience. This type of expertise means that our customers can remain confident that our experienced support team is second to none. From labour distribution to employee self-service, overtime equalization, employee time clocks and business intelligence- TimeWork provides clear visibility across your organization, helping you to automate and manage key business processes.

Ultimately, ATS helps organizations improve their bottom line by adapting business processes to current market conditions. TimeWork is the most powerful and flexible employee time and attendance solution by ATS, for mid-sized and larger companies.

To join the conversation, go to our LinkedIn group. You can also follow us on Twitter or download a podcast.

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Business Intelligence, Customer Relationship Management, Employee Scheduling, Employee Time and Attendance, Employee Time Clocks, Human Resources Information Systems, Job Costing, Labour Analytics, Payroll, Talent Management, Time Tracking

Will our Cloud Time Management Solution Show an ROI?

The cloud buzz has not been lost on business executives. The question our account executives hear most of the time is, “How much time is this going to save our payroll department and operational managers?” Implementing an ATS cloud time & attendance system can yield tangible cost reductions in both hardware and IT resources. The ability to review employee data from any device with access to the Internet is one of the most powerful reasons to adopt this solution. There are other compelling reasons to deploy an employee time tracking solution. Some of them include:

The Ability to Make Changes as Required- ATS cloud solution is scalable and flexible to meet today’s rapidly changing business requirements. Adding or removing users can be done on demand and will be reflected in subscription fee. This inherent flexibility is beneficial for businesses that need to quickly change their user base to meet their unique business requirements.

Reduce Dependence on IT Resources- By using our cloud-based time management solution, companies require fewer technical resources to manage the solution. That’s in large part, because ATS manages the software and applies all changes without interruption to customers’ daily operations. This in turn, reduces the strain on a company’s IT resource, allowing it to focus on other relevant tasks within the organization.

Increasing a Company’s Return on Investment- ATS’s SaaS application can be implemented with ease into a company’s day-to-day business. A typical deployment takes a matter of weeks, versus a 60-90 day implementation of an “on-premises” solution. This enables organizations to begin realizing the business benefits earlier, resulting in a rapid return on investment (ROI), and a reduced total cost of ownership (TCO) over the course of the investment.

Of course the success of any implementation requires a company’s management team’s commitment to the project. The allocation of the proper resources from the company, combined with the deep expertise of ATS implementation team, will result in a successful implementation.

Telecommuting Versus Traffic Gridlock: Which One Would Your Employees Prefer?

Over the last 15 years traffic gridlock has increased throughout the GTA and outlying areas in astounding numbers. Why so many people have to drive to work remains a mystery. CBC Metro Morning anchored by Matt Galloway ran a week long expose titled “Joyless Commute”. The show interviewed everyday commuters, politicians and experts in the world of transportation in the hope of trying to find answers to cut down on gridlock. A recent article titled “Secret to Increased Productivity: Don’t Come to the Office” espouses the virtues of working from home and how more businesses could benefit if they adopted the practice.

Here at ATS, some of our employees who work from home are just as productive in getting projects done on time. The ATS employees who work from home use our cloud-based online time sheets that utilize state of the art technology. In addition, employees have cited things such as; not having to be stuck in traffic and fewer interruptions as factors that make working from home easier.

Of course, telecommuting is not for everyone and some employees find that working from home requires a certain level of discipline. At times it can be very hard to convince old fashioned, micromanaging, bosses of the benefits of working from home. Telecommuting will not solve all the traffic gridlock that we face each day in our cities. However, if businesses adopt a practice of having more employees work from home, even for one or two days a week, it could make a slight dent in the traffic gridlock and pay some small dividends to the environment.

The ATS time and attendance system is robust and helps management make faster, better informed decisions by providing up-to-the minute business analytics across all business areas. With more visibility, departmental mangers can quickly identify and take immediate corrective action. In addition these managers can focus on strategic planning and be more responsive to a changing business environment. Employees working from home or in remote locations can use employee self-service to check schedules, review hours and submit vacation requests.

Our monthly webinar provides an in-depth look at a businesses’ current environment and shows you how ATS workforce management software can grow to meet your organization’s changing needs. You will also discover how our flexible technology enables fast deployment, high interoperability, and streamlined management flows.

To learn more follow us on Twitter or join our LinkedIn Business Group.

Business Analytics, Employee Self Service, Environment, Productivity, Telecommuting, Time and Attendance System, Workforce Management Software

NFL Embraces New Technology

In a world of Smart phones, social media and an app for just about everything, it was no surprise to read an article about sports teams embracing technology. According to an article in the Toronto Star and NFL.com, NFL latest to abandon old media for iPad, apps “20 of the league’s 32 teams have implemented iPads for playbooks or video study, a trend teams and developers say saves time, paper and, most importantly, money.”

Does this mean that all sports leagues will be rushing towards this new technology? It would be great if they all did, but change is difficult for many people to accept. More importantly, the issue of security will be top of mind for most NFL executives, coaches and players. Another quote from the article cited the following; “In the US, Stanford University’s football team recently converted to digital playbooks, citing a desire to save money and reduce the team’s carbon footprint.”

In the National Football League where the playbook is regarded with the same level of security as the CIA and FBI affords the President of the United States, teams adopting new technology want to make sure their data is secure.

Is your company still using paper-based systems when technology could save you time and money? Join the conversation on Twitter. To learn more, go to our website.

Carbon Footprint, iPad, National Football League, Playbooks, Stanford University, Time and Attendance Canada, United States

The List: Some of Strangest Reasons Employees Give for Being Late

We have all shown up late for work at some point in our lives. Whether it was because the car broke down or the pet bird died, the excuses are limitless. So, it was no surprise to see a survey, conducted earlier this year by CareerBuilder, listing some of the reasons citied by employees for being late.

In our experience working with numerous organizations, we too have heard of the excuses given to companies by some of their employees. The top three include:

1) Employee found out halfway on her way to work that she was in her pajamas and returned home to change in work clothes

2) Employee showed up an hour after his start time because he was watching the hockey game which kept him up all night

3) Employee’s car broke down for the 3rd time in a week

While a time and attendance system cannot stop employees from being late, it does capture patterns of attendance. These attendance patterns highlight the number of times an employee was absent and the reason. With one click of the ATS time and attendance system, you can generate real-time metrics and employee data analytics. This information allows companies to visualize and track the optimal key performance indicators that drive its business.

The integrated solution provides quick data access to payroll and other application interfaces. The business analytics module, gives companies a comprehensive view of key labour metrics, reduces compliance risks and gives managers up-to-the minute information on sick time and vacation time all based the criteria of an organization.

If your company is still using paper timesheets, go to our website and download a comprehensive report on the benefits of a time and attendance solution.

Labour Metrics, Paper TimeSheets, Payroll, Time and Attendance System, Vacation

SaaS has become a Game-Changer in the World of Time & Attendance

Cloud computing has become ubiquitous with many things ranging from music, books and just about any other application that can be accessed through the web. In fact, cloud computing has become so prevalent that some people are not aware they have subscribed to it. Of course moving to the cloud can be challenging. ATS Cloud Time and Attendance solution stands out because of our deep expertise and superior accountability when it comes to protecting the integrity of our customer data.

Choosing the right time and attendance vendor is fundamental to achieving the full advantages of an on-demand solution. Here are key considerations to take into account in choosing a provider:

Security
Some providers claim they have “web-based” or “web-native” software which requires an expensive server which may not part of your budget. That’s not true cloud. Of course, some companies have IT departments and prefer to host the application, but the whole point of true cloud computing is to ease the burden on the customer. Reduce your risk by making sure you ask your vendor the tough questions and understand their proven performance with other companies.

Savings
Some companies start off thinking about the cloud by comparing service provider rates. Without a doubt, one of the advantages of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) is that upfront fees are less than what you would expect to pay when purchasing an on-premise solution.

Deployment
True SaaS should be deployed in a few weeks not many months. Of course, some companies have complex requirements but since the software is not installed on your company’s server and desktops, the process should be quick and seamless.

Fancy Features
Yes, we have them as well, but prefer to focus on the fundamentals. The goal should be on the configurability of the software as it relates to your company’s requirements. Once that’s established, everything else should follow.

Pay for What you Use
One of the advantages of a subscription based application like ATS Cloud Time and Attendance is that you only pay for what you use. For customers interested in additional models that means a product with scalability.

Still not sure if cloud time and attendance is the right solution for you? Contact an ATS account executive. You will be pleasantly surprised at the savings, speed and flexibility available to you.

ATS Cloud Time and Attendance, Cloud Computing, Software-as-a-Service, Web-Based, Web-Native

Adopting Business Automation in the Era of Austerity Measures

To say that the recent economic crisis of 2008 touched every country in the world is a gross understatement. While some countries fared somewhat better than others, there is overwhelming evidence that many countries are still feeling the effects of the financial crisis. For example, in North America the manufacturing sector and several other industries, have been decimated and leaving millions of people out of work. This economic downturn has forced many companies to take a serious look at the many advantages afforded by business automation software. Manually tracking employee hours through time sheets is not only a waste of resources but unintended errors can cut into a company’s profit margin.

An ATS time and attendance solution is tailored to meet the challenges companies face in the areas of: forecasting, employee scheduling, labour analytics and attendance management. Whether your industry is hospitality, manufacturing, retail or healthcare, our workforce management software is designed to meet those needs and improve business productivity.

Here are three ways our software solution can help your company:

Information in Real-Time: Companies need the latest data so they can determine how to reduce costs while maintaining productivity. ATS time and attendance provides instant visibility and enhanced reporting to help you make informed decisions about your labour force.

Functionality and Scalability: ATS time and attendance software helps organizations automate clocking and streamlines employee time tracking, while communicating with operational departments throughout the payroll process. Our modular solution is scalable and allows companies to activate additional functions as their business and number of employees grows.

Integrated Solution: ATS fully integrated time and attendance solution combines performance into one powerful system—improving efficiency and effectiveness as well as generating critical business intelligence. Our workforce management software allows for integration to a variety of systems including: Talent Management, Enterprise Resource Planning, Payroll, Accounting and Financial Management and Customer Relationship Management.

To join our weekly webinar on the advantages of workforce management software for businesses go to our website. To speak to one of our account executives, call us at: 866.294.2467

Employee Time Tracking, Enterprise Resources Planning, Payroll, Talent Management, Workforce Management Software

Spreadsheets: Can They Really Help Track Employees Time Effectively?

Many companies track and maintain employee time, hours and other data with spreadsheets. Spreadsheets are also used for creation of pie charts, bar chart and line graphs. Spreadsheets do perform an important role and based on their history will not be going away anytime soon. However, we have noticed that too many businesses rely on this type of tool to track employees’ time and other data for payroll processing. The problem with relying on spreadsheets to handle employee hours is that it comes with inherent risks. Manually keying employee hours into payroll, ERP or HRIS can lead to numerous unintended errors.

Say good-bye to your spreadsheets! ATS SaaS Time & Workforce Management Solutions is a fully integrated software suite that does a great deal more than just track employee time. Our software helps organizations minimize payroll errors and automate time-consuming workforce management processes associated with time tracking, job costing, employee scheduling, attendance and labour distribution.

Solution Benefits:

TimeWork is robust yet flexible enough to adapt to your company’s changing needs
System redundancy provides frequent backups and ensures complete data availability
ATS data terminals provide hours instantly and in real-time and allows managers to review relevant data
System updates at no additional charge to ensure you are in line with technological advances
TimeWork ensures compliance with necessary labour laws while accurately tracking time and attendance of employees
Forecasting and budgeting modules align with company’s objectives
Labour distribution captures activities performed by employees at various departments or jobsites
Absence requests facilitate adequate coverage
Labour analytics provides managers with a variety of workforce data

ATS Software as-a-Service (SaaS) solution automates employee time, labour tracking and scheduling. Companies can access the data at anytime, anywhere and from any web browser.

To discuss the benefits of moving from a spreadsheet based time tracking to an automated solution, go to our website.

Absence Request, Employee Scheduling, ERP, HRIS, Job Costing, Labour Distribution, Payroll, SaaS Time & Workforce Management, Time and Attendance

Daylight Savings Time: How Are Your Employees Coping?

Over the years, a great deal of money and resources has been spent studying the challenges that daylight savings time presents, to the general public. While some argue the change affects shift workers more than others, the havoc it wreaks on the lives of many people who miss an hour’s sleep is undeniable.

An article by the CanadianUnderwriters.ca says, “More than half of male drivers report getting enough sleep during the time change, which is good news, since they tend to have a higher crash risk.”

A contributing psychologist to the article goes on to say, “The change in our sleep cycle can cause unique dangers on our roads as some drivers will feel more fatigued than usual,” said Dr. John Vavrik, a psychologist with ICBC.”

The argument for and against daylight savings time in the 21^st century will go on. The online petition by End Daylight Saving Time remains resolute in their claim that DST does more harm than good to humans biological system.

Companies that operate in the non traditional 9-5 industries can opt for solutions that allow employees to punch in and out using their tablet PC, Smart phone or through a web browser. The use of these tools takes the place of employees having to report to the office on a daily basis. ATS software for tablet PCs, Smart phones and online time tracking is GPS enabled and tracks the location of the in and out punch by the employee.

ATS Workforce Management Software is designed for organizations in a variety of industries. Our integrated time and attendance system delivers deep insight into all areas of an organization’s work rule policy promoting better efficiency and more fiscally sound labour decisions.

For more information or to download a copy of our time and attendance brochure, go to our go to our website.

Daylight Savings Time, Time and Attendance, Workforce Management Software

Workforce Management Software: Create or Buy?

In a recent conversation with the VP of a distribution chain, we found out that their in-house software had been created by one of their IT personnel. Since this person left the company three years ago it has become a nightmare trying to maintain the product. Before you decide to create your own software consider the following:

1)       Are there people on staff who understand the nuances of time and attendance?
2)       Which member of your team is going to maintain the software once it has been created?
3)       Who is going to be responsible for keeping up with: federal, state and provincial legislative policies that must
           be be adhered to in business automation software?
4)       If the creator of the software leaves the company how is that software going to be managed?
5)       Are you able to create import files for time clocks and other third-party applications like payroll, HR or ERP?

There numerous benefits to purchasing workforce management software. Some of these include:
1)       The software contains numerous pay and work rule policies.
2)       The time and attendance software algorithm can be configured to suit any collective bargaining agreement.
3)       Software updates are created automatically by software engineers at no additional costs.
4)       The import utility allows for payroll interfaces to any third-party payroll application.
5)       The software can be accessed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
6)       Back-up is done daily and is available on demand.
7)       Changes to new shifts, overtime and other pay policies can be done in seconds.
8)       The software has integrated modules that include: employee self-service, points and incidents,
overtime equalization, job costing, and forecasting.
9)       Complementary data collectors include: biometric facescan, fingerprint readers, proximity time clocks, online time sheets, iPad, and smart phone time entry

The decision to create or buy, a time management software should be given careful consideration. In some instances, competitive advantages exist if you have the internal resources and the time to create your software.

To learn more about workforce management software go to our website.

Forecasting, Job Costing, Overtime Equalization, Payroll, Time and Attendance Software