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Moving to the cloud can be scary prospect if your company has been against it for some time. However, one of the lessons from the current coronavirus pandemic, is that it has forced many businesses to become agile— by adopting hybrid and work from home (WFH) policies which, by extension, encompasses some of today’s cloud computing technologies like; WebEx, Zoom and Microsoft Teams to name a few. And, with many of today’s IT experts on board with cloud computing—it will be much easier to make sure your applications environment is running efficiently and your company is optimizing its benefits.

The primary forms of cloud computing are:

  • Infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS): In this scenario, businesses rent servers, storage and networking infrastructure in a cloud environment.
  • Software-as-a-service (SaaS): With SaaS, businesses access the applications they need over the internet and pay for what is required.
  • Platform-as-a-service (PaaS): Organizations access a development platform for building or rolling out proprietary software and services.

Here are 3 ways small and businesses can benefit from cloud computing in 2022:

  1. Application Administration-Small and mid-size companies can take advantage of cloud computing technologies without the need to purchase and maintain their own IT infrastructure, helping to conserve their IT budgets. That’s particularly attractive to businesses that can now access advanced technology previously out of reach.  And, if you are an executive at an organization that produces and uses any type of data set, you will be enamoured with the benefits cloud analytics. Cloud analytics is data collection, tracking and analysis that happens on systems hosted in the cloud, rather than in rather than in on-premises (for example on your company’s server) systems.
  2. Turnkey Provisioning and on-Demand Scalability-Embracing cloud computing will change a lot of things for the better, including costs, security, accessibility, and maintenance. But it doesn’t change your core service level requirements. Businesses should not compromise on their technology needs—delivering on performance, scalability, availability, reliability, and security, all of which when deploying a cloud computing solution.
  3. Growth, Scalability and a Unified Approach From Anywhere-Cloud applications like ATSTimeWorkOnDemand offer powerful capabilities on-demand with near-limitless flexibility. These resources are available as needed for scaling up or scaling down, without any need to purchase, set up or maintain any of your own servers or other resources as your needs shift with growth.

To aid productivity, your organization can use the application to summarize and analyze data quickly for real-time insights. Additionally, cloud computing ATSTimeWorkOnDemand offers ready-to-use programming components that allow developers to build new capabilities into their applications, including innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT).

Cloud computing trends demonstrate how this technology is changing the way businesses operate and how they allocate their IT budgets. Significantly, public cloud users (who share computing resources) no longer have to purchase and maintain hardware and other infrastructure or manage IT upgrades and software patches — that responsibility now falls on their cloud vendors. This leaves businesses and their IT teams able to focus on core business objectives like innovation, new product or service offerings and hiring new talent. It also helps to level the playing field for growing businesses that had been unable to afford the steep price tag of advanced technologies they can now access through a subscription.

As we approach 2022, the adoption of cloud will continue to accelerate as more small and mid-size businesses embrace the advances in cloud computing power, scalability and flexibility that cloud-based systems deliver. In the end, this will provide IT departments with more time to focus on core business objectives like innovation, and other initiatives.

About ATS

ATS offers a broad portfolio of time and attendance solutions that streamlines the collection, calculation, and reporting of employee hours for workforce management and eliminates the manual tasks of payroll preparation, increasing efficiency and reducing errors in corporate payroll departments.

Thousands of organizations across North, Central and South America and Europe- including more than half of the Fortune 500 – use ATS TimeWork OnDemand, Workforce Planning, Employee Scheduling HR and payroll solutions to manage their workforce. ATS cloud services offer rapid deployment, support services, software updates, and enhancements; and consulting and training services.

Whether you are a food and beverage manufacturer, a wholesale, distributor, or a retailer, you face a unique set of challenges that are specific to your industry.

Not only do you have tough labour law requirements, but you also operate in an industry with tight margins and, where time is of the essence. You have to deal with payroll and other import costs, employee productivity, and wastage.

ATS Food Manufacturing application is designed to grow your food and beverage business, and help you enhance your back-of-house operations, so you can deliver better business performance and exceptional customer experiences.

With ATS Food Manufacturing application, your company gets access to; Workforce Planning, Employee Self-Service, Overtime Equalization, HR, Analytics, Time and Attendance, Workforce Absence and a proven technology platform that delivers- visibility and control and demand-driven solutions.

With ATS Food Manufacturing for Food and Beverage, you can simplify, scale and achieve:

Business Insight-24/7, 365 Days: ATS Food Manufacturing enables your people to access and act on workforce data anywhere, anytime with any mobile device.The application,allows you unprecedented insight into your business providing you with real-time visibility of what is important to you. It also allows you to track key performance indicators (KPIs), identify which parts of your business is generating the best returns and-address issues before they become business-affecting.

Machine Learning: ATS Food Manufacturing advances the aggregation of more and better data with broad capabilities, and deeper flexibility with forecasting algorithms.

Regulatory Compliance: The application enables you to take legislative compliance; whether its international, federal, provincial, state, and local labour laws in your stride- making it an integrated and automated part of your processes.

Improve Process and Efficiencies: With ATS Food Manufacturing solutions, you can drive efficiencies by integrating processes across the entire supply chain. We connect payroll, HR, finance, production, packaging and distribution to improve process. By aligning supply and demand, we streamline payroll costs, thus increasing workforce productivity.

Elasticity: That reduces the complexity, while providing comprehensive business insights and addressing those operational issues that restrict growth.

Proven Technology with Industry Specialization:  The applicationsupports multifaceted data exchanges with best-of-breed technology and architecture and addresses industry-specific requirements with vertically specialized modules.

Budgeting, Forecasting, Labour Planning and Demand: Take advantage of intuitive, industry specialized software for budgeting, planning, and forecasting. And with machine learning capabilities—you have access to a self learning algorithm that allows for analyzing of historical data, and the calculation of required labour hours to meet critical business objectives

To learn more or to fast track your evaluation of ATS Food Manufacturing, you can go to our website. You can also have call you back by submitting your request here.

In the last several years, businesses and the IT world in general, has seen the increasing popularity of cloud computing, easily becoming the 21st century most talked about business application solution.

Cloud services that include; software and hardware have different options and pricing models, which in past, may have caused a few IT managers to be sceptical, about the technology and how it would affect their businesses. And, as a result, this may have also given rise to misconceptions about the realities of cloud computing and the many benefits it offers, including; business agility and cost reductions.

In this blog, we will debunk 5 myths about cloud computing:

Myth#1: All Cloud Software Solutions are the same
Different organizations have different needs and the best HCM cloud applications support those unique characteristics. For example, a food manufacturing company that creates products in small batches have different needs from a similar type of that manufactures the same product over and over.

Yet some businesses still believe that all cloud HCM solutions are the same and none of them are unique enough to suit their specific needs. Manufacturers with little knowledge of modern cloud computing solutions can sometimes get dazzled by buzzwords and perceived complexity. However, the cloud is not a platform that delivers a one-size-fits-all solution. The best cloud HCM providers offer flexibility, a wide variety of cloud-computing based functionality— and are designed by experts, with deep industry knowledge— who would not sell an application that’s loaded with bells and whistles that companies don’t need or would not use.

Myth# 2 – A Cloud Solution is too Expensive
We have heard this before, when in actuality, it will save you money in the long run. With ATS HCM cloud application, companies spend less on IT. Over a three- to five-year period, consider the hardware, software, implementation, customization, training, support and maintenance costs required for on-premise HCM application. It is easier to implement ATS HCM cloud, which doesn’t need large computers or onsite staff to maintain them.

Moving to the cloud means freeing up the extensive IT resources dedicated to the never-ending challenge of keeping the lights on in the server room. The burden of deploying, running, and upgrading systems shifts to ATS. This allows IT managers to become strategic shareholders, while driving innovation.

Myth#3 –It will be harder to Integrate to Third-Party Applications
Some companies still believe the myth that cloud HCM software is difficult to integrate with their existing systems. In fact, integration is much easier than you think. Third-party apps like, ERP, Payroll, Talent Management that is native to the same platform are easy to manage and integrate. They provide end-users with a consistent interface and experience. ATS makes use of the most updated API integration, and so your organization will have relevant, accurate operational data all in one place—in real time.

Myth#4 – An on-premise solution is better and is more secure
ATS Cloud offers the most powerful tools to help ensure top performance for your business. ATS HCM Cloud regularly updates its software to the latest and greatest without interruption to your business. Customers get the most up-to-date software delivered automatically. And all of this comes without having to put your IT staff through time-consuming updates and upgrades. ATS HCM monitors cloud performance 24×7 and scales to address demand.

One of the greatest benefits of using ATS HCM cloud is that your business always runs the latest version of the software. With ATS HCM cloud, you get the earliest access to new features, industry best practices, and competitive innovations. Not only does this keep you on the forefront of your industry, but it also sends security patches that effortlessly keep your system locked down.

Myth# 5 – Cloud Computing Applications are not as Secure
This is a persistent myth about the cloud that it is not secure. The early iteration of the cloud came with some concerns and rightly so. However, these concerns have dissipated with the way cloud applications system are hosted today, some of which includes firewalls, two-factor authentication, advanced encryption, frequent security updates, and detection. Data loss with an on-premise system can be permanent when a system fails. Cloud backup procedures ensures that downtime is not only rare but also temporary. Your data is protected and constantly backed up on the cloud.

Bottom Line:
As more companies deploy cloud applications, and continue to reap the benefits of increased efficiencies, improved productivity and increased profits, perhaps we may finally see some of these myths disappear.

About ATS
ATS offers a broad portfolio of time and attendance solutions that streamlines the collection, calculation, and reporting of employee hours for workforce management and eliminates the manual tasks of payroll preparation, increasing efficiency and reducing errors in corporate payroll departments.

Thousands of organizations across North, Central and South America and Europe- including more than half of the Fortune 500 – use ATS TimeWork OnDemand, Workforce Planning, Employee Scheduling HR and payroll solutions to manage their workforce.

Several years ago, the mere mention of using time and attendance through the cloud was met with hesitancy and at times, worry. And, some across the IT world, gave tepid oks to the cloud, in part, because they were worried that it would take away their jobs as it removed the need to manage an on-premise solution. 

Fast forward to today in a world of remote work while battling COVID-19 and companies continue to swarm to cloud computing solutions, embracing it like never before. And, now it appears, that cloud computing has become all the more significant for companies both small and large- because it diminishes operational expense, brings elasticity, speed, easy deployment and rapid ROI.

The other part to this shift in cloud adoption, has to do with a swath of employees working remotely, because of COVID-19. This shift illustrates employees no longer need to be tethered to desks or physical locations to clock in/out and/or request time-off– even though, there is still nothing quite like sitting at a table with a bunch of people to commiserate and solve problems.

In conclusion, beyond 2021 and the coronavirus pandemic, companies will continue to rely cloud computing solutions like- ATSTimeWorkOnDemand for payroll, time and attendance, HRIS, talent management, employee self-service to track, manage and contain costs. The fear factor around cloud adoption, appears to have disappeared and, that is a benefit to all of us.

To learn about ATS cloud computing solutions, go to our website. To speak to an account executive, call 866.294.2467.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced many companies to adopt remote work arrangements, in workplaces and industries where this was feasible. It now appears, that this trend will continue well into 2021.  And, while this was taking place HR leaders had to deal with job cuts, rehiring and managing employee morale. In short, no small task.

According to the recent article in HR Dive by Topia titled, 3 challenges HR leaders face in 2021 those challenges include:

‘Hidden’ remote work risk – The great thing about the remote work model is work can get done from anywhere. The challenging thing about the remote model is the same – work can be done from anywhere. With so many employees working from “home” your employees can be working in another city, state, or country without you knowing it. This opens up businesses and employees to tax and permanent establishment risk. While many jurisdictions have given a pass for this in 2020, it is likely that they will start enforcing it again in 2021.

Business travel compliance – One of the first forms of employee movement to come back in 2021 will be business travel. In the US this will mean getting on top of state-to-state payroll withholding. In Europe, there’s the more complex challenge of the A1 and Posted Workers Directive to tackle. With COVID-19 shutting down most cross-border business travel, complying with these rules was not a top priority for most companies. We can expect that in 2021, as the virus gets under control and organizations start deploying employees across borders, countries will be looking to enforce this rule and others to ensure they are getting the appropriate tax contributions.

Employee demands for new working models – There is a lot of discussion around how work will get done in a post-pandemic world. Some businesses have moved aggressively to embrace remote work. Some organizations have gotten rid of corporate campuses or made working remote the de-facto practice. We’re likely to see more nuanced approaches and policies moving forward. These include fully remote work, flexible work, extending vacation with remote work in their holiday location, etc. Organizations will need the right frameworks and tools to manage new and complex types of employees vs the traditional in-person/office and fully remote employee.

In conclusion, 2020 may have been one of the most challenging times for many companies on a global scale. And, while there have been opportunities too, HR leaders continue to be tasked with adapting to an ever-changing, regulatory labour and payroll compliance, as it relates to the Covid-19 pandemic.

To learn more about ATS and/or to download a demo of our cloud-computing HCM solution, go to our website. To reach us by phone, call: 866.294.2467.

As parts of Canada and the US begins the process of a slow reopening, social- distancing and workplace hygiene remains top of mind for employers and employees alike.  And, if some of your employees continue to work from home, you can make use of employee self-service and online web punch options, which means, you likely don’t have to think about workplace logistics for this cohort. But what about the employees who have to report to work because of the nature of your industry? Whether its food manufacturing, retail, or grocery, you probably have some way of recording their time. And, if you don’t, here are 3 ways to record employees time while they are on the job, that is both safe and contactless:

RFID/Keyfobs: ATS time clocks supports RFID and Smart Card/key fob reader options.  RFID, Smart cards and key fobs, do not require contact, and chances are some or all your employees already use these types of cards. 

FaceScan and IRIS Recognition Data Collectors: Due, in large part to the ongoing pandemic, more companies are requesting touchless data collectors. And, when combined with ATSTimeWorkOnDemand, innovative time and attendance app, these data collectors — pave the way for a new era of powerful employee time-tracking data that helps control labour costs and improve workforce productivity.

Proximity: ATS Proximity time clocks have an embedded sensor which reads the badge to quickly record employee arrival times, breaks, lunches, overtime and departure times. ATS proximity cards are “contactless” and is read when held within two inches of the time clock sensor. Alternatively, proximity wristbands offer another approach, this wearable method has the potential to ensure almost no contact between employees and time clocks.

Mobile and web time clocks: With ATSTimeWorkOnDemand application, employees can punch in/out from a personal device or terminal thus, eliminating hygiene concerns of a shared time clock. ATS mobile and web time clock options, delivers an engaging experience that drives user adoption across the workforce. Managers can initiate mass approvals, manage exceptions, and get approval alerts on mobile devices from anywhere 24/7.

Magnetic stripe or Barcode: Magnetic and Barcode cards: allow employees to swipe to clock in and out, without directly touching the time clock. ATS State-Of-The-Art Time Clocks are equipped with a large 7” touchscreen with and full color LCD Screen. It delivers a superior user experience and fast user adoption and has a straightforward user interface, that provides self-service view into any employee’s work-related information.

Bottomline: ATS contactless time clocks was designed with you and you and your payroll costs, in mind. ATSTimeWorkOnDemand offers complete automation and full visibility –with innovative and functionality that translates to faster employee deployment, less wasted time, and increased productivity.

To learn more, go to our website, where you can download a demo or brochures. To reach us by phone, call 866.294.2467.

Enhancing the profitability of your organizational challenges gets more difficult every year—thanks in part to aging legacy applications and manual time tracking solutions that can’t keep up with today’s technology. Case in point, disconnected systems can hinder decision-making and lead to wasted resources and high payroll costs.

ATSTimeWorkOnDemand automates time tracking for hourly and salaried workforce and provides senior management with on-the-spot analytic reporting. With ATSTimeWorkOnDemand you can run your entire business in a single system of record, including: Talent Management, Time and Attendance, Payroll, ERP and HR and— receive updates on, production control, supply chain management, and more so you can be more competitive, efficient, and responsive to your customers’ needs.

Here are 5 reasons to deploy ATSTimeWorkOnDemand:

Scalable- Your organization will not have to worry again about database capacity, user license needs, adding another location, or how much storage or computing power you will need as your employee capacity and/or the size of your company increases. ATSTimeWorkOnDemand Cloud Computing application is infinitely scalable — expanding as needed.

Cost-ATSTimeWorkOnDemand lowers your cost of installing, maintaining and supporting your Human Capital Management (HCM) system – year after year. ATSTimeWorkOnDemand significantly cuts the cost of installing, maintaining, supporting and upgrading your system not just in year one, but throughout the lifetime of your relationship with ATS.

Secure-With ATSTimeWorkOnDemand, you get enterprise-class security at a low, predictable cost. You can trust that your data is safe—from ironclad firewalls and automated security sniffers to concrete walls and biometric control systems, ATSTimeWorkOnDemand solution is designed to provide the highest level of security.

State-Of-The-Art Technology-ATSTimeWorkOnDemand is built from the ground up with HR, finance and payroll practitioners in mind, and takes maximum advantage of cloud computing.  ATSTimeWorkOnDemand is designed for a “single instance, multi-tenant” implementation or across multiple sites across Canada, the US, Latin America or Europe. And, while the platform is shared among users and sites, security controls provide each tenant with sole access to its own data, in real-time, as well as full control over user and security administration.

Always-On-ATSTimeWorkOnDemand is available 24/7, 365 days a year— and promises to exceed the service levels and response time. Afterall, today’s businesses, simply cannot afford unscheduled downtime.

Tired of struggling with outdated and disparate software solutions?  Discover the many benefits of ATSTimeWorkOnDemand by downloading a demonstration of the application and you can see how this cloud application delivers a single solution that streamlines payroll costs, improve productivity and efficiently runs your business.

To learn more, you can contact us by phone at 866.294.2467 and/or also register for one of our bi-monthly webinars.

A recent article for TLNT.com by Joyce Maroney titled, Ease Retail Turnover By Making Scheduling More Flexible for online sheds light on the headaches that retail managers endure. Whether you are in retail, healthcare or hospitality, you will run into obstacles when creating schedules for employees — and if those schedules are manual, you will be plagued, with unnecessary headaches.

Here are 3 ways to create better schedules from the article:

  1. Make taking time off easy — Establish a formal (ideally written) policy regarding time off requests and execute that policy consistently to ensure workers trust that the process is fair. Beyond that, actually provide workers with paid time off — to refresh themselves and to help avoid absence abuses — and encourage workers to take the time they want and need.
  • Create personalized schedules — Collaborate with workers when setting their schedules so that their shift preferences are accommodated as much as possible. Take advantage of automated scheduling and analytics tools to ensure that managers have visibility into worker availability and can plan for shift coverage. And don’t forget to provide workers with accrual information and make it easy for them to check their time, request shift changes, and swap shifts with coworkers — bonus points if they can do so from their own phones.
  • Use technology to staff smartly — Seek insight into how to address staffing coverage during uber-busy periods like Black Friday by looking at historical trends of labor drivers, schedule preferences, and booked vacation time. Doing this requires discipline and analysis, but once the models are in place, managers can easily re-run them with little additional effort to help make intelligent and data-backed staffing decisions in real time.

ATS Workforce Management (WFM) is a comprehensive optimization, planning, and time and attendance software application that manages employee resource demand, streamlines payroll costs, and business analytics. ATS Workforce Management mitigates the risk of potential compliance errors and reduce costs with purpose-built solution capabilities, while encouraging employees to focus on activities that generate more value.

To learn more about ATS (HCM) Workforce Management capabilities, or to download demonstration, go to our website. And, to reach an account executive, call 866.294.2467.

Managing overtime is not an easy task, especially if your company is using manual time cards and spreadsheets — an archaic practice at best, although, several companies still track employee hours, overtime and leave policies using these tools

Tracking overtime does not have to be that hard, especially if you are using a modern time and attendance solutions. Here are excerpts from an article, on how to manage overtime, by Rob Press for online magazine TLNT titled; 6 Ways to Minimize the Impact of the New US Overtime Rules

Simplify complex policies: Review your overtime policy, reading it through the eyes of the employees. You may find that by simplifying your policy, you could actually minimize the amount of work that you need to do to approve each request.

Complex policies were actually at the root of a recent class action in California. At some company facilities, there was a flat “no overtime” policy. At others, the policy stated that prior approval for overtime must be given by two relevant managers; something that the employees stated was an “impossible task” when they were under pressure to get the job done. Ultimately, the company agreed to settle the case for $20 million.

This really shows just how many complex stages can often be involved in overtime policies, and begs the question: Could making policies more straightforward – and consistent — not only help businesses to achieve their goals, but also help to make HR and manager workloads more manageable?

Focus on organization: To manage overtime like a boss, we need to focus on overtime specifically, right? Well, maybe not. To properly manage overtime, it’s important to look at the bigger picture.

There was a very interesting study undertaken by the US Postal Service across the Northeastern states which found that managers who failed to effectively manage unscheduled leave ended up having to deal with more overtime. According to the report, “management did not effectively manage unscheduled leave, which contributed to overtime hours.” Makes sense, doesn’t it?

Track employee hours: It doesn’t matter whether you’ve been working in HR for years or you’re just starting out in your career, you know, or will quickly discover, that employees are bad — very bad — at tracking their time. With so many other tasks that need to be prioritized, filling in timesheets often ends up at the bottom of the list.

And the problem doesn’t end there. Even when employees do try to track their time, they’re often doing it days later, which means the hours they’re putting down probably aren’t all that accurate. According to studies of memory, people quickly forget what they learn. What did you have for lunch three days ago?

Analyze: One of the most vital aspects of good overtime management is what it can tell us about workforce practices. As an HR professional, you’re not only responsible for supporting employees, but also for supporting the business, and for raising concerns that can help it improve.

One of the other advantages that an automated tracking system offers is the ability to analyze time and attendance. You can do this with paper timesheets, but it’s much harder.

Minimize overtime: Of course, the absolute best way to manage overtime is to have less of it. Ha! Easier said than done right? Well, being able to reduce overtime isn’t something that’s guaranteed, but there are a few methods that can minimize the need for extra hours.

Although there are any number of reasons for overtime, when it becomes endemic that’s often a sign there are not enough resources to complete the necessary tasks within the time given.

Managing change: Understanding how to better manage overtime is a significant part of handling the big changes that are taking place within the HR industry right now. With HR professionals expected to receive more requests for overtime payments than ever before under the new rules, now is the perfect time to look at improving internal processes and honing management skills for efficient and effective working”.

So, to summarize; proactively managing your employees’ overtime, avoiding surprises and preparing for the future can reduce your expense, protect your organization from unwanted legal action, and improve morale across the company.

ATS TimeWorkOnDemand is a best-of-best 21st century human capital management (HCM) software provides an end-to-end employee lifecycle management solution. ATS TimeWorkOnDemand Workforce Management solutions help meet your workforce needs regardless of your industry or where you do business.

Interested in learning how you can curb overtime with ATS TimeWorkOnDemand? Go to our website and take a test drive. You can also reach an account executive at 866.294.2467.

Accurate HR data delivered with up-to-the-minute analytics is vital to the success of an organization. ATS TimeWorkOnDemand cloud computing analytics application can help you make the right business decisions by providing a invaluable information and deep insights, using intuitive tools like automated real-time reports and easy to configure dashboards.

Here are 3 reasons why HR managers love ATS TimeWorkOnDemand:

Intuitive Dashboards

  • Monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) for the entire workforce through a set of intuitive dashboards
  • Create, update, and print reports in various formats and through the dashboards
  • Keep the executive suite and departmental managers informed across the organization, with scheduled up-to-the-minute reports and dashboards

Real-Time Insights

  • Enable rapid identification of trends using graphics with easy-to-use data visualization tools
  • Gain up to the minute management insights of workforce through comprehensive analytics. Drill down for more detail and utilize what-if analysis
  • Spot potential business problems before they occur, by gaining instant visibility with early warning systems reporting-so you can make better, informed people decisions.

Payroll and HR Compliance

  • Supports Canadian and US compliance and regulatory payroll, HR and collective bargaining reporting requirements.
  • Permission-based features designed to enable executives, managers, supervisors and employees to support both themselves and their teams, through self-service portals while ensuring that sensitive HR data is visible only to those who need to see it
  • Integrate HR, CRM, talent management, ERP and payroll applications with ATS TimeWorkOnDemand, giving one source of truth for your people data. Use on demand reports, dashboards and analytics to keep track of all payroll, compensation and employee benefits data

To view a demonstration of ATS TimeWorkOnDemand analytics, go to our website. And to reach an account executive by phone, call 866.294.2467.