Time and Attendance Blog, Workforce Management Software

3 Tips To Keep You Focused While Working From Home During COVID-19

Working from home during COVID-19 pandemic can make seem like you are working all the time. Know how to set boundaries between your work and personal life, as well as avoid professional isolation. And, if your office is closed due to the corona virus pandemic, you might be working from home for the first time.

If you are working from home for the first time and/or just can’t seem to stay focused with the knowledge that your TV and fridge is nearby, consider these tips for maintaining work-life balance and avoiding professional isolation. These tips are from an article by Elizabeth Grace Saunders in Harvard Business Review titled, How to Stay Focused When You’re Working from Home

Establish working hours- It may sound silly, but if you want to have a focused day of work, pretend you’re not working from home. Before I became a time management coach, my schedule was chaotic. I didn’t have a set time that I would be at my computer, and I would often schedule personal appointments or run errands during the day. And since my personal life didn’t have boundaries, my work life didn’t either. When I was home, I would feel guilty for not checking business email at all hours of the day and night. I never felt that I could truly rest.
Structure your day for success- Maximize the effectiveness of your time at home by structuring it differently than a typical workday. For example, if you work from home only one day a week or on occasion, make it a meeting-free day. If you can’t entirely avoid meetings, reserve at least half a day for focused work. Choose a time that works best for you, based on any required meetings and your energy levels.
Set boundaries with others- To make your efforts stick, be clear with the people who might see your work-at-home days as simply days you’re at home. Explain to friends, family, and other acquaintances that the days you’re working remotely aren’t opportunities for non-work-related activities. For example, if you’re home with your spouse, tell them, “I’m planning on being on my computer from 8 AM to 5 PM today. I’m happy to chat at lunch, but other than that I’ll be occupied.” Typically, when you set expectations and stick to them (say, really stopping at 5 PM), people understand your limits instead of assuming you’ll be available. (I also recommend having a place where you’re away from anyone else who might be home, such as an office or bedroom where you can shut the door and be out of sight.)

Bottomline: While some employees have been working remotely for many years and will likely keep their same routine, managers should remember that not every employee actually wants to work from home, a shift that can be stressful for some. However, as organizations increasingly mandate that many employees work from home during this pandemic outbreak, it’s becomes even more important that managers, communicate with their employees as some might be struggling with the change.

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.

To learn more about ATS, go to our website. To download a demo of our time and attendance app or reach us by phone call; 866.294.2467.

Covid-19, Harvard Business Review, Time Management, Work-Life-Balance, Working Remotely

Here Are Some Of The Reasons Why We Hate Change And What We Can Do About It

February 26th, 2019 | Posted by ATS in Change | Time and Attendance | Time and Attendance Blog, Workforce Management Software - (Comments Off)

Change has and will always will be hard for some of us, for a variety of reasons. And, for some of us, we simply have to accept change when it happens despite our best efforts to avoid it. Gustavo Razzetti article in TLNT, titled, It’s Our ‘Schemas’ That Make Us Resist Change raises, some important facts about our resistance to change and reads, in part;

“Assimilation is easy . The new information fits within existing experiences and preconceived ideas. But, when there’s no place for it, it challenges our beliefs, emotions, and confidence.

Accommodation is harder. It requires us to alter our existing schemas or create new ones. We have to put aside our schemas — the way we look at things — and be willing to analyze the new information, accepting it as potentially good before we adopt it. Once we recognize the benefit of a new initiative, it requires challenging our existing ideas — accommodation requires training our minds.

That’s why it’s essential for any team to understand how they deal with change. Assessing what drives resistance (FEAR) is the first step toward training everyone’s mind, not only to be more open but to thrive in change (DARE).”

But why is it, humans resist change so much when that change can lead to something better? Here are three of the most poignant take-aways from this article:

“I don’t want to change. I want all of you to change.”

FEAR: Fighting — Most of us are at war with reality. We fight what we can’t control or don’t understand. Our anxiety, emotions, and thoughts prevent us from fully understanding ourselves, others, and the context. Low self-awareness causes blindspots, clouding our judgment when making decisions.

DARE: Discovery — We must pause and reflect to increase our self-awareness. We put the time and effort to discover who we really are and become compassionate enough to accept our entire self (flaws included). We don’t let our thoughts and emotions cloud our judgment — we discover reality as is. Self-aware teams make better decisions, interact better with each other, and manage conflicts more effectively. Discovery is an ongoing process. Self-awareness turns our blind-spots into bright spots.

Dare to change: To move from FEAR to DARE a framework is not enough — it requires training, coaching, tools, and regular practice. But, above all, you must provide a safe space for dialogue and feedback.

All too often when we encounter resistance to change, it’s simply the fear of the unknown. And, sometimes it’s the little things like—changes in work methods, in routine project assignments, in the location of a computer or a new time and attendance system, or just in personnel assignments.

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Time and Attendance, TLNT

Here Are Three Ways To Keep Your Remote Workers Engaged

The traditional way of work is on its way out and is not coming back, much to angst of some. Many North Americans, in particular, millennials are ditching the traditional approach to work which usually involves driving one or two hours to an office. Today’s workers and are instead looking for companies that offer flexible work options and if yours does not, good luck in attracting a range of talent.

Here Are Three Ways To Keep Your Remote Workers Engaged

If your company has embraced the new way of work and has a remote workforce, you probably know it can sometimes be hard to make sure they feel part of the team. Here are three ways to keep your remote workforce engaged:

Consistently Communicate

A consistent line of communication between you and your remote team members is vital to ensuring workers are engaged, getting the work done are motivated. Occasionally e-mail your remote workers during the day or schedule one or two phone call during the course of the day. Not only does this help them to feel part of the team, it also means you are always accessible and this can help to avoid problems.

Made Good Use of Technology

The latest workforce management solutions and HR applications can help with remote employee engagement. In addition, cloud-based tools like Skype can provide your company and its remote workers to access a variety of presentations, or obtain important HR and data related information-thus, ensuring team members can remain up to date with the latest and most critical information wherever they are.

Share Feedback

Include your remote workers in important decisions that are part of your company’s overall strategy and/or growth plans. When remote workers are not included in the decisions then can quickly become disengage, and begin to can feel unsupported and unsure of how much their efforts are appreciated by the company. As an organization, you should have faith that your remote staff can work independently and meet operational objectives.

If you work in the white-collar world, you will undoubtedly end up working with or supervising a telecommuting workforce at some point. How you handle remote workers will vary according to whether they work from home in the suburbs a dozen miles away, a few provinces or states away, or in another country.

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HR, Millennials, North America, Telecommuting, Workforce Management Solution

Want To Increase Workforce Productivity? Offer Employees Mobile Device Options

A recent article by The New York Times titled ‘The Long, Final Goodbye of the VCR’ encapsulates how technology continues to evolve. And, in a world where cloud computing technology has helped made previously mundane tasks easier to complete, many companies are embracing the use of cloud-based solutions, to help them save costs and remain competitive.

In today’s digital era for example, implementing a cloud-based workforce management solution is easier to deploy and provides a rapid return on investment (ROI). And with the added benefits of an on-the-go application that allows employees to punch in/out from their mobile device, they can; request time off, provide their availability, view shift schedules, overtime, hours worked and perform a host of other tasks that previously required a visit to the HR office. This on-the-go application provides managers with real-time reporting capabilities, an intuitive dashboard with workflows and, a messaging centre to review employee requests and respond in accordance.

Want To Increase Workforce Productivity? Offer Employees Mobile Device Options

So, if your company is looking to increase productivity, be sure to deploy a workforce management that can do more than having remote workers tied to a desktop on which to log in their hours of work. Thus, when workers are productive and happy, companies can expect a better return on their people investment and a better customer experience.

To learn about ATS Workforce Management mobile app, go to our website. And, to attend one our weekly webinars register online. To speak to one of our account executives call; 866.294.2467.

Cloud Computing, HR, New York Times, Workforce Management Solutions

Canadian Federal Government Is Contemplating New Leave Management Policy

The Canadian federal government recently mused about the possibility of updating parental leave, specifically for new dads. It made news and, for those who love and hate the idea both came out in full force and articulated their respective arguments through a variety of social media platforms. Whether you are or against it, one thing is clear, time is changing. This would perhaps be unheard of some 30 or 50 years ago. In actuality, there is nothing new about such a leave, because in the province of Quebec, new dads can take up five weeks leave while the province covers 70% of their salary.

The role of fatherhood has changed dramatically in the last several years. Josh levs a journalist for CNN wrote a book titled “All In” after he approached his employer to request time-off for the birth of his new baby. During an interview with Brigid Schulte of The Washington Post, he revealed, in part, “I’d been covering parenting issues for CNN, and then all of a sudden I was in the news. I was doing stories and columns on fatherhood, then my wife was about to have our daughter. My employer, Time Warner, had an extremely unusual policy: anyone could get 10 weeks of paid leave to take care of a new child – except the man who’d impregnated the mother of his child. Me. The biological father.”

Canadian Federal Government Is Contemplating New Leave Management Policy

So, will this type of leave management affect Canadian businesses? All indications are this is in the infancy stage. However, if you are one of those businesses who currently track employee vacation, and other time-off requests through a series of spreadsheets, it’s not too late to make the switch to an automated time and attendance system that will automatically track your company’s leave management.

ATS Time and Attendance Leave Management System automates employee time-off request. With ATS Leave Management System employers can accurately enforce leave management policies, and approvals based on an organization’s unique business processes.

To learn more about ATS Time and Attendance Leave Management System, go to our website to download a demonstration or a brochure. To reach an account executive by phone, call 866.294.2467.

Canadian Government, CNN, Leave Management, Quebec, The Washington Post, Time and Attendance, Time Warner

How’s That Spreadsheet Working Out For You?

Over the last several years, the issue of overtime has become, somewhat of an albatross for some companies but, in reality it does not have to be. When you consider how easy it is to automate employee attendance. And, with the advancement of cloud computing it has now become inexpensive and faster to deploy a time and attendance solution that will accurately track overtime hours. So, why do some companies consistently rely on paper time sheets when they can save costs by using an attendance system?

A recent article written by Eric B. Meyer for Eremedia says that although, the new overtime rules by the department of labor may not be enacted until the end of 2016, there are some steps that companies can take ahead of this law. They include:

 “Ensure that non-exempt employees receive minimum wage and overtime when they work more than 40 hours in a work week.
 Double check employee classifications to confirm that exempt employees truly are exempt (and vice-versa).
 Do you have independent contractors? Or are they employees whom you’ve simply labeled independent contractors? Now, may be a good time to vet that.”

Tracking employee overtime through the use of spreadsheets is a time-consuming process, but don’t fret, there is a better way. ATS TimeWork OnDemand is a cloud driven time and attendance application that delivers, on-the-spot predictive analytics, of employee attendance at your fingertips. And with ATS TimeWork OnDemand, you get:

Benefit Accruals-Choose to accrue employee hours daily, weekly, or bi-weekly—or even monthly—and based on time passed or employee’s time logged.

Alerts-You can get automatic alerts sent to your mobile device so you know when an employee punch in or out and warnings about employees that are approaching overtime so you can take necessary action.

Leave Management-Your employees can now request any time-off from their mobile device or any workstation with Internet connection.

We’ve only scratched the surface of the many things that ATS time and attendance can do. If you are interested in learning more, register for an interactive webinar, ‘Controlling Overtime Pay through Automation’ on Friday, November 27th at 1:00pm eastern.

To download brochures, go to our website or call (866) 294-2467.

How’s That Spreadsheet Working Out For You?

Accruals, Cloud Computing, Leave Management, Overtime, Time and Attendance

Should We Put A Policy In Place With Our Time And Attendance Solution?

ATS project managers often get asked this question during customer site-visits and prior to the implementation of our time and attendance solution. The answer to this question is always a resounding yes. Whether you are replacing your current time and attendance system or implementing one for the first time, a set of guidelines is a good way to achieve compliance. Here are some additional tips you can use in your company’s new policy:

Define and set expectations
Let employees know how much leeway they have with lateness and absenteeism and make sure this is configured within the system. Having a time and attendance system in place should not be viewed as “Big Brother” mentality and the more open you are about it the greater the compliance you can expect from employees.

Employee feedback
When crafting a time and attendance policy, your best ally are your employees. Get them involved by seeking feedback. You’d be surprised at how engaged employees can be when their suggestions are solicited by management prior to the deployment of the system.

Leave Management
It’s important to clarify terms and conditions for paid and unpaid time-off to include; leave of absence, vacation, jury duty, medical and family leave. ATS Self-Service portal is a good tool for employees and managers alike.

ATS team has deep industry experience have performed numerous deployments over the years and so, it’s likely some of our team members can provide your organizations with tips on what type of information to include in your policy.

To learn more register for one of our monthly webinars, download a demonstration or simply contact us by phone at; 866.294.2467.

Should We Put A Policy In Place With Our Time And Attendance Solution?

Absenteeism, Employee Self Service, Leave Management, Time and Attendance, Vacation

The New Way Of Working

June 25th, 2014 | Posted by Apex Time Solutions in Benefit Accruals | Employee Scheduling | Time and Attendance - (0 Comments)

The whole notion of the 9:00am -5:00pm era is slowly being usurped by something bigger, employees desire to choose their schedules and flextime has resurfaced in many online conversations. Today’s workforce wants to have more time off to spend with newborns or care for an aging parent and in some cases telecommute. This phenomenon is popular among millennials many of whom saw their parents, work endless hours while missing out on their dance recitals and hockey practice. What is even more surprising is that some in the baby boom generation is embracing this trend.

So, what’s the cause of all this? A new research by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Families and Work Institute (FWI) found some contradictory reasons behind this new trend. Some of it has to do with the changing of the times and some of it may have to do with the fact, some in today’s, workforce do not define themselves by their salaries and titles. Many employers have also recognized the benefits of having a well-rested employee and to that end have created such things like reduced hours on a Fridays in the summer.

A recent report by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College reads in part; “Employees report that they are more productive and more engaged in their work when there are able to balance the demands of work with other aspects of their lives. Improvements in physical and mental health are also associated with workplace flexibility. Below is evidence linking flexible work options to employee and family well-being.”

So, will this trend towards flexible working hours have staying power? So, far, it appears so.

Employee Scheduling, Flextime, Human Resources Management

Employee Time Management Solution That Will Bring A Smile To Your Face

May 29th, 2014 | Posted by Apex Time Solutions in Payroll | Time and Attendance | Time and Attendance Blog, Workforce Management Software - (Comments Off)

Why would employee time tracking solution bring a smile to your face? Well, to start the benefits are tremendous. ATS leading time and attendance solution provides companies with a powerful tool that streamlines payroll preparation, simplifies workforce planning and improves payroll compliance. In addition, the application manages employee absences and vacation tracking, all in real-time.

Additional Benefits Include:

Streamline Payroll Preparation
Using paper time-sheets and spreadsheets can waste valuable time on repetitive data entry and corrections. ATS time tracking solution automates the time collection process, applies it to your payroll and other wage policies. ATS TimeWork calculates hourly totals, provides your payroll practitioner with up-to-the-minute summaries and then sends that data to your payroll software.

Forecasting and Workforce Planning
There is a better way to create and post schedules with the ATS scheduler. By using ATS workforce planning tool, you will meet the demands of your business.

Tracking Time-Off
ATS time tracking solution automates the tracking of paid and unpaid time-off all based on your company’s policies. Through self-service employees can view sick time balances at their convenience and request time off using any workstation or mobile device with Internet access.

Adhere to Regulatory Compliance
ATS time and attendance system helps companies comply with various labour and wage and hour regulations, including collective bargaining agreements. ATS system stores years of data in easy-to-access electronic form, providing the, provincial, municipal, state and federal overtime compliance reports needed to help you avoid costly violations.

Access Your Data Anytime, Anywhere
ATS TimeWork is a time and attendance application designed for midsize and large enterprise with complex pay and work-rule operations. ATS TimeWork cloud-based, product suite provides an end-to-end workforce management solution with module features for; labour planning, business intelligence, workforce planning, job costing and data integration. If you are searching for a robust and large-scale time and attendance solution, look no further.

With ATS TimeWork time and attendance you can accelerate and improve business operations, streamline the payroll processes and increase productivity. Now, that’s a great reason to smile! To learn more, go to our website.

Employee Time Management SolutionThat Will Bring A Smile To Your Face

Employee Scheduling, Payroll, Time and Attendance

Migrating From Windows XP Was A Headaches For Some Businesses

May 7th, 2014 | Posted by Apex Time Solutions in Cloud Based Time Management Solution | Time and Attendance | Time and Attendance Blog, Workforce Management Software - (Comments Off)

The recent news that Windows XP would be discontinued caused some consternation within the business community. And while the concern was legitimate, Microsoft had in fact, sent out a previous release a year in advance of this pending change. Despite the advance notice, some companies waited until the week before this transition, to update their Servers and workstations with new operating systems and office applications.

Today’s businesses face intense competition and the ones that remain rooted in the old ways of “we’ve always done it this way” find out, with great shock and sometimes when it’s too late, that they have been outpaced by their competitors. The lesson from the Windows XP update is one that all businesses at some point, have to come to terms with-which is, should you update or stay with your current system and deal with the headaches later on?

With ATS TimeWork on Demand, there are no Server or workstation update requirements. Your IT department or consultant will be happy that they do not have to spend time managing another program on the Server and workstations of the operational users.

ATS cloud-based time and attendance solution helps businesses improve efficiencies and achieve operational excellence. Designed to adapt to the most complex pay policies requirements, ATS TimeWork On-Demand improves time tracking capability while streamlining payroll costs and gives you the up-to-the-minute reporting tools that you need. Moving to the cloud can be challenging on itself. ATS has the depth of experience and superior customer support you need to fully leverage all of the advantages cloud computing affords.

Need some more reasons to move to time tracking solution to the cloud? Go to our website and download a white paper on “Cloud-Based Application VS an On-Premises Solution.

Cloud Computing, Time Tracking, Windows XP

3 Tips To Keep You Focused While Working From Home During COVID-19

Here Are Some Of The Reasons Why We Hate Change And What We Can Do About It

Here Are Three Ways To Keep Your Remote Workers Engaged

Canadian Federal Government Is Contemplating New Leave Management Policy

Should We Put A Policy In Place With Our Time And Attendance Solution?

The New Way Of Working

Employee Time Management Solution That Will Bring A Smile To Your Face

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