Leverage the Cloud to Manage Time and Attendance, Compliance at Customer Sites

ThinkstockPhotos-467248618For staffing companies, managing employee time and attendance at multiple customer sites can be a daunting task. Administering time records and processing payroll for thousands of employees can get out of hand quickly, particularly when the process isn’t automated. Staffing companies need to accurately administer employee time records, including overtime and paid time off (PTO), to process payroll. Thanks to cloud technology, they now can save time and create efficiencies, streamlining operations and reducing costs.

But not all companies have modernized their back-office systems. Many still use manual time and attendance methods, including punch clocks, Excel spreadsheets, and handwritten paper time cards. Prone to human error, these systems often result in missed time punches, incorrect totals, and even buddy punching – where employees clock in and out for each other. The result: lost time and lost revenue.

Protocall Staffing Makes the Switch, Cuts Employee Time and Attendance Management by 60 Percent

The cloud has made managing employee time and attendance much easier, as all information is updated in real time. It enables managers to review and process employee time records through the Web. For companies like The Protocall Group in Cherry Hill, N.J., one of the largest staffing companies in Philadelphia and South Jersey, the cloud has reduced errors and saved time for employees working at four client companies, including two industrial bakeries, a custom printer and a food service company.

“At some customer locations, employees were using old-school punch clocks with paper time cards. There was the potential for missed punches and incorrect totals,” said Trevor Knauss, Protocall Staffing payroll/billing coordinator.  “We were spending as much as five hours a week on payroll processing, and that doesn’t include the work that was done before the time and attendance records got to us. Now it takes just an hour or two a week, a 60 percent reduction.”

With 24/7 access, staffing companies can view and process employee time records anytime, anywhere with an Internet connection. Managers can easily review employee punch data and make any adjustments in real time.

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Are You Compliant?

Compliance with labor laws is only growing more complex, and the cloud makes it easier for companies to keep up.  Having a cloud-based time and attendance system helps companies comply with the latest wage and hour regulations, as well as the Affordable Care Act.

For companies with differently classified workers, and those with full-time and part-time teams, the cloud makes it easy to manage various types of workers. Administrators can easily see employees approaching overtime, view scheduled versus actual hours, and better report on labor distribution across departments and employee pay rates.

As staffing companies manage more employees and consequently more administrative data, the cloud offers significant advantages in successfully managing employee time records and payroll.  Leaning on the cloud to streamline efficiencies is a smart move staffing companies should embrace.

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Lance Whipple

Lance Whipple
Lance Whipple is VP at Lathem, an Atlanta-based provider of durable and affordable timekeeping products. He can be reached at lwhipple (at) lathem (dot) com.

Lance Whipple

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