The
unemployment rate reached 10.2% this October, which was
the highest it has been in 26 years. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
also reported that as of June 2009, the average compensation for workers was $29.31per hours worked. With
these kinds of statistics, it’s no wonder more and more small businesses are
having trouble. It is important to keep track of all costs your company
has, and try and save money wherever you can.
Saving
any extra money you can is important for many companies these days, and one way
to do this is to have a time and attendance system. These systems accurately record the time of each
employee. By cutting down on human errors can greatly affect your
company’s bottom line. Experts have reported that 8 minutes per week are wasted on chasing down employees for their time sheets and then
manually processing these time sheets with your payroll services.
Some
time and attendance options are timecard software packages, biometric meters,
web-based computer login stations, touch screens and interactive voice response
(IVR) systems. Time and attendance systems can assist your company
greatly because you are computerizing your employee’s time. Because of
all these different options it is important to choose a system that is the best
fit for your business. Another benefit of time and attendance systems are
they may motivate your employee’s to be on time.
A
great tip to keep in mind on this subject is to do your research on time and
attendance systems before making any purchases. Why would you do background
checks for employees and not a company you are going to spend money on? When
you have decided on what you would like, it will be easier to choose the best
system for your company. Once you have made the decision, remember to
agree in advance on a plan for how the installation process will be installed
(if you even have equipment that will need to be installed).
If
you and your staff need to be educated on the system, make sure you take into
consideration the time it will take to do this. Make sure the company
supplies you with all the information you will need to run the system correctly
and at its most efficient. Whatever time and attendance system you ultimately decide on, just remember it can help your
company’s bottom line. Effectively recording your employee’s time could
be beneficial to you and its worth taking the time to see if this is an option
for your company.
Shannon Suetos is a writer and based in San Diego, California. She writes
extensively for Resource Nation,
an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing
decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs.
