An automated employee timesheet app is the future of attendance tracking. It deals with just about every problem that stems from a manual process.
Manual time tracking using timesheet templates often results in an array of issues. It is incredibly cumbersome for the HR department, prone to human errors, and leads to a chaotic payroll distribution. But perhaps the most unfortunate part about manual timesheet cards is the fact that most workers across the U.S. are guilty of time theft–either by punching in late/early or taking advantage of buddy punching.
The biggest issues with traditional timesheet processes
The introduction of an employee timesheet management system or an application is long overdue for many businesses.
- According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), absenteeism is a huge issue for businesses across the U.S. A report suggests that three percent of the workforce are absent on any given day. The problem gets aggravated by inefficient time tracking.
- Absenteeism and time theft contribute to massive financial loss. Absences cost companies anywhere between 20.9 and 22.1 percent of the payroll. Time theft is another serious issue that costs companies millions of dollars every year.
- As if that is not enough, the daunting task of handling employee timesheet on paper and spending a huge chunk of their time to process and document the data is counterproductive for HR personnel. This often leads to mistakes and a massive waste of resources.
- In a corporate world that’s constantly moving towards sustainability, traditional paper-based timesheet processing doesn’t really make the cut.
Why employee timesheet apps are not created equal
While an employee timesheet application can make all of the difference in the world for a business, not all of these solutions aren’t created equal. Certain employee timesheet apps are characterized by a much higher level of user-friendliness, personalization, and potential for integration with other corporate solutions.
Most attendance tracking software is created for the purpose of timesheet processing. It has only a few functions that don’t offer much flexibility for specialized businesses or companies. These solutions are neither easily integrated with other relevant platforms nor can they handle data loads once the process scales.
Selecting a good timesheet app should be based on a few business-specific essentials:
1. Vendor reputation
The reputation of the vendor and the customer reviews about their employee timesheet app should be your number one priority. Reading up on user testimonials about a vendor or their product is an authentic way to see through the market hype.
2. User-friendliness
A software, regardless of which domain, should always be easy to use and tailored to the technical skills of its target audience. An HR application with a simple drag-and-drop interface, for example, is an ideal solution for HR personnel who are not technically savvy and who want to get used to such apps fast.
3. Customer support
Even an employee timesheet app that is down to its brass tacks might encounter technical snags that are outside of anyone’s control. Quick tech support from the software vendor for such unforeseen circumstances is an extremely crucial advantage.
4. Automation
Even if your employee timesheet tracking app looks great, has fantastic support, and comes at a great price, you can still hit the usual roadblocks if it’s not equipped with automation’s intelligence. Automation is a boon for tedious processes like timesheet tracking. You can define workflow paths, create pre-populated fields, customize forms, and do a lot more to lessen the manual burden that usually slows down activities in HR and other departments.
5. Log details
The progress for any business is all about making decisions based on measurable data. Cloud-based HR automation tools offer good insights into process reports and their performance metrics so that departments can take quantitative decisions on each and every single employee without a lot of confusion.
Features to look for in an employee timesheet app
An ideal employee timesheet application can work seamlessly with other HR software, payroll solutions, accounting tools, and more. In addition to offering a simple, user-friendly experience, timesheet solutions need a few specific features in order to deliver better results while minimizing compliance risks.
Every employee timesheet application must have
- Online employee timesheets
- Dynamic HR workflows
- Multi-channel accessibility
- Role-based dashboards
- API and biometric integration
- Self-service capabilities and
- Visual-rich reporting functionalities
The top 5 employee timesheet apps in the industry
Timesheet management applications can be categorized in a number of ways from free and basic suites to expensive and accurate programs. There are plenty of time-tracking apps in the market making it hard to select the right tool. In order to ease the process, we have come up with a list of top employee timesheet apps in the market.
1. TimeCamp
It is a standalone time tracking app that tracks billable hours, automates invoicing, and generates custom reports. Its key features include timesheet notes, graphical time trackers, inbuilt timer and away time detection.
2. Kissflow HR Cloud
Kissflow HR Cloud is a customizable HR tool that helps businesses manage every facet of their human resource operations from recruitment to time tracking and offboarding. It enables users to manage their people, documents, projects, and clients, all from a single interface.
3. ClickTime
ClickTime is a web-based project management tool that is quite popular among remote teams. It helps employees in different time zones, allowing organizations to bring order to their goals and tasks.
4. Timely
It is a fully automated time-tracking system that collects information on all working hours and stores them all in a secure private timeline. It integrates seamlessly with an array of project and task management tool to monitor all work-related activities.
5. Toggl
Toggl is a user-friendly time tracking app tool that offers a comprehensive overview of time spent. This tool supports both online and offline. It allows organizations to track employee time and retrieve all essential information in the form of visual-rich reports.
Opt for the right time-tracking software
A cloud-based app is the future of timesheet management process. It offers a lot of versatility in terms of tracking, automation, and measurement. When it comes to cost, businesses will have to pay solely for what they are using and the app can be scaled as per the growing needs of your company.
An automated employee timesheet app must also have good interface flexibility and feature customization. You can either go for a standalone timesheet app or opt for automated HR suites like Kissflow HR Cloud that has a pre-built timesheet tracking module that you can use to your company’s advantage.
Kissflow HR Cloud offers the easiest way for organizations to plan, organize, and track their human capital. This HR solution is loaded with collaboration, time-tracking, and workforce management features that will take your HR processes to the next level.
With Kissflow HR Cloud, you don’t have to start designing your timesheets from scratch, just make a few tweaks to fit your timesheet approval process and you are ready to go.
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