10 Reasons to Switch to an Updated Timekeeping System

If you’re running a business, one of your top priorities is to minimize your overhead expenses as much as possible. However, if you’re cutting corners on your payroll and time tracking costs,  you could be inadvertently exposing your company to common occurrences like employee time theft, buddy punching, and human error, which add up over time.

Here are 10 reasons why switching to an updated timekeeping system makes sense for your business:

1. Deters time theft

Self-reported timesheets or outdated time card systems are vulnerable to time theft. For instance, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employees “buddy punching” for other employees is estimated to cost employers $373 million annually. An automated timekeeping system is your best defense against padded timesheets and inaccuracies.

2. Streamlines operations

Streamlining employee data to one electronic system of record frees up room in the office and makes records globally accessible. Additionally, an automated time tracking system provides many clock-in methods to your employees so they can punch in no matter where they are, and you always get accurate to-the-second timesheets.

3. Reduces payroll costs

The payroll process is fraught with hidden costs. From overpaying employees who exaggerate arrival/departure times to DIY time card calculations going askew, there’s a wide margin for human error and time theft. An updated timekeeping system keeps costs accurate and controlled.

4. Shaves off hours of the payroll process

Collecting and entering employee time manually is a labor-intensive process for your payroll department. Upgrading to an automated timekeeping system can help your payroll staff operate more efficiently, as time entries are already computed, and calculations are automatic.

5. Eliminates opportunities for data corruption

Timesheets can be lost or misfiled, and computer-based programs can become corrupted. A cloud-based electronic timekeeping system securely hosts your records on the cloud, keeping them safe and easily accessible. Any time data is changed, it’s recorded in what’s known as an “audit trail” so you can trace changes.

6. Keeps you in compliance

Digitizing your systems and keeping important records on the cloud means they are readily available, should you be called upon to produce them. According to federal law, employers are required to retain specific records containing timekeeping data, and payroll information.

7. Tracks costs

An automated time and attendance system can track and allocate your employees’ worked time by departments, jobs, tasks, etc. If you’re in the construction or service industry, you can view your totals at a glance and bill clients based on the hours worked per task, job site, etc.

8. Provides mobile solutions

Many industries send their employees on the road or have telecommuting arrangements with remote employees. Workers who aren’t in an office can use mobile time tracking software to clock in from their smartphone or computer. Not every timekeeping system provides these options, but many do.

9. Tracks PTO

If you want to put overtime, double-time, PTO, holiday pay, and sick pay on auto-calculate, customizable time and attendance software allows you to create policies that spring into effect and calculate (and dispense) hours according to your rules. This reduces the time it takes to calculate timecards and allocates employees paid time off.

10. Protects against lawsuits

Not paying your employees for all the time they’ve worked is a fast way to become embroiled in an FLSA lawsuit. Automated time and attendance software create digital timesheets as your employees’ clock in and out during the pay period. At the end of the pay period, you can have employees review their hours and digitally sign off on them to approve. This means protection from lawsuits in the future.

Digitizing your timekeeping systems is worth its weight in gold when it comes to reducing your payroll costs, eliminating time theft, making your payroll operations more efficient, and protecting yourself from wage and hour lawsuits. Some software applications also integrate payroll capabilities (like Fingercheck), making the process even faster.