Time Clock Integrations For Workforce Management Software

Your workforce management software can accomplish a lot for your customers. To ensure they extract maximum value from a comprehensive package like workforce management, you need to guide them through their employee time clock selection process. There’s no room to wing it here or let them settle on whatever time clock is cheapest (that’s a false economy!). 

If the company chooses the wrong time clock, it’s your reputation that suffers because a deficient time clock cuts them off from the kinds of functionality and data collection options needed to make the most of your offering.

Help your customers by advising them on how to select the best time clock for your workforce management software by asking them these questions:

Is time theft, or “buddy punching” a major concern?

Nothing eliminates the opportunity for employees to punch in or out for other employees than biometric scans. Even if a customer isn’t certain they want to use biometric punches right now, it may be important to select a terminal that is compatible with the proximity fobs or swipe cards they customer users.

How close to real-time do they want their data integrations to work?

Narrow applications that only need to collect dates and times of hours worked may be able to get away with a few data transfers a day. The right time clock has the processing power and ability to send and receive data in near-real-time.

Are they looking to use real-time monitoring to improve schedule adherence and legal compliance?

Having a time clock that can handle pushing out notifications to managers, even before a data sync, is critical to empowering managers to manage their teams on the fly. Some time clocks can be configured to prevent or send an alert when an employee attempts to punch in or out off-schedule. If a customer wants to reduce managerial time on such issues, a time clock with a large, rich display touchscreen can deliver a message telling the employee they can’t punch-in. It could also request an attestation, such as attesting that they’re returning early from lunch of their own volition.

Do they have concerns about interruptions in connectivity?

A time clock can lose connection to the network for a number of reasons. The right terminal can continue to collect data during an interruption so the impact on the back-end system is minimal – just a delay in syncing the time clock data. Yet it protects the integrity of the data by not creating a gap in data collection that has to be backfilled with manual updates. If there’s a power outage, a terminal with a backup battery can operate for hours.

What sort of work environments will need the time clocks?

The typical terminal will function fine in less demanding office settings. For warehouses, construction sites or other more challenging environments, make sure your customer is looking at a ruggedized time clock. A ruggedized terminal has an extra-durable casing that protects the internal workings of the clock from dust, dirt and other elements. Other, more specialized time clocks also provide protection against extreme temperatures such as cold weather or moisture.

You need your customers to select the right time clock to interface with your workforce management software if you want them to optimize their use of it. Since it makes sense to guide your prospects and customers through the time clock selection process, why not add value to your business model by offering them time clocks directly? This way, you can be sure the wrong time clock selection won’t undermine your relationship with your customers.