Amid the current explosive wave of digital transformation, the process by which businesses operate is also gradually changing to adapt to the 4.0 technology era. Effectively tracking and managing working time is a difficult problem for many human resource (HR) managers in general and compensation and benefits (C&B) employees in particular. 

The application of support tools and management software, such as time and attendance software, has become an inevitable innovation trend in the operation and management processes of many companies worldwide.

time attendance management

Effective time and attendance management is a challenge for administrators

Before going into the outstanding advantages of employee time tracking software, let's find out the definition of time attendance, the purpose of this activity, popular forms of time attendance, and management trends in the present time.

What is Time And Attendance Tracking?

1. Definition of Employee Time And Attendance

Employee time attendance is a familiar form of declaration of the presence of employees at work, as well as an extremely important task of the human resources department in an enterprise.

Based on the time attendance results, the accounting, administrative, and human resources departments will know the working hours, employee arrival times (check-in), the end time (check-out), departure times, and overtime, the number of working days, and days off of each employee. For some companies offering a work-from-home policy, businesses also need to know the information to manage and time attendance when their employees need to work from home.

In addition, many companies today also base their decisions on the attitude, behavior, and performance of employees to evaluate the employee's working process at a certain period. It is also a criterion in the time and attendance process of enterprises.

time attendance management

Register time and attendance is a way of reporting employee presence

2. Why Do We Have To Mark Employee Attendance?

As mentioned above, monitoring time attendance is very important for both employees and companies. The purpose of employee time and attendance tracking is to monitor and keep a record of the working hours of each employee in the most fair-minded and accurate way.

As a result, HR will have a basis to calculate wages and evaluate an employee's working attitude to decide to reward or punish when that individual does not work seriously, such as being late, leaving early, or avoiding work.

If an enterprise does not mark employee attendance, it is difficult to avoid a situation where employees feel unjust when some of their colleagues lack self-discipline while others are very responsible.

The Most Popular Forms of Time Attendance Today

1. Biometric Fingerprint Attendance System

Electronic time attendance by fingerprint is currently one of the two most used forms of time attendance at most businesses in Vietnam, beside swipe card time and attendance systems. Many offices, companies, manufacturing enterprises, and factories also favor this method of time attendance tracking.

fingerprint system for employee

Fingerprint-based time attentance registration

Fingerprint time attendance uses an electronic time tracking recorder, with the application of fingerprint biometric technology to identify each individual's identity by fingerprints - a unique identity of people that does not change over time. Depending on the regulations of each business, the fingerprint system will be built differently.

The Benefits

  • The cost of the time clock is cheap, and no other costs are incurred during use.
  • The machine is compact and easy to install in buildings and many locations.
  • Convenient and fast with simple action.
  • Simple and convenient attendance.
  • High accuracy and stability.
  • With high flexibility, employees can extract and aggregate data from the machine to calculate their salary.
  • Limit fraud and time tracking.

The Drawbacks

  • The sensor of the timekeeper is difficult to recognize fingerprints in case the finger is dirty, wet, scratched, greasy, or has a complicated shape.

2. Swipe Card Time And Attendance System

Using a magnetic stripe or magstripe card is another popular form of attendance tracking in offices today, replacing employee time and attendance with taking notes back in the previous decades.

A magstripe card time attendance recorder is a clock or machine that uses a touch-sensitive RFID chip card that encrypts and stores the necessary information of each employee, with the right to use a single card.

When checking in or out, an employee uses the card to swipe at the time clock. The time clock system will analyze the numbered card from the data stored in the device’s memory to identify the person who has just taken attendance.

card attendance system

Swipe card or magnetic stripe card

The Benefits

  • The system of the machine synthesizes and stores accurate and complete information on the computer.
  • Time attendance is fast - compact - convenient, saving time for businesses or factories with many employees/employees.
  • The device connected to the computer helps HR promptly check the number of employees present/absent.
  • Easily track and statistics the leave schedule for each employee in the following cases: leave, maternity leave, and unpaid leave.
  • Some dot machines also integrate features of fingerprint time attendance and face recognition.

The Drawbacks

  • Card printing costs are expensive for large businesses.
  • Employees cannot time attendance if the card is forgotten, damaged, or lost.
  • Because time and attendance monitoring is by card, anyone can easily use it and time it for them, leading to fraud.

3. Facial Recognition Attendance System

Face recognition is a time attendance method that applies biometric technology to identify and verify characteristics from each individual's facial data already stored in the machine's system. It is the most modern form of time attendance today, with high security to help managers easily track employees' working time in the company.

This form of time tracking’s operation is also relatively similar to its fingerprint-based counterparts, except that the employees will stand facing the time clock terminal so that the device can identify and accurately mark time and attendance.

facial recognition attendance systems

Facial recognition attendance tracking method

The Benefits

  • High security and accuracy, avoiding fraud in time tracking
  • Overcoming the limitations of other forms of time attendance, such as forgetting cards, blurred fingerprints, and more.
  • There are no additional operating costs.
  • Synthesize, manage and process data easily because it is synchronously connected to computers and other electronic devices.

The Drawbacks

  • Initial investment costs are expensive.
  • Lack of flexibility due to market staff, sales staff not able to register time and attendance.
  • Processing speed is slower than other forms of time tracking solutions.

4. Using Online Time Attendance Software

Online time attendance software can be understood as a software system on a computer or an application on mobile devices (smartphones or tablets) that helps administrators manage employee working schedules. At the same time, employees can also use the software as an online time tracking tool to apply for leave days and track their timesheets daily.

Using time tracking software is a new trend that has appeared in recent years and is becoming increasingly popular for businesses because it offers many outstanding advantages compared to other traditional time tracking methods.

How to use software to optimize employee attendance management?

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time attendance management software

Online time attendance software

The Benefits

  • Strictly record the activities of personnel: time in/out, number of days off, late arrival, early departure, etc.
  • Manage schedules and shifts of seasonal employees.
  • Ensure employee attendance data is always transparent and clear.
  • Time attendance information can be monitored and accessed remotely.
  • Provide accurate reports and analysis of public data.
  • Support the process of preparing payroll and timesheets.
  • Optimize employee management time.
  • With the decentralization feature, the software allows users to share and interact, from the management level to employees.

The Drawbacks

  • Users are required to have an Internet connection for attendance monitoring and updating information.
  • Potentially many security risks and data loss.
  • There may be problems such as technical problems, system errors, or employees forgetting account information, causing the employee time and attendance process to be interrupted.
  • Employees can often cheat on marking attendance when they do not check in or check out at the right workplace.
  • High usage costs, including maintenance and software updates.

Modern Trends: Cloud-Based Time Attendance Software

Currently, the method of time tracking based on cloud computing technology is no longer strange to business managers. Online software for employee attendance is highly effective and a superior solution to help solve all the limitations that conventional methods face.

Here are three outstanding advantages that time management software can give you:

Versatile For Check In And Check Out

Online software is an employee time tracking app suitable for frequently moving jobs such as promoters (PG/PB), store supervisors (auditors), and field service workers (field service employees), among many other professions.

Using the old methods, businesses were required to install time-attendance devices in every store or location where employees went. However, when using time attendance software, users only need to download the application to their mobile devices to be able to mark anywhere.

employee time attendance management

The application of software helps employee time tracking easily and flexibly 

Easily Monitor Days Off And Overtime Working

Timekeeping software allows employees to track their working hours and days off proactively without requiring data retrieval from another department.

Not only that, but users can also easily register vacation days or update overtime hours on the system. If there is an error in recording time and attendance from the system, they can also request compensation from the HR department. The software is also a tool to support automatic salary calculation, reducing the amount of work for the accounting department and saving the time of information synthesis for all levels of management greatly.

Track Employee Performance

In addition to optimizing management time, using time and attendance software helps leaders intuitively view the employee time and attendance situation and evaluate employee performance. From there, the leadership will have a timely plan for problems in management. Or they can also rely on time and attendance results to calculate bonuses/commissions when employees complete work and strictly adhere to working hours.

incentive management

Support the process of evaluating employee performance

FieldCheck Time Tracking Software

FieldCheck is a modern mobile time attendance application chosen by many businesses, allowing employees and managers to access it anytime, anywhere, using their mobile phones.

Through that, employees can actively give quick feedback on errors in time tracking. Managers can also easily capture information and provide timely solutions.

The FieldCheck application is a stand-alone tool that helps businesses streamline the effective day management process. The application can operate in parallel without affecting the enterprise's existing systems, such as IAP, DMS, and CRM.

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Even if you go on a business trip or move to different locations, the employee attendance monitoring will not be interrupted. The application is integrated with the user locator feature. All information about employees is monitored and strictly managed regarding location, time, and activities. Thus, effectively combating fraud on working days.

FieldCheck software, with a user-friendly design, is easy to use and suitable for even those who are not tech-savvy. This app promises to be the first choice for your business.

time attendance management software FieldCheck

FieldCheck app

Conclusion

Human resource management has never been a simple job, especially when the number of employees is overloaded. Manual systems for human resource management are no longer effective for companies with more than 50 workers or manufacturing businesses. The forms of time attendance by fingerprint, magstripe card, or face recognition have limitations for some jobs that have to move constantly.

Therefore, mobile time attendance software is an effective solution and support tool to help businesses proactively plan and manage employees better.

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