Time recording is widely used in companies, but raises a number of issues. For example, it is not uncommon to find manual or paper entries by team leaders, re-entries of data by operators, multiple entries of the same information in different software programs, data entry errors… These problems can have many causes, and we’re going to present some solutions in this article.
In addition, this monitoring tool is extremely useful within a company. It enables you to measure performance and identify the remaining budgets to be spent on a business or project, by calculating their profitability.
Not to mention the fact that this indicator is used in numerous software applications, such as HRIS, payroll, ERP and project management software, which are not necessarily connected to each other…
What is time recording?
Definition of time recording and difference with badgeage
Whether computerized or not, time recording is often seen by employees as a tool for controlling their time at work. In the same way that employees are asked to sign in and out, they may think that they are being tracked. But time tracking has nothing to do with badging!
- Badging is the precise counting of the number of hours or even minutes spent on site or at a workstation. Its main purpose is to check the number of hours worked by an employee, and to calculate overtime. It’s a daily HR measurement.
- Time recording is an operational and financial measuring device, at the upper level, such as the quarter-day, half-day or day. Its purpose is to monitor the evolution of the budget allocated to a business, project or activity, and thus to calculate its margin. Times can be entered on a daily, weekly or monthly basis, depending on the company’s context.
Time tracking is therefore a declarative input to ensure that schedules are respected and that business is profitable.
Time management starts with change management and a history of posture
This is an important point, as time sheets can be disapproved of by employees. Time tracking is a business tool (operational and financial), not an HR tool. If an employee takes 15 coffee breaks a day, this is a major HR issue, but not one to be dealt with in the context of time recording.
So don’t hesitate to set up various devices to remind teams of the objectives of time recording:
- Operational meeting reminders
- Reminders for local managers and team leaders
- Displaying best practices and their objectives
- Presentation during integration / onboarding of new employees.
Bonus tip
Do you sense a problem with time recording in your company? Start by asking your employees how they perceive it. Then send them an anonymous questionnaire that will give you a clearer picture.
The various problems of time recording or the Excel timesheet nightmare
Consequences:
- Time-consuming and painful data entry for teams.
- Time-consuming re-entries of information in various software programs, ERP, HRIS, etc., requiring many clicks and copy-and-paste operations.
- A lot of reminders and communications to the various teams to get them to clock in (and this takes time).
- Data entry errors.
- Too many data entry errors requiring a lot of corrections.
- This leads to inaccurate or even false performance indicators, and consequently to difficulties in making decisions.
Tool-related causes :
- Time entry functions that are neither ergonomic nor pleasant to use, making teams reluctant to use them or leading to errors.
- Use of unintuitive, complex Excel timesheets filled with rules that facilitate the work of support functions but make it difficult for operational staff.
- Problems withnon-performing or even obsolete equipment, such as having to connect. to the company network via a poorly performing VPN , or not being able to clock in and out on a smartphone. This makes data entry very unpleasant.
- Because ERP and HRIS software lacks customization, companies are forced to do as the software says, without taking into account the company’s know-how. The latter is obliged to complete the process with Excel spreadsheets, which add a further layer of complexity to the process.
- Impossibility of exporting data from the data entry software to perform your own company-specific analyses
Organizational causes
- Lack of communication, standardization and control of clocking rules
- See time tracking as a tool for evaluating individual productivity, and tend to underestimate one activity in favor of another for personal, not pragmatic reasons.
- Lack of typing rhythm and forgetting to clock in and out. It’s like training: if it’s done repeatedly, it’s more beneficial than if it’s done once in a while. Not to mention the fact that it can be difficult to remember what you’ve done several weeks before the check-in.
The benefits of using modern, high-performance time recording tools
Ergonomics and access simplify data entry
The data entry form is quickly accessible on any tool, and is high-performance. This reassures your teams of the speed and simplicity of data entry.
Interconnection with other software
By connecting the relevant ERP, HRIS, CRM and payroll software, a company can avoid numerous re-entries and data entry errors.
Process 100% customized
Your company has specific features that the data entry functions must take into account: fixed rates, overtime, night shifts, rest periods, maximum working hours, absences, interventions, etc.
Employee automation
Data entry follow-up solutions include automation features. For example, the automatic display of ERP or HRIS business data in parallel with data entry. Or the pre-filling of certain fields based on other data.
Automation on the manager’s side
All rules, calculations, reminders, reports, forecasts and controls can be automated, and “human” validation circuits can be added to respect know-how. Data can be transferred effortlessly from one software package to another. Teams are freed from repetitive tasks.
Software configurable without a single line of code (no-code)
Modern software can generally be configured 100% without writing a single line of code (no-code). You can design your own tool and make it available to teams without IS expertise.
Find out more in our article on process automation
Depending on the company, many other advantages and new uses may be possible with less effort. For example:
- Automated activity planning
- Real-time visibility of performance indicators
- Allocating resources through realization
- Sizing the time required for new projects or activities
- Calculating variables and overtime
- Automated profitability calculations, iterations and landing of allocated budgets.
- In-depth analysis and reporting to management
100% personalized time recording, connected to all your software with the Lapala solution
In this example, we’ve defined a certain sequence of steps. It’s important to remember that everything on the Lapala platform is 100% customizable: the form of the data entry forms, the various additional “administrative” tasks, the automations, the software to be connected.
- Each box represents a stage, assigned to a player (Initiator, Manager, Director, Assistant, HR Manager). When the time comes, each player receives information and a form for entering further information.
- Some tasks are automated, such as alerts, updating ERP, HRIS or business software, compilation and calculations...
- Conditions may be set to activate other stages, depending on the case
Description of the time tracking process
Step 1 – Start time entry: This step enables employees to start the time entry process.
It can also be pushed automatically to teams according to the desired recurrence.
Depending on your expertise, you can decide:
– to communicate data entry rules,
– to display relevant data and analyses from other software (ERP, HRIS, business software), enabling employees to complete their entries easily.
Step 2 – Time entry: This step enables employees to enter their time.
There are several ways to do this:
– either directly on Lapala via a form
– or via your own time entry software or existing Excel spreadsheet.
Lapala will then extract all the data for the rest of the process.
Stage 3 – Consolidation and calculation: This stage automatically processes and transforms data so that it can be used by administrative teams.
It also enables you to apply business-related rules and perform automatic checks.
Step 4 – Human control of time recording: Not everything can be automated! This step provides an additional human check by managers before continuing the process. It helps identify possible errors.
A set of simultaneous tasks :
Step 5a – Automatic ERP update : This step enables data to be automatically entered into business software without any human intervention. This reduces processing times, multiple entries and errors.
Step 5b – Automatically update HRIS: Same as previous task.
Step 5c – Inform on the consumption of budgets allocated to an activity or project. This automated step informs each activity or project manager by e-mail of the level of consumption for each item.
Step 6 – Alert: If there is a potential overrun on a job, the Lapala platform automatically alerts the person in charge.
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Now you know all about time recordingI. Now it’s your turn! See you soon for more content!
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