How was Time and Attendance Data Collected?
In years gone by (I say this diplomatically because more companies than we realize still use these systems) a company would collect time and attendance information using a simple time record book. In work places with more employees the time book would be replaced by a mechanical punch clock. This punch clock either physically punched holes in time cards, or simply printed onto the time card. When it came time to tally the time and attendance information the time record books or the punch cards were collected by the pay office and the weekly payroll tallied up from these. The tallying would either be done into a ledger, or perhaps into a spreadsheet, and sometimes directly into payroll software.
Old Time Clock System
A Host of Problems with Manual Time Clock Systems
The key problems with a manual time and attendance tracking system is in both the data collection and the data processing. The data collection is dependent largely on the honesty of the employees. In the case of the time record book you would rely on them recording the correct start and end times. In the case of the punch clock you would rely on employees not punching in and out for each other (so called ‘buddy punching’).
When it came time to process the information the office administrator or payroll staff would expend up to 5 minutes per employee doing data entry of their attendance information. Then someone else would probably have to sit down and examine the reports and calculate pay amounts and over time manually. While calculating overtime may seem to be simple, it becomes much more complex when shift allowances, and daily and weekly overtime are thrown into the mix.
So Why Use Time Clock Software?
Computers have become cheaper and cheaper, and in many cases businesses have unused PC’s that could do useful work just sitting around gathering dust. These machines are more than able to do useful work, and a company looking for a time and attendance software package can easily make use of these older computers. Time Clock MTS will run on most older machines and gives the small or medium sized business a time and attendance system that is far superior to the manual systems described above. It allows data collection at one or many points throughout a company, but the information is automatically stored in one single point. The data can processed quickly and easily and reports generated that automatically use your payroll and overtime rules. Finally, the software allows for security features that eliminate the data collection weaknesses of the old systems. People cannot modify their punch data and buddy punching is virtually eliminated.
If you’re using a fingerprint scanner with Time Clock MTS employees will use this screen to verify their fingerprint.
At the Price Why Wouldn’t you use Time Clock MTS?
With a total buy in cost of just $99 (US) and using an older PC you probably already have lying around you’d have to have a good reason to NOT use Time Clock MTS instead of your old manual system. We can assure you that even if you have just 5 employees that your $99 (US) will be returned to you in the form of productivity increased in your payroll processing in JUST ONE MONTH. Add to this how easy Time Clock MTS is to use and setup and the last reason for not using Time Clock MTS is removed. Try it today, there’s a free 30 day trial available and all your data from your trial can still be used when you decide to purchase the software.