Stand out from the crowd with Ceequel®
The Ceequel portfolio created by ELF Productivity consists of a number of modulus. All modules can be full integrated together to form a company wide employee management system. All seven modules are available to be implemented separately.
Overtime more and more organisations have turned to a time and attendance system as a means to monitor their employees. Advancing technology now also means that the systems available come with a greater range of capabilities making them even more appealing to business.
Many businesses are already familiar with the term time and attendance. Most employees have either used a time and attendance system in the past or understand the concept of one. After all recording employee clocking data for time and attendance purposes isn’t anything new. Businesses have been using these types of systems to monitor employees since the twentieth century. Employees previously used card based systems that required them to manually write down all clocking occasions. The problem with using a card based system is that the data collected wasn’t always correct. Employees couldn’t always remember the exact time they clocked and some would often manipulate their times, if they had perhaps taken a longer lunch or arrived late. Employees in organisations that paid overtime would often award themselves extra hours on top of their contracted. Paper based cards were not only inaccurate but played havoc with organisational payroll as employees were often over paid costing businesses thousands and in some cases millions per annum.
As technology advanced so did the type of systems organisations began using for their time and attendance needs. New modern day systems accurately track and record all employee clocking data drastically simplifying the time and attendance process. There are now a number of different types of clock software available to business all with different capabilities.
Proximity software allow employees to register clocking’s by using either a fob or a proximity card. An employee simply needs to hold up their given card to the time and attendance system which will then instantly identify them and clock them in/out. A back up method of clocking can also be configured in case the first means fails or for when an employee has forgotten their proximity card/fob.
Biometric clock software are available with fingerprint and facial recognition capabilities. Employees are required to enrol their fingerprint or face onto the main clocking station. This information is then passed through to all other clocks (subject to permissions) within an organisation meaning employees can clock from anywhere within the building or even at other geographical locations for multi-site companies.
Time and attendance solutions have drastically changed over the years thanks to the help of modern day technology. Paper based card systems are now rendered useless as companies choose to adopt electronic clocking systems. These modern systems come with many added benefits.
Time and attendance systems have been around for many years. Employees were once expected to clock in using paper based time sheets or with a punch to clock system. With the use of modern day technology employees are now able to clock using much easier methods. Almost all modern day systems record data in real time onto a web based time and attendance solution, making it easier for businesses to accurately track each individual employee.
Keeping track of employee time and attendance data is imperative to the survival of any company. Time and attendance systems allow mangers to easily know exactly how many holidays each employee has taken. They also track all employee absences providing mangers with the means to identify any absences patterns at the earliest of stages.
A web based time and attendance system records accurate employee data in real time. This data can then be accessed on any device anywhere using an internet connection. Data is collected using a networked data capture terminal with either biometric or proximity technologies. This means employees are able to clock using a proximity fob/card or by finger or even facial recognition.
Different specifications can be setup within the system to incorporate flexitime, shifts, attendance requirements and public holidays or any other requirements specific to your business needs. Employees can access their individual attendance data by logging onto employee self service. From there they can see how many holidays they have left, request any future time they would like off and employees who work shifts are able to check and request shift changes.
The main benefit of having a web based system over any other time and attendance solution is that it always remains accurate. As all records are stored online employees can be provided with permissions, to gain access to their time and attendance data, providing transparency to the employee, ensuring any queries are dealt with in a timely fashion. Having an automated online system also saves Human Resource and Payroll department’s time. They no longer need to spend hours working out attendance rates and pay premiums as the process is now automated. Web based attendance systems also make it easier for mangers to plan rotas as shift patterns and rosters can be predefined within the system.
A web based time and attendance system can benefit organisations of all sizes. It saves time by simplifying your payroll processes, allowing human resources to deal with more pressing tasks. An automated system can also save your organisation money, as not only does it make the calculation of wages a simple process thus saving valuable resource but all the data collected is accurate, meaning every employee is paid the correct wage at the correct time.
For more information on a web based time and attendance system contact us today!
When it comes to achieving an ideal work-life balance many of us find it hard. This is often because most of us work jobs that are considered to be ‘always on’ meaning we often never really have chance to relax. Checking our emails outside of work time because a common occurrence and taking work home seems like a logical thing to do.
Many employees often struggle to find or maintain the appropriate work-life balance. This isn’t surprising in a world that never stops. With employees now being able to access their emails and work files remotely off multiple devices, from practically anywhere in the world fully switching off when away from the office can be difficult.
After all we’ve all fallen victim to what we believed would be a quick check of our work emails and then found ourselves spending hours responding to ‘urgent’ messages, that realistically could of waited until the next day. Accessing work from outside of the office however is not our only downfall. Many of us often choose to stay late at work or come in early in order to finish off tasks that should have already been completed.
Listed below are four tips to help employees effectively maximise their time which in turn will help them to achieve and maintain a better work-life balance.
Scheduling your time should not only be a key aspect at work but also within your home life. Having no clear organisation when it comes to the completion of tasks means you’re never fully making the most of your time.
Creating a daily schedule of all tasks that need to be completed and prioritising them by importance, is an ideal way to stay on top of what needs to be done and makes sure you don’t forget anything. Estimate and schedule a block of time for each task and try to keep within the allocated time limit. Make sure to make a note on any task that exceeds the time given as this information will help you to correctly schedule any future tasks that are similar.
When it comes to completing work almost all of us strive for perfection. This however is not always probable, especially within a busy working environment when you are inundated with tasks. Employees often waste valuable time redoing the same tasks over and over again until the task reaches what they believe to be perfection. This can often leave employees with too much work to do and not enough time to complete it. Instead of completing all tasks to perfection level employees need to learn to just be happy with submitting work when it’s good enough.
Although making yourself available 24/7 and accepting any task asked of you is a good way to stay in your bosses good books is just not plausible. An excessive workload is one of the main causes of employees getting stressed at work. Stressed employees are less likely to be able to complete work to the best of their ability, meaning the standards of work produced can dramatically fall which in turn doesn’t look good to any manager.
Many people believe that saying no when asked to take on extra work can potentially portray them in a negative light to their line manager. This however is not true. Before accepting any extra work employees should always think clearly about whether they have sufficient time available and just how much strain would the completion of these extra tasks could have on their current workload. If the realisation is that the extra work would leave you submerged then just simply saying NO is the best thing for you. There’s also no need to make up excuses as to why you can’t take on the extra work, simply apologising and explaining to your fellow employees that you’re currently too busy is enough.
We live in a society where almost all jobs are now considered ‘always on’. This means many employees often feel obligated to work outside of their contracted hours. Employees who do this make it impossible for themselves to ever achieve a work-life balance.
Instead of completing tasks at home, employees should note down before they leave the office any outstanding work that needs to be completed. This can then be used as a list of priority tasks that need to be dealt with the next time you are in the office.
Learning to leave work at work and switching completely off from checking and completing work related tasks when at home or on vacation is the easiest way to achieve and maintain a good work-life balance.
Organisations have been using time and attendance systems as a means to track employee clocking data for over 20 years. Old card based systems were slow and unreliable and as technology advanced new cutting edge real time systems took there place. Employees are no longer limited to how they can clock as most systems now come with a range of different options. The introduction of biometric and proximity technology now means that clocking can be completed in a number of seconds.
Time and attendance within a business is not a new concept. Organisations have been using paper cards as a means of clocking employee working hours since the 20th century. The problem with using a paper card system is that it’s extremely unreliable. Paper is easily lost and even if the card remained safe there was never any way of knowing if the times written on the sheet were accurate. This caused major problems for companies when it came to payroll, meaning employees were often over or under paid. An employee who has been under paid is less likely to work to their full potential meaning productivity levels in the work place often drop. Low productivity levels and overpaid staff can lead to organisations losing out on thousands a year.
As times changed and technology advanced so did the type of systems organisations use to track their employees time and attendance data. Electronic automated clocking systems now record accurate employee data in real time. As data no longer needs to be manually imputed human resources departments are able to focus on more pressing tasks.
The main benefit for a company which uses a time and attendance system is that the data being collected always remains accurate. As all employee clock-ins are collected through an electronic system, the chances of fraudulent clocking is significantly reduced. Employee time-thefts are also reduced as clockings can be completed via an IP based clock device, over a browser and even through a mobile device. This allows employees to clock from any location whilst on the go. Notifications can be set up within the system to alert managers when staff clock late or leave early. These alerts inform an employer of attendance issues at the earliest stage.
Companies who implemented punch card systems often became victims of ‘buddy clocking’. Employees would often clock in for their “colleagues” when they were perhaps running late or had opted to take a longer break than allowed. Almost all time and attendance systems available today, come with technology which can make it impossible for an employee to clock as anyone but themselves.
Human resource departments are at the forefront of any business. It manages all employee data and ensures that all information they have remains correct and up to date. The underlying issues surrounding this is that manually checking and manipulating data can be time consuming and extremely costly. Data collation and maintenance rapidly drains the resource available in most HR departments, meaning that information is often neglected or mislaid. Any dynamic software solution should combine both Time & Attendance and HR System within one scalable database.
One database means the eradication of double keying information as data entered is immediately filtered throughout the system.
Most now come equipped with employee self-service (ESS) capabilities which provides employees with an easy-to-use web based interface allowing them to update their own personal data, without needing to contact their HR department. Employees with access to ESS can also view information relating to their shift patterns, holidays – requested, planned or taken, together with full information on their weekly clockings and pay premiums.
Employees are able to request holidays or absences using employee self-serve and any absence requests are forwarded to their line manager for approval. Once a request has been accepted it is automatically imputed into the employee’s calendar, removing any need for the employee to contact HR.
Implementing an automated time and attendance system can also help a business’s stay on the right side of any legislation. Manual systems make it difficult for companies to track things such as overtime and overall hours worked. Both have high legal requirements that if not obeyed can lead to an employee perusing corrective action via an employment tribunal.
Over the years, the number of Time & Attendance systems available to businesses has significantly increased. Advancing technology is often utilised by the companies who manufacturing T&A systems creating a wider choice of cutting edge systems. Each system is designed with its own capabilities and can permit access to employees in a number of different ways.
Biometric access control systems are becoming ever more popular. These technologies offer cutting edge opportunities – look impressive to visitors and because they rely on unique employee features time-theft is completely eradicated.
Fingerprint biometric Time & Attendance units are the most common systems implemented into companies as they now have a 99.9% accuracy rate. As Time & Attendance systems act as one big database, information collected on one terminal, is automatically passed through to all the other terminals within the business. This provides employees the ability to clock at any terminal within the building. Facial recognition software works in exactly the same way. Once enrolled, template information is distributed automatically throughout the company’s device estate.
Most Time & Attendance systems can be integrated with an access control unit. Businesses with an integrated access control and Time & Attendance system, are able to restrict access on a door-by-door basis, making sure that only authorised employees gain access to sensitive areas. Access can also be restricted by date and time allowing companies to lock down their business premises over festive periods, during bank holidays and after working hours.
Proximity access control systems have always required an employee to swipe their access card in order to clock. The processes of swiping a card however can be time consuming. Employees in a busy environment often swipe their cards too quickly for a system to recognise who they are, forcing them to slow down and problems begin as ques start to form into the building especially at busy periods of the day.
As Proximity technology advanced – so did the systems and options available. The invention of contactless technology now means that access control cards and fobs are designed to permit access without the need to swipe. An employee simply needs to hold their card up to the device in order to gain access or register a clocking.
Intercom systems have been the chosen solution for granting visitor access into buildings for a number of years. More often than not, they come with audio capabilities but as costs decrease, more are being installed with both audio and video capabilities.
As companies move towards a combined VIOP infrastructure, external intercom can now be fully integrated with your VIOP telephone system, providing full control of your external access points to any extension on your telephone system.
Automated barriers or turnstiles now provide control to companies of who has access to your perimeter, company carpark, warehouses or any other company land.
Securing the first point of access to your organisation adds an extra level of security when protecting your business. Both barriers and turnstiles can be configured to only allow access to registered employees within your company’s Time & Attendance database. Access can be granted using biometric or proximity technology and time profiles can be set up in order to stop people from accessing the premises outside of working hours or on certain days.
There are a number of different types of barriers available including sliding gates, ground mounted bollards and rising arm barriers. Turnstiles are also available for both internal and external applications and are usually configured with anti-pass-back technology.
For more information on what a time and attendance system is, the benefits it could have on your business and the available access control systems, contact us today!
Constantly hitting production targets is crucial to any company producing products. Having a system in place that records and tracks production numbers at every available stage is key – check out this infographic to discover the impact a shop floor data capture system can have on an organisation.
When it comes to the production of products every company needs to be able to stay on top of their processes. unproductive employees and faulty machinery can prove fatal to any manufacturing organisation. Constantly missing production targets over an extensive period of time can lead to a significant drop in profits which if not corrected can lead to the closure of any organisation. A Shop Floor Data Capture system is designed to help organisations track each stage of their manufacturing process and record accurate data for employers to monitor. The below infographic provides more information on what a shop floor data capture system is and the benefits it can have on organisations who opt to implement one.
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High productivity levels within a business are a key aspect to the survival of any organisation. So it’s surprising to find that on average 12.5 working hours a week are being wasted by UK employees on unproductive tasks. A survey carried out by vouchercodespro found that employees who worked seven and a half hours a day were only using 5 of those hours to complete their given tasks.
According to a recent survey carried out by VoucherCodesPro.co.uk’s, employees spend 12.5 working hours on average each week ‘dilly-dallying’ with tasks that have nothing to do with their current workload. The survey was carried out on full time employees within the UK, who should be working approximately seven and a half hours a day. However only five hours of that time was being spent productively. The other two and a half hours were most commonly being wasted on the same 10 tasks. Can you guess what these are?
Out of the employees surveyed 89% of them admitted to overly checking social media channels such as LinkedIn, Facebook and twitter in work time. This was then closely followed by internet shopping/ paying of bills which 84% of employees admitted to doing.
Of the employees surveyed 58% of them admitted they weren’t scared of the repercussions as they didn’t believe they would get caught. 22% of employees admitted they were careful not to be caught off duties. Surprisingly 20% of people revealed that their boss didn’t actually mind them taking time out from their supposed tasks as long as all work was completed on time.
Amazingly some 39% even admitted to viewing adult websites during working hours.
Do you know what your employees are doing during working hours and do you have a method of recording employee productivity? Why not consider Ceequel® Employee Tracking?
Almost all businesses have employees who work additional hours – check out this infographic to discover the impact these extra working hours can have on your workforce.
Almost all businesses have employees who work additional hours. How these hours are recorded often depends on the organisations polices. Flexi time, overtime, time off in lieu and additional hours all have there advantages and disadvantages. The below infographic details each option and the positive and negative affects these extra working hours can have on your workforce.
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Manual time and attendance processes can be costly to an organisation they are also difficult to handle. Many employees are unreliable with the data they submit which can in turn lead to problems with payroll leaving organisations at risk of paying their employees wrong. Implementing the Ceequel time and attendance system easily records accurate data on how many hours each member of your workforce has completed.
Managing employee time and attendance data is a difficult task for many businesses especially if the process is still manual. Employees often fall behind in the completion of their time sheets and most can never remember the exact time they started and finished work, meaning false data is often entered. This means many organisations risk under or over paying their staff and Issues involving payroll can often lead to a reduction in productivity levels.
An automated time and attendance system easily collects and tracks your employees clocking information. Data is collected and stored in real time allowing mangers to access employee time on the go. Employee absences and holidays can also easily be tracked making sure the appropriate amount of pay is given for each occasion.
Integrating your time and attendance system with payroll can significantly Increase the accuracy of your payroll processes.
According to a survey carried out by the Aberdeen group organisations that had an integrated time and attendance system with payroll, benefited from a 30% lower rate of payroll processing errors. Theses organisation also saw a 32% lower error rate in the tracking of actual employee time worked, and also avoided the 6% year over year increase in manual workforce transactions experienced by organisations that didn’t have an integrated system in place.
Having an integrated payroll system can also save your company time as it eliminates time-consuming processes such as the manual calculating of time-sheets, meaning your human resource department are free to work on more strategic duties such as increasing workforce productivity.
Elf productivity’s Ceequel software suite acts as one fully integrated system allowing you to easily manage your time and attendance data as well as your payroll operations from one platform. Data is transferred between the two modules in real time meaning information is always kept up to date.
For more information on how you can integrate your payroll system with Ceequel time and attendance, contact us today!
For any sized organisation knowing which of your employees is working what shift can be a real headache. A manual system is not only slow but can also be complicated and inaccurate. Implementing a computerised time and attendance system can not only speed up your scheduling process but also take the weight off your shoulders. Ceequel time and attendance has been designed with companies in mind, it’s easy to use and allows you to monitor your entire workforces shifts and patterns from one platform.
Keeping track of your employee’s shift patterns can be a difficult task for any organisation. With manual processes, it’s almost impossible as a business to know exactly who’s working what shift on any given day. Implementing Ceequel Time and Attendance into your business provides you with an easy to use solution that allows you to monitor your entire workforces working schedules and shifts. The system also allows you to set up planned or ad-hoc employee rostering/rotations.
Using rosters within your organisation makes sure that your facility always remains productive. Rosters should always be set up with workforce activity in mind. Choosing the right employees with the relevant skills for each roster is essential to keeping your organisation running smoothly. It is important to always ensure that you have enough staff rostered to work at any one time in case of employee holidays, absences or rest days. When assigning rosters to your staff it is important to check that all contracts are adhered to and the working time directive is followed.
Reports can be set up within the Ceequel system and automatically produced on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. These reports show a detailed view of what shifts an employee has been working and any absences that may have occurred. This makes it easier for employers to spot absences that may be down to fatigue, through employees working long or difficult rosters/rotations. The system then allows you to easily switch employees to alternative working patterns, in order to create a more productive and focused workforce. The Ceequel system also allows mangers to view the most requested shifts, thus identifying the popular and unpopular shifts. This information can then be used to amend current rosters in order to make sure that the correct number of people will always be working at their optimum level.
For more information on how rostering can work for your organisation contact us!