Since time tracking started to be obligatory for everyone around the European Union, more and more companies decide to use time tracking software to help them deal with data. But there are many myths around absence and attendance management tools that should be clarified.
According to the European Union Directive, it is obligatory to collect data about employees working time. New rules caused old, traditional solutions for time tracking insufficient – especially in the case of big companies. That is why many companies decide to change their old method to the new, electronic one to speed up the processes and make it easy to collect the documentation. On the other hand, in the USA more than 70% of lawyers count all of their working hours.
There are many myths about absence and attendance management that are worth explained. Time tracking solutions - clock in and out tool seem to help the HR department and save the time needed to create periodics reports, so it is good to understand why they are a good choice.
Online HR management tools are not something new, but even in 2019, their usage was not that big. As WorkPuls says, 38% of enterprises in the US still use traditional, paper worksheets.
According to the data collected by Finances Online, there are many negative consequences of using paper documentation. Data says that 33% of employees start and end their shifts earlier or later than they should. But these are not the only consequences. Because of various kinds of mistakes, abuses, and losing time, traditional documentation may cause loss to the companies, that could be easily avoided by using electronic solutions.
As Industry Search's research shows, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, use of time tracking software increased. That is why debunking the myths around those programs is essential for efficient and optimized company management.
Although the world is improving and new technologies and electronic solutions are more frequently chosen over traditional documentation, many entrepreneurs and employees still have many doubts which are stopping them from using modern solutions. The most popular myths about HR management software are:
Cooperation with software vendors needs entrepreneurs' trust. If the tool will stop working or there will be an unpredicted error, it is sometimes hard to fix it without the help of time tracking software specialists. When reaching a support team, it is normal that people have to wait for a bit.
Knowing that you are not the only client who needs help creates the stress that the problem will not be solved on time and loses because of its indisposition can be huge and hard to catch up.
Usually, employees are also afraid of communication problems between them and software vendors – rude, hard in communication workers discourage asking questions and interacting with them, which can affect the company smoothness.
In reality, HR specialists like to cooperate with software vendors. As Key Interval Research, The Ideal Vendor Relationship says, 87% of asked HR employees are satisfied with their relationship with people responsible for time tracking tools they use.
It is worth taking care of good relations with time tracking software vendors because they result in good communication in the future and quicker solving the problems that may happen. Many vendors are aware of the role played by good communication with clients, that is why they invest in many tools like interactive chats to serve people the best way possible.
There is a belief among HR specialists that only someone from IT can be able to use the HR management software. This opinion comes from the anxiety of lack of specialistic informatic knowledge that seems to be obligatory to use this kind of tool.
In reality, HR software is made for the usual user – those, who do not know much about IT and programming. Time tracking tools are made by UI/UX specialists who take care that their software is intuitive and easy to use even for those who are not feeling confident with new technologies.
Most HR software is enriched with tutorials – which shows, step by step, how to use the program and if anyone has any problems, they can easily contact the support team to ask any question then might have.
Time tracking software vendors also provide a possibility to assign with the initial preparation of the software for use and also allow various forms of contact with customer support which can be contacted in case of any problems. Thanks to this, even in a situation when one cannot do something, they can get help from a specialist in a short time.
It may look like it, but modern HR Tech solutions are not that expensive. most of them are based on the cloud – which means that the data are stored on the web – and they can be paid monthly as a subscription. HR Management software developers offer many options of subscriptions that depend on the number of employees (as Calamari does) thanks to which it is easy to choose the best option for both small and big companies.
Some entrepreneurs are afraid of costs associated with conducting training about using the tool, but those expenses should be viewed in the long term – employees who once get to know the software will be able to use it freely for all the time. HR management software will help them save time and increase efficiency. So looking from a broader perspective, the HR tool will pay for itself very quickly.
It may seem so at first glance. Time tracking software does not seem to change much when viewed in a cursory manner. However, if one takes a closer look, they can see how many changes its introduction to the organization entails:
As you can see, time tracking software improves many processes related to information transfer, and thus on the efficient functioning of the entire company.
Employees' personal data and information related to their work are extremely important and sensitive, therefore ensuring their safety is a priority. Storing such information in the cloud may seem less secure, but the reality is that HR software vendors put their protection first.
There is no 100% secure solution. One small mistake can cause the leak of the data, whether it is stored in the cloud or on an external memory disc. A hacker who wants access to data will sooner or later be able to get it, regardless of the source.
As the report "The World in Data Breaches" published by Varonis shows, as a result of security breaches and cybercrimes, more than 9.7 billion data have been stolen worldwide since 2013. 64% of them leaked from the US. Every day, 7 million data is exposed to theft - that's 56 data per second! According to calculations, the number of stolen data in a selected country can exceed its population several times!
Time tracking software sends encrypted and well-secured data to servers, thanks to which they reduce the possibility of their leaking and theft to a minimum. However, to be as safe as possible, it is good to train employees on security in IT to learn the most common reasons for data leakage and how to prevent them.
Even though we like to hear about new technologies, natural human instinct makes people skeptical about changes. The human brain likes what it knows and does not want to change the things it knows. Therefore, it may seem difficult for employees to switch from the familiar time tracking method to a new one. However, there is nothing to worry about.
Thanks to the previously mentioned properly designed UI/UX programs, they are adapted to the needs of an ordinary user. They are extremely intuitive and easy to learn how they work. Absence and attendance management software presented as a good alternative to the old methods can be attractive for subordinates when they know that it can improve the information flow about leave requests. It is even possible that they will be excited to try it!
It might seem that not having to go to the HR specialists room will hurt relationships between employees. But it turns out the opposite. Absence and attendance management tools help maintain good relations between people because they eliminate possible misunderstandings and errors such as lost time-off requests or poorly calculated day-off limits.
Using the HR management tool getting answers for requests is much quicker and employees can always check how many days they still have left to use. People like to have access to their results, they feel like they have control and it is easier for them to become more efficient.
At the same time, HR specialists can have the access to all the information necessary to create periodic reports, and in case of any misunderstandings, it is easy to find out who is responsible for them and correct the error. The human brain makes more mistakes than HR management software can easily eliminate, allowing people to forget about annoying mistakes.
Time-off and attendance management tools may seem difficult to implement and can be a source of potential problems, but most of these concerns are myths based on people's reluctance to change and lack of understanding of how such programs work.
Find out how many benefits a company can get from the HR management software. Calamari allows you to try its tool for free for 14 days without giving your credit card number and without any obligations. Try it today and see for yourself that there is nothing to be bothered about.
If you have any questions about the Calamari software – feel free to contact us! We are happy to dispel all your doubts.
Get monthly insights and make HR simple with us
