Award interpretation Software Implementation Issues

By definition a Time and Attendance System is a data collection device such as a time clock coupled with time and attendance or award interpretation software. Immediately this requires further clarification :

There are a variety of data collection devices on the market, the most common ones being a time clock, or a web time sheet or some kind of mobile collection device such as a PDA. Basically the role of these devices is to  collect employee clocking events. Clocking events are records of employees clocking in and out for work. This clockings can include the first clocking of the day, the last clocking of the day and in and out clocking during the day for various breaks.

Time and attendance software has the role of collecting the clocking events from the data collection device and applying specific rules to those clockings in accordance with the specific pay rules for the employee. Because there is no manual intervention in the process it is called Automated Time and Attendance.

Any time and attendance system worth its salt will offer a range of export files available to remove the need for manual data entry into the chosen payroll system.

Behind this apparently simple process is a complex system which communicates with hardware terminals, processes clocking records and applies, in many cases some very complex rules. The best systems do this seamlessly but most do it with a cumbersome level of user intervention.

It can be very difficult to find a suitable time and attendance system and even more difficult to get one up and running . To implement a time and attendance system your staff will need a collective understanding of a range of disciplines and technologies including advanced payroll and award interpretation, sql database implementation, LAN and WAN networking principles, industrial relations and project management. Quite frankly, the odds are against you in achieving a successful and timely implementation.

Automated Time and attendance , for all its demonstrate-able advantages is not as widely an adopted business system as you might believe . Understandably, not a lot of people will be experienced in implementing time and attendance so you business will be exposed during this process. There are some valuable resources available on the web to assist you in this process and you should utilize them to give yourself the best change of a seamless and cost effective implementation process.

Collecting employee clockings and applying award interpretation and exporting a payroll file is quite complex when done with a high degree of accuracy . Add to that the technical issues relating to multiple time clocks over a LAN or WAN plus the confusing array of time clocks on offer and you can easily see why more than 80% of end users report dissatisfaction with the implementation process and as many as 50% rate the project as a failure.

 There are some valuable links in this document that will take you to some time and attendance resource sites. These should help you avoid the many pitfalls ahead. 

Good Luck!

James Bell

Time and Attendance Consultant