How To Maximize Your Productivity With Workforce Management Software

What is Workforce Management Software?

Workforce management software broadly refers to computer programs that allow an organization to manage its employees so as to drive down labor cost, maximize labor productivity, and ultimately, boost the organization's bottomline.

Workforce management of WFM software looks to get a clear picture of business metrics, such as the least number of employees needed at a particular time, the time required to churn out a particular product, and so on.

Functions performed by WFM software include employee scheduling, collection of work data, employee attendance and time tracking, management of leave, and task management. More advanced workforce management systems also include features like labor forecasting, real time staff management, and so on.

A Complete List of Workforce Management Tools

Workforce management cannot do without workforce planning. It makes use of data to evaluate the current capabilities of the employees of an organization, and their future requirements.

Workforce planning tools help identify the gaps in employee needs, and in Employee Performance, and provide means to plug the gaps. Workforce planning tools include-

1. Strategic workforce planning map-
This looks to harmonize an organization's human resource strategy with its broader business goals. The organizational strategy, which takes into account market dynamics and competition, is implemented through recruitment, performance management, rewards and promotions, and so on. A strategy map is a graphical representation of the organizational strategy that includes every team member as a key contributor.

2. 9-Box Grid-
This is also called performance and potential matrix. It is a visual tool that assesses employees in an organization by placing them in one of nine boxes along an X-axis and a Y-axis. The box in which an employee is put evaluates the employee in terms of his/her past performance and future potential.

3. HR dashboarding-
Human resource (HR) departments that are driven by data rely on HR dashboards in a big way. An HR dashboard accumulates data from various sources, including applicant tracking, human resource information, and payroll systems. This data helps in the calculation of critical metrics like the risk of attrition and turnover, and match employee skills with the needs of the organization. HR dashboards provide quick insights for executives from
Human Resources to make effective talent management decisions. Good HR software provide easy to read dashboards that go beyond superficial drill-downs to offer a peek into the future through machine learning. For example, they can identify employees at risk of resigning.

4. Compensation analysis-
This function helps identify overpaid and underpaid employees, as well as overperforming and underperforming employees. An organization should ensure that the overperforming employees are compensated adequately, and the underperforming employees are not overpaid. This is vital to make sure that the organization is not losing its best performers by under-compensating them and retaining incompetent staff by over-compensating them.

5. Scenario planning-
This involves the creation of a wide array of possible future scenarios and analyzing how the organization should react to them. Scenarios include new legislation, changes in technology, a shift in public attitude, a pandemic, or a natural calamity. By looking at the expected impact of these events and what the strategies to deal with them should be, an organization ensures that it is not caught off-guard by unforeseen circumstances.

Managing employees is a tricky business. An employer has to walk the tightrope between employee satisfaction and productivity.

The job is best left to workforce management software. This article shows you how the right software can help you save time and make more money.

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Key Features of a Workforce System

1. Labour forecasting- It helps employers better prepare for ups and downs in customer demand, and also optimize their budgets through labor projections. Plans can be made for various circumstances, including holidays, special events, and weather.

2. Employee scheduling- Managers can create employee schedules to meet the projected labor needs of their businesses. With employee scheduling software managers do not have to worry about under-or over-staffing, and can easily take care of last-minute shift change requests. Employees, on the other hand, can view and accept schedules at their convenience, and alert managers and colleagues about their non-availability and shift swap requests well in advance.

3. Staff time tracking-WFM software that works in tandem with time clocks, web-based timesheets, point-of-sale (POS) devices, and mobile apps lets employers view hours worked by the employees. The information is then automatically processed and transmitted to those handling payrolls.

4. Managing overtime- WFM platforms streamline the process of offering overtime to employees, allocating it effectively, and authorizing payments. When a worker is nearing overtime, the system will send an alert to both, the employer and the employee if the overtime is unauthorized.

5. Absence management- Employers may quickly view time-off balances and compare absence statistics to industry standards. WFM software also makes it easier to track requests for long-term leaves, for example, those provided under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

6. Regulatory compliance- Workforce Management systems enable managers to set up work and pay rules to ensure that they follow corporate rules, wage and hour rules, and union contracts. The system also monitors time card modifications and edits, which are useful if there's a dispute.

7. Analytics- Workforce management systems integrated with dashboards give managers real time visibility into scheduling and punctuality data, allowing them to address any issues before they escalate. They can also run reports on key metrics to see how their personnel have fared over time.

8. Mobile accessibility- Using WFM software that works well with mobile devices, employers can address the needs of open shifts or arrange staff replacements almost instantaneously. Employers can use a tablet or smartphone to quickly find available employees and make sure that coverage is adequate when, for example, someone calls in sick.

Employee Management Software Improves Productivity- Here's How

1. WFM systems focus on optimizing how, when, and where work is accomplished, and also decide who is best suited for the job. This helps boost the workforce's general productivity and efficiency.

2. A business manager can use web-based scheduling software to forecast staffing demands and predict ideal staffing needs on the basis of preset human resource and business parameters. These criteria include customer traffic, vacations, financial restrictions, work-life balance, and worker skills, to name a few. Customer service and workforce productivity, both improve as a result.

3. Every company, regardless of size, must keep track of its employees' working hours. Timesheet software can help keep tabs on payroll and projects, while taking into account sick leaves, vacations, overtime, and other unanticipated events. When you are trying to cut costs, having all of your data in one place makes it a lot easier to fix mistakes, run reports, and analyze billing trends.

3 Best Workforce Management Software Solutions

1. Zip Schedules-
This technology platform, offered by Hubworks, allows managers to create employee schedules in minutes. Customers can save favorite schedules as frameworks, which can subsequently be modified based on corporate needs or staff demands.

Instead of having to create fresh shifts every time, you can save time by simply putting shifts into available staff positions. With the help of the free mobile app and the internal messaging system, every member of the team receives real time notifications on their phones.

Real time schedule management, rapid assessment of staff requests, and quick action on requests for shift changes are just a few of Zip Schedule's features. When scheduling adjustments are made, employees are immediately alerted, and those seeking shift swaps can quickly seek them out themselves.

Zip Schedules leverages information from transactions and sales, helps management avoid overstaffing and understaffing, helps the company provide reliable customer service, and saves labor costs.

2. Ceridian Dayforce HCM-

This is a cloud-based system that encompasses HR, talent and labor management, benefits, and payroll. It provides businesses with a scalable foundation and real time data (like continuous pay computations) to help them make better workforce decisions. Employees can access a self-service tool for a variety of HR services. The software uses contemporary technology to simplify complex HR and operational processes, and makes labor management easy and efficient.

3. BambooHR-

For small and medium organizations that have outgrown spreadsheets, BambooHR is a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) application. BambooHR's cloud-based solution allows expanding firms to track and manage personnel data in a customized Human Resources Information System (HRIS) in a simple and cost-effective manner.

With BambooHR, human resource managers have more time to deal with other critical tasks, CEOs have access to reliable, timely information, and workers can manage their time more effectively through the software's mobile app.

You need to track your employees’ hours, their tasks, and the progress they are making. Managing all of this information can be difficult.

Workforce management software simplifies all of your HR processes by organizing employees into one system. Learn more about its benefits here.

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How to Select the Right Workforce Software

The following are some of the points to consider when choosing a WFM solution-

1. Ease of use- A WFM system must, first and foremost, be easy to use. Basic user-friendly features like integrated workflow, automatic notifications, and convenient job management from mobile to desktop, should all be considered. Stored shifts, drag-and-drop, and copying frameworks are among the other capabilities that improve usability and provide a consistent experience for all employees.

2. Enterprise-level security- Entrusting a fresh system with staff information is a worry for any company, but it's especially so when the data is confidential or costly. As a result, security must be a top priority with WFM solutions.

3. Integrated data reporting and analytics- Every good WFM system should have this feature. It helps a company determine what is really working and what needs to be improved. A workforce management system with embedded reporting and analytics capabilities can provide insights into anything, from payroll to location-specific staffing.

4. Mobile app- A company may not want to see its employees using phones at work, but mobile devices are integral to our lives today. In reality, a mobile app can determine whether or not employees use the WFM system. Employee engagement might be significantly compromised by the lack of a mobile app.

5. Flexibility- Achieving a decent work-life balance might be difficult for deskless teams. Workforce management software, however, can help organizations develop a culture of workplace flexibility without negative consequences.

6. Forecasting demand- Employee scheduling software can assist in matching labor to client demand. Technology can anticipate customer demand and create precise rotas by combining an in-built prediction engine with similar data. This function can also predict labor demand for particular tasks or locations.

7. Managing employee absences- Online employee scheduling automates the administrative job of managing staff absence. A corporation can profit from a straightforward procedure available to all members of the team, from HR executives to individual employees, rather than dealing with physical request forms and a manual process that takes up a lot of time.

Workforce Management System FAQs

1. What does workforce management entail?

Workforce management encompasses time management, leave management, payroll calculations, and administration of benefits, as well as other aspects of scheduling. It takes into account all of the factors that go into assembling a team and seeks methods for automating and streamlining existing processes.

2. Why is a WFM solution required?

Every business can benefit from a personnel management solution. With a labor-management system, payroll errors, processing time, unauthorized leave, and inflation of payroll calculations by including overtime can be reduced. It improves labor reporting while eliminating the costs and dangers associated with paper timecards, including time fraud and buddy punching. A big benefit of a personnel management solution is the extent of money and time saved.

3. What are the different kinds of workforce management solutions available?

• Labor tracking, time monitoring, and data collection are all part of time and attendance software.
• Managed and uncontrolled leave, as well as employee productivity, are addressed by absence planning software.
• Software for workforce planning focuses on long-term forecasts and deviation control.
• Short-term forecasting and shift tracking are two features of scheduling software.

Managing your workforce can be difficult without a robust HR management system.

This article tells you what to look for in good workforce management software, so you can buy what’s best for your business.

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