Workforce
Management
CONTENTS:
Working time management
Time management: the key to good organisation…………..……page 3
Attendance management
Targeted alerts and real-time information….….…...page 4
Resource planning and optimisation
Matching resources and requirements.…………...page 5
Job costing
Activity reports to assess costs……….…...page 6
Collaborative and mobile tools
Remote management of absence requests for leave of absence
………...…...page 7
Working time management
A challenge for HR
Workforce management
Time management: the key to good organisation
The role of Human Resources in today’s business environment is complex and covers a wide range of responsibilities including cost reduction, changes in labour laws, employee expectations and requirements and working conditions. However, effective management of staff workingtime remains at the core of HR responsibilities.
Clocking in using paper time sheets and spreadsheets is well and truly behind us. Streamlined time
and attendance software solutions, often integrating with other systems already existing within
the company, have become widely available which increase efficiency and simplify the more time-consuming administrative aspects of working time management. There are also dynamic tools available which allow parts of the HR function to be outsourced to line managers and even to the employees themselves.
However, inequality still persists between HR divisions of very large companies, which are already well ahead in this field, and small organisations which still use traditional tools.
Simplifying workforce management goes far beyond just reducing administrative tasks related to data processing. The use of modern time management systems helps control risks by ensuring
compliance with labour laws. They also handle overtime, rest periods, holidays and absences and
create alerts should anomalies arise.
Another essential function of workforce management is resource optimisation. Software-based solutions provide a detailed analysis of employee activity and help to plan tasks more efficiently and improve productivity. They also provide real time information on working time, attendance,
absences and the matching of available skills and requirements to all people concerned (e.g.
Attendance management
Targeted alerts and real-time information
Computerised attendance management significantly relieves the burden of HR administrative tasks and minimises risks related to legal compliance. Above all, they enable many tasks to be carried out by management and employees.
When an employee scans their badge or registers using a biometric scanner on entering or leaving the company, they supply data, the purpose of which is far more valuable than just checking their working hours.
Integrating this data into the tailored software solutions that are available on the market today makes it possible to fully manage attendance and absence, and to automate all
calculations related to remunerations, bonuses and paid leave.
The sophisticated software can also generate real-time
reports which include alerts that will help avoid any
excesses or anomalies. The information can be accessible by senior management for reporting purposes, to line management for operational follow-up, and relayed to the employee as part of a decentralised approach.
Resource planning and optimisation
Matching resources and requirements
Productivity is increasingly at the centre of companies' objectives. Planning software solutions help to organise activity more efficiently by taking on board all constraints concerning working time.
The issue of effective planning and organising working hours has become a strategic challenge for many companies. They are often faced with the need to manage irregular activity patterns and to optimise
available human resource, while at the same time
being careful to ensure compliance with labour legislation.
Different planning and organisation tools help to
model the company's hours, taking into account
internal obligations and requirements. They integrate
HR data and production data to manually or
automatically generate activity forecasts.
In the event of unexpected absence, the manager has all the necessary information to hand, in real time, to
quickly reorganise the team and source any missing
resources.
Dashboards help to draw up comparisons between what is planned and what actually occurs and to
adjust the allocated labour accordingly. The
organisation can then manage its resources more effectively, and maintain strict compliance with legal
obligations regarding working time.
Important:
The schedules generated
include all obligations
regarding
legislation and
conditions specific to
the company
Fair allocation of tasks
and working time
between employees.
Use of resources
(workforce, skills,
material) is optimised
and costs are
controlled.
With the system,
schedules can easily
be adjusted to activity
fluctuations and
Job costing
Activity reports to assess costs
Today's software solutions do much more than just plan activity; they can analyse the working time of each position and of each task, in order to measure performance. This function helps to improve productivity and also simplifies the invoicing process.
Managing employee attendance or absence is one thing; being able to analyse how their working time is broken down is another.
Imported from the United States, job costing divides activity among employees or teams and measures the
efficiency of the chosen organisation.
The system generates dashboards and activity reports which are used to assess the time spent on each task
and to estimate costs. This automates part of the
invoicing work and provides proof of work to clients. Depending on the job, employees can use different ways of declaring their activity: a terminal, a bar code
scanner or even a Smartphone.
The advantages for the company are clear, both in terms of cost control and
optimisation of organisation.
Important:
The software provides a
detailed analysis of
working time, tasks and
costs.
It simplifies
communication between
HR, production, invoicing
and management control.
The installation must be
supported with change
management as staff
may see it as a
monitoring system.
Collaborative and mobile tools
Remote management of requests for leave
of absence
Decentralising management of requests for leave of absence to employees is becoming more and more widespread in companies. It simplifies processes and makes employees responsible for their own actions. Solutions are also available for employees who do not have computer access.
Making a request for leave of absence from your work
station has become common practice in service companies, where employees use a computer, and there are many applications on the market which simplify this activity.
They allow a request to be sent simultaneously to the line manager and HR division and then receive
electronic confirmation, all without having to use
paper forms.
The employee can then consult their personal account
on-line at any time.
The widespread use of Smartphones presents new possibilities, particularly for employees on the move (sales reps, mobile technicians, care workers etc.). Solutions compatible with different types of telephones have recently started to make their appearance. Other systems use self-service terminals made available in company premises, and are targeted at employees such as industrial operators who do not have computer access.