Whether you are just opening a new business or have been managing one for years, time tracking is an efficient way of monitoring your startup employees.
Much of a business’ success is based on the ratio of time put in by the employee and the amount of his or her output. Without proper time tracking, it is impossible to know how your staff members are spending their time and whether or not they are completing the tasks assigned to them. Time tracking also helps you to effectively monitor various tasks when several projects are in progress at once.
Workers often complain that time tracking makes them feel micromanaged or that it slows down their progress, but once they get used to the concept, they discover the benefits are not only for their employer, but for them as well.
Time tracking used to be an arduous job for any business leader, but with the software currently on the market, keeping accurate employee time is far less demanding than it once was.
Below are five benefits of time tracking tools, and reasons why your startup should use a time tracking program:
- Effective time management
As a business owner, reducing business expenses and increasing profits is a constant concern. When it comes to showing your company’s workflow, time tracking programs make it easier for you to see any existing problems and inefficiencies.
Time tracking software packages can be programed to produce time sheets, which are helpful for both the employer and employees. For the business owner, these programs remove the use of old fashioned attendance systems or punch in-punch out cards. According to a recent survey of retail and service industry employees, an amazing 80 percent of workers admitted to “time theft.”
Once they have become accustomed to them, most employees enjoy using automated time sheets because they can be certain they receive accurate pay based on the amount of time they worked. This system is especially beneficial for part time workers or those working on different schedules. Accurate time sheets can be presented by a worker should he or she decide to ask for a promotion or a raise in salary.
- Provides employee satisfaction
Using a time tracking program works well for your employees as it helps organize their time and allows them to complete one assignment at a time instead of jumping from one project to another. It delivers clear objectives and makes it easier for your employees to understand how they should allocate their time. Based on the project they are currently working on, they have much better insight into when they can start something new, and if they need to reassess their priorities.
Accounting for their own time also gives your employees a sense of purpose, which fuels their commitment and motivates them to perform with increased interest.
Since time tracking software programs are totally impersonal, they give employees the flexibility to do their jobs without feeling the constant pressures of management looking over their shoulders. Without this stress, they get more enjoyment out of their work and have more motivation to complete their tasks on time.
Related: Productivity Tips for Entrepreneurial Success
- More accurate bookkeeping and billing
No matter how good you are at numbers, payroll mistakes are bound to happen when using manual accounting methods. Programed time tracking removes most possibilities of inaccuracies. Since workers can log in their work hours from their smartphones, emails and other connected devices, their presence at work is not required for them to keep track of their daily and monthly hours.
Time tracking is beneficial for sending out quick and accurate bills to your clients, especially when you are billing on a time basis rather than per project.
- Improved employee productivity
An important benefit of employee self-tracking is the ability to grasp how productive they really are. Since they know exactly how much time they are spending on each project, if their productivity is below that of their peers, they know they have to put more effort into their work.
At the same time, an employer can recognize the true cost of a given project, and accurate tracking of projects already completed will allow him or her to better project the cost of future projects. From a planning point of view, this reduces the danger of your company going over budget and losing money on a project.
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- Enhanced resource allocation
Correct time and project tracking can result in better resource allocation. By measuring how much time is allotted to a particular customer and measuring this against how much revenue he or she generates to the company, management can see more clearly whether or not it is worth maintaining this relationship. If the ratio is high, there is good reason to continue to put in the hours; a low ratio indicates it’s time to severe the affiliation.
Proper resource allocation helps a company keep track of which customers, projects and departments are generating the most revenue. It can also help identify where individuals and departments are being crippled by outdated equipment, procedures and the like.
Time tracking is only one of several ways for management to keep track of how well employees are doing and whether or not they are using their time most effectively. It is also one of the most efficient ways for workers to monitor the amount of time allotted for a particular task and how much progress they have made toward a particular goal. In short, time tracking is a win-win accounting method for both business owners and their employees.
