[5 min read]
The short answer is yes. And here’s why.
With a mobile phone’s processing power, the ability to carry it in any pocket plus the option of triggering positioning software you’d have thought they would be perfect for Time & Attendance. Just set up WiFi geo-fencing to capture employee’s clocking-in or out and potentially you could use your employees own hardware to track their clocking activity. Perfect !
Yet many companies still prefer terminals.
So why is that ?
With geofencing, especially using older mobiles, not only can they suffer from fast battery drain but also from positioning inaccuracy. You’ll also need to consider that still; yes still, many employees don’t have the luxury of the latest mobile technology with the needed processing power or memory for all their music, games, videos and photos, let alone your tracking app.
Consider also needing to manage employees’ objection to having ‘work stuff’ on their private phones, let alone dealing with the privacy issue of tracking. Or in case you’re an employer prepared to invest in employee work-mobiles, then apart from the significant cost of buying them, it could also mean employees potentially carrying with them two phones and charger cables. Not ideal.
Alternatively, using a terminal (and we don’t just mean our terminals) is a tried and tested way to capture accurate clocking in. In one form or another they’ve been used since the 1880’s. And for very good reason.
They’re still the only independent touch point for employees to register their clocking at a location where it’s actually business relevant (think entrance, changing room, production line, care home, office or warehouse etc)
Another popular reason is anti-payroll-fraud. Without the 100% knowledge that a clocking-in took place at the correct location and from the actual employee claiming the wage, then the employers best intentions to pay for a completed shift are unfortunately often open to abuse and wage fraud. A terminal using unequivocal authentication options, can instantly put a stop to that money drain.
With a terminal there’s absolutely no doubt where and when the employee clocked-in. There’s no doubt what breaks, shifts or cost centres they worked on and using secure authentication there’s no doubt who did the clocking-in. Finally, there’s no doubt when they actually left for the day. Ultimately, using single purpose terminals provides fair and accurate data for you and your employees’ wages or salary.
As a bonus, many WFM software providers don’t charge an extra per-user-fee for using our terminals and in case you use one of the latest cloud Workforce management solutions, their algorithms can use the terminal clocking-in data to generate not just payroll, but also scheduling and other business critical functions. Another positive ROI.
In our case, we deliver modern cloud tablet-terminals for a one time purchase price*. They’re designed, calibrated and robust for everyday use with our customers enjoying the peace of mind from ongoing platform software support plus the availability of hardware servicing or reconditioning.
Of course IF employees can and ARE willing to use their mobiles then great. Some of the WFM apps we’ve seen are highly user friendly. But given the purpose of a terminal then for a one-time-cost divided by the number of users, divided by the days and years of constant access, then it’s totally understandable why so many companies benefit from using them.
In conclusion; a good WFM provider will have invested a lot of time and money designing their mobile app with plenty of user friendly features – so think of that as being the shiny new sports car. But what’s going to act as your business backbone and to get you through all the hard terrain ? For that you’ll need a robust SUV. Your terminal.
Having both in the garage is certainly a wise choice because it ensures you’ve covered all your business needs and makes sure you get where you want to go.
Mobile + Terminal = the perfect combination
Let us know your questions eg:
your implementation needs, prices, lead times etc
contact.time@brightecgroup.com
*plus an annual license fee per terminal (irrespective the nr of users)
