Effective Strategies for Employee Time Management

In this article, we will be talking about coming up with a strategy for employee time management that will bring you success. From accurate data to increased efficiency, a good strategy will transform your business.

Employee time management is often associated with micromanagement and overbearing employers. There are circumstances under which it is true, but the primary purpose of it is very different. Time management could be categorised as a tool to ensure the tasks are complete on time through prioritisation, work distribution and resource allocation. Employee time management is a branch of that, applying the same purposes to individuals working in the company. In other words, it’s an approach. And it requires a strategy. 

But what should the said strategy entail? In the digital era, quite a lot of it depends on the software you use. The old time tracking methods don’t meet today’s demands. And so today we will be exploring how digitisation is a way forward when it comes to developing an effective strategy for employee time management. 

What are the Pillars of Time Management?

Different sources suggest different numbers and concepts regarding the time management pillars. Here are ours: 

• Prioritisation; 

• Planning; 

• Distribution; 

• Analysis; 

• Optimisation. 

As you see, our approach includes five time management pillars and the rest of this article will be focusing on them. From explaining their significance to sharing advice on how to implement them in your business. 

Create the Perfect Setup

Digitisation isn’t an easy process and often involves trial and error. However, as long as you get the foundation right, it’s not as complicated to build on top of it. When it comes to employee time management, the basic requirements for a digital setup aren’t too complicated. As long as they are covered, the rest can be introduced moving forward. 

Accessibility and Centralisation

The key to success in developing effective employee time management lies in ensuring you have all tools and data easily accessible in one location. For example, if your team works across different sites, they would need a time tracking tool that’s accessible on the move. At the same time, the data they record should be automatically stored in the same location, no matter what device and where in the world was it used. Having full visibility of your team as a whole is the very foundation of your strategy, the cornerstone you will be building it on. Disjoined data takes time to be pieced together and often lacks accuracy, and as we’ve discussed before, it leads to decisions that might not be the best for your business. 

This makes SaaS tools best equipped for the task. Using cloud servers as their foundation, these tools barely need additional installations. As a default, they are available via an internet browser. However, some vendors may create a mobile app version too for a more user-friendly experience. The point is that cloud-based time tracking solutions are truly revolutionary. They highlight the significance of logging time by turning it into actionable data that allows organisations to improve their efficiency. In other words, it’s more than the means to pay and bill correctly - it’s a tool supporting your business’ growth. 

Finding the Right Tools

Identifying the solutions that serve your needs and align with your values is one of the most complicated tasks. Mainly because the market is overly saturated, each vendor offers a wide range of features and tries to dazzle you with the extras. When it comes to picking software, however, more isn’t better. And the first step to finding the right tool is putting together a clear and specific list of requirements. The second one is sticking to it. 

There are many ways to conduct the search itself. The most popular one being either checking Google or comparison sites. However, the highest-ranking positions are often taken by established brands that often charge extra for the name. Also, with their clientele as big, they aren’t likely to provide a very individual service experience. We recommend relying on word of mouth, from either your partners, competitors or even clients themselves. Most digital tools are highly customisable, meaning the same product won’t function as the same platform for a different company. And often it’s a more personalised approach for a lesser price. 

Build and Optimise

Tools alone won’t do the job. They are there to aid you in your efforts. And that’s exactly what it means: you still need to put in efforts and do the work. Let’s talk about what it entails and where to begin. 

Standardise the Process

We cannot emphasise enough the difference having a process in place makes. First of all, having a precise step-by-step guide translates into consistency. It makes it easier to onboard new members, to spot mistakes when they occur and to align the teams. To expand on the latter point, it’s very common for different departments to have different processes for the same operations. Not only does this increase the risk of inaccurate data, but can also mean wasting time on repeating the same actions.

We strongly recommend coming up with a set of standardised processes that are used across the entire company. Put them in a guidebook and make sure they are being followed. Sometimes, people will be opposed to changing their ways, especially if they differ from what they are used to. However, after repeating the process for a period of time, they will grow acclimated to it. That’s why it’s important to stay vigilant in the first 3-6 months. Additionally, a guidebook will be invaluable to bringing new hires up to speed. 

Effortless In-Depth Reporting

We’ve spoken a lot about data and collecting it. The truth is we live in the age of data overload, constantly flooded with it from every direction. What it means is that unless we can pull out only the data that matters and analyse it, there is no point in having it. Weeding out irrelevant data when it’s constantly incoming is impossible manually. And this is why SaaS solutions equipped with reporting modules are your best friends. 

First of all, you control what data is being recorded by setting up the filters. Instead of going through the findings, the irrelevant ones don’t get through in the first place. Secondly, the software will then crunch these numbers for you following preset instructions and present them in a visual, easy-to-analyse format. Depending on your time tracking software and integrations, you can get very granular with the reports. They will guide you in terms of recognising the areas of your business that could be improved. Employee time management included. 

Ongoing Work

When speaking about digitisation, we always emphathise that it’s not a one-off change but an ongoing process. Employee time management is no different. You can’t do it once and forget about it. Not if you want to truly succeed. 

The Sky is the Limit

Time management may sound like a rather rigid process. You put it in place once and all that’s left is to follow it. Even if you’d like to do something more, it’s not possible. Alas, none of it is right. Just like any digitisation-involving effort, employee time management is suitable for continuous optimisation. And today’s technology not only supports it but is built to drive this approach. 

SaaS platforms are built to be stacked. They link together via integrations, deepening your insights and unlocking new automation features. Different links will naturally gain you access to different data, potentially surprising you with the outcomes. In other words, the opportunities are literally endless. There is no need to rush the process and the changes you bring on board don’t have to be big either. As long as you keep moving forward by analysing the data and using it as the basis of your next steps, you are bound to discover what works and what doesn’t. In other words, there is no limit to optimisation and growth. 

Summary

Getting the right setup is the first step towards developing an employee time management strategy. While there are many tempting features available on the market, the core ones to prioritise are accessibility and centralisation. Both will help you ensure that nothing goes amiss. Other features should be aimed towards reaching your goals. It’s a good idea to write them down and how they contribute to your success as they will serve as your pointer when navigating a crowded software market. 

It’s a good idea to also establish a handful of standardised processes that will be used across the entire company. This will make sure the data you gather is accurate and everyone is aligned in what they do. Digital tools help with that, as well as they help you filter the data that matters, putting it into a digestible format to analyse. There is virtually no limit to how much you can optimise your employee time management strategy when you are equipped with the right tools and practice the right approach. Hypothesise, test, analyse and optimise - the cycle never ends.

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