Tips for Planning and Completing Your Time & Attendance Implementation

The process of implementing new software can be complex. There’s early research, vetting different vendors and partners, checking with budgeting, getting feedback from managers and employees, and finally getting buy-in from senior leaders. And all that is just the beginning.

Your Vendor Should Support our Time and Attendance Implementation

While the extent to which your vendor supports your implementation varies, you want to be sure to get as much assistance as you need. And that starts with making sure you track everything to your needs document.

A functional needs document will spell out the capabilities you need now, as well as your anticipated needs going forward. Having this document at the ready can be a big help selecting the right solution.

As it relates specifically to time & attendance software, you want to get answers to questions that might slip under the radar. These include:

  • Can the software help you stay aligned with wage and hour compliance?
  • How does the provider handle downtime, and/or catastrophic events that might potentially knock the software offline for an extended period?
  • How does the cost model break down per-user, and/or on a month-to-month basis?
  • How much focus do they put on hosting?

In an industry that’s flooded with solutions, it helps to know what the differences are. Read the report, “What’s Really Different About stratustime,” before you choose your next time & attendance solution. And discover how stratustime works behind the scenes for you and your company.

Read the Report

Once you’ve chosen your vendor, and scaled your solution for the short- and long-terms, it’s time to bring your new time & attendance solution online.

3 Tips to Help Your Time and Attendance Implementation Go Smoothly

 

1. Select a project team and an implementation plan

Having a dedicated team that oversees the project coordination can be vital for a successful implementation. Whether it’s a one-person team, or includes members from different departments, they’ll be your liaisons between the providers and your organization.

As far as the plan itself, keep in mind that many cloud-based software systems offer two types of implementation plans: sequential and parallel.

Sequential

When a company has a longer period of time to implement the system, and/or is managing limited resources and times, they might opt for a sequential implementation that rolls in different features at different times (for instance, time & attendance, followed by payroll integration, then employee scheduling, etc.).

This type of plan might also work for businesses that are in the middle of raising capital, are expecting growth, or are transitioning in another way.

Parallel

When a company needs to implement the system quickly due to regulatory requirements or budget pressures, or they have outgrown their existing system, they are more likely to choose a parallel plan.

In a parallel plan, the company continues to use their existing time & attendance solution even as their new solution comes online. Once the new time & attendance solution meets their needed criteria, they switch over completely.

 

2. Select a “roll-out” program, then deploy

Regardless of what option you select, most organizations opt-in to a pilot program to test how the system works on a small group of their employees:

  • This helps work out any kinks before an organization deploys the software through the entire company.
  • During this period, payroll and billing reports are entered so that payroll integration can be rolled out as fast as it is practical.
  • Be sure to review all parts of your organization prior to deploying the workforce management system you select, as different types of employees require different types of pay rules and tax considerations.

 

3. Plan for ongoing engagement

No matter how great any new system is, or how much it promises to continue to be great, implementation doesn’t always equate to easy adoption—at least not right away.

There will always be holdouts who either miss the old system, feel like the learning curve is too high, or simply don’t want to get on board with change. That’s why engagement can be a critical piece of the process. If employees aren’t engaged, it will make it more difficult to transition to the new system.

  • During the implementation period, begin sharing updates about the new system, especially in cases when it will affect the entire company, such as new time & attendance software.
  • As you highlight the benefits, be sure to illustrate how the changes will improve upon the new system, and make things easier and more intuitive for employees at all levels.
  • Invite feedback, and be sure to address any concerns you receive. Employees will appreciate feeling like they’re part of the decision-making process.
  • When necessary, set up training with the software vendor.

Whether you’re switching to a new time & attendance solution, or choosing your first, when you spend time on reviewing options, following a plan, and building strong user adoption, you can help set your company up for a seamless transition.

Even the slightest level of manual input in an otherwise automated system can expose a business to issues, including wage & hour noncompliance risks, time theft, or an incomplete understanding of where labor costs are going. stratustime works to make sure your time & attendance software keeps working on your behalf, so you can focus on business.

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