Neil Pickering, director at workfroce management software firm Kronos, explains why more and more businesses are moving workforce management to the cloud.
TechRadar Pro: What are the biggest pain points for SMEs when it comes to managing their workforce?
Neil Pickering: Staffing and people management issues are very often the central and chief concern of small to medium businesses (SMEs), be it managing talent and giving staff the right opportunities, attracting and retaining the right staff, or simply the day-to-day issues of keeping staff productive and engaged.
The problem is that often SMEs lack the time, resources and expertise to dedicate to workforce management. With a lack of management experience and expertise that can be found in larger enterprises, SMEs either don't think they have an issue with managing their workforce (because they don't have visibility of any problems) and therefore do nothing about it, or think they may have an issue but do not have the time, money or resource to monitor and resolve them.
TRP: How can technology like workforce management systems help to address these issues?
NP: For the SME leader looking to drive the business forward, workforce management technology can remove many of the headaches of day-to-day staff administration and deliver the reporting and analytics needed to support decision-making.
For example, a workforce management solution that captures employee hours in real time and automatically feeds them directly into payroll will reduce administrative time, remove payroll errors, ensure employees work their proper hours and control other labour costs such as absence and overtime. Such technology will also improve employee engagement as employees will be paid accurately and have access to self-service options, including viewing work schedules, shift swapping, balance enquiries and holiday bookings.
TRP: How has workforce management evolved over the past ten years?
NP: Over the last ten years, the world of workforce management has fundamentally changed. It's moved from standalone PC/Server installed products connected, to a few clocking terminals, to now centralised and often cloud-based solutions that have much greater depth of functionality and multiple means of data collection and access, such as web browser, mobile, tablet and telephone. In fact, for us at Kronos, the Kronos Cloud has become the fastest growing part of the business with cloud revenue increasing 56 per cent over the last quarter and over 11,000 companies using our cloud solutions.
At the same time, technology developments such as biometric terminals and now wearable technology are shifting the way that organisations collect and use information to manage their workforce. We now have access to more functionality, at greater speed and accuracy, in products that are far more intuitive and easy to use. This makes it possible for far more organisations to control labour costs, minimise compliance risk, and improve workforce productivity.
TRP: Why are more businesses moving their workforce management systems to the cloud?
NP: With a limited HR and IT budget, SMEs are well-placed to realise the scalability and ease of use promised by cloud solutions. Organisations are able to rent workforce management solutions that have enterprise-grade infrastructure just as easily as their larger competitors, and there is little up front capital investment required. The latest generation of workforce management systems now easy to purchase (pay per employee, per month, with no length contract) and simple to set-up, so offer little risk to the buyers and huge return on investment potential.
By moving workforce management functions such as labour planning, staff scheduling and absence management to cloud-based solutions the SMEs can focus on delivering their products and services, whilst at the same time controlling costs, improving productivity and maintaining margin.
TRP: What are the main differences between cloud-based workforce management and traditional work force management?
NP: Unlike on-premise solutions, workforce management delivered as a service are easier to set-up, more cost effective and easier to maintain. This means business benefits can start to be delivered in a matter of days. With SaaS and cloud-based solutions SMEs no longer need to have (or be) an IT expert and buy and deploy servers.
Instead this is now taken care of remotely by the solution provider. What's more, such systems are also now accessible through multiple devices, such as mobiles and tablets, so managers and business owners can choose when and where they manage their staff. So for SMEs, just spending a couple of minutes responding to intelligent prompts on their device of choice could see them reduce absenteeism, control their labour costs and improving customer service.
TRP: What are the top three benefits of moving workforce management in the cloud?
NP: One of the main benefits of moving workforce management to the cloud is the speed of implementation. This enables SMEs to implement workforce goals faster, providing a rapid return on investment. Another benefit is the ability to re-assign staff to other priorities, by removing the need for in-house expertise to run, upgrade, and support the applications.
Finally, workforce management in the cloud also provides SMEs with the ability to scale the solution as their organisation grows. Many organisations start small, but as they develop, they experience a combination of different pressures and growing pains which affect productivity and performance of the workforce. By moving workforce management to the cloud, organisations can manage their employees in line with this growth, ensuring productivity is maximised at all times.
TRP: Is workforce management a blessing or a curse for employees?
NP: Most workers are comfortable with the notion of being monitored, as long as the reasons for doing so, and the benefits to the business and employees, have been clearly discussed and explained. In fact, according to our recent research, most workers recognise and accept the need for their employers to record annual leave, sick days and start and finish times.
It's also not just organisations that benefit from employee monitoring, but staff too. By monitoring employees shift patterns and labour, productive employees can be recognised and rewarded, while all employees can be confident that their wages are being calculated and processed correctly in accordance with the hours that they work.
TRP: Looking to the future, how do you see workforce management evolving for SMEs?
NP: Workforce management solutions are now much easier to purchase, deploy and own, which is why they are becoming far more widespread in terms of their use. The greatest increase we expect to see is more SMEs starting to use mobile devices to help manage their workforce. With mobile devices uniquely equipped to give employees the ability to respond to urgent events or unforeseen operational disruptions, SMEs are able to complete a wide range of workforce-related tasks from their own device and location, improving organisational productivity, efficiency, and agility.
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