Pros and cons of Mobile Clocking

A great way for clocking remote workers in and out; is Mobile Clocking right for you?

Many businesses have employees who work away from the office; whether that’s engineers, sales reps or transporters. It can be difficult getting an accurate record of these employees’ clocking times and their day-to-day activities. Fortunately, there are mobile clocking systems out there that can help with this. The term ‘mobile clocking systems’ applies to any portable device that supports a web browser, so this would include phones and tablets. What follows are some of the good and bad points to the mobile clocking solution for your consideration.

Clocking Options

A decent mobile clocking system will give users the capability to make various clockings beyond simply “clocking on and clocking off.” Most operate as an app of some sort or via a web browser, and have a clear user interface where the employee inputs their details and then makes the clocking. However, as mobile clocking is often used for employees who are out on the road, some systems offer other options, such as “travelling,” “onsite” and “on lunch” to name a view. This enables you to get a breakdown of each employee’s day, and since this information is being received in real time, it also means you know the current status of employees throughout the day. One big advantage for employees is that they no longer have to complete and submit manual timesheets.

Internet Access

This can be a bit of an issue with some mobile clocking systems if your employees tend to frequently be in areas with no internet coverage. Because a mobile clocking system needs to be able to communicate with the main software back at HQ (in order to give you live updates as mobile clockings are made), the employee needs to have internet access at the time of making a clocking. If they do not have an internet signal, then they can’t make a clocking and will not be able to do so until one becomes available. For the vast majority, this is not an issue, particularly for those working in urban environments. Mobile signal coverage is available almost everywhere these days and where you can get a mobile signal, you tend to be able to get internet access. Even so, if you have employees working somewhere up the Pennines or deep in the countryside, then a mobile clocking solution might not be the right solution for you.

Geolocation

The number one question we are asked concerning the mobile clocking solution is, “But what stops an employee from clocking into work while they’re still at home?” The mobile clocking solution for the Capture^it time and attendance system has a very effective countermeasure to this sort of dishonest behaviour – GeoLocation. Whenever an employee makes a clocking, you get the postcode (highlighted on Google Maps) to show you exactly where the employee was each time they make a clocking. So if they are still at home, or clocking in slightly early whilst driving down the M6, you’ll know about it. The logic holds true for all mobile clockings, so you will be aware where an employee was each time they make a clocking, including that all-important end of day clocking. If employees know that their location is recorded whenever they make a clocking, you’ll find it acts as a very effective deterrent to attempting such underhand tactics.

Buddy Clocking

The second question we then get asked is, “Okay, so what if a late employee phones ahead and asks someone onsite to clock in for them?” This question often comes up when teams of engineers or installers are working onsite. Again, this is something we’ve thought about for the Capture^it mobile clocking system. Capture^it knows which mobile phone each employee should be using for making a clocking. If an employee clocks using a different mobile device (possibly because an employee has given their clocking details to someone else who is onsite), the system flags this as something you need to investigate. The system can even email you with an immediate alert that this has happened for swift investigation. The safeguard described here does not avoid well planned deception where employees collude by one employee carrying the phones of multiple colleagues, but this should be rare and perhaps raises an altogether bigger issue for management.