Employee attendance is undoubtedly crucial in an organization to maintain effectiveness of the work system. In some companies, it even has an impact on salary calculations.

Nowadays, the digital attendance system is becoming more popular due to the ease it provides. That’s why there are many companies that offer similar attendance system services.

The main function of this system is to record the attendance of employees in order to aid the Human Resources division’s job.

However, what kind of attendance system should a company have? A digital or a manual one? There is no definite answer to this question, because it all depends on the needs of the company itself. However, Clockster has prepared several applications and employee attendance samples for your reference. Check the details below.

What is employee attendance?

The term “attendance” refers to a system that tracks when employees start and stop work. It enables an employer to monitor his/her employees working hours and late arrivals, early departures, time taken on breaks and even absenteeism.

If an employee does not clock on time, the employer will normally cut the benefit, which might be in the form of reducing transportation money, a meal allowance, or the basic salary.

The attendance of employee data can be used by companies to track the performance of their employees. This document becomes critical since a disciplined human resources will have an impact on your company’s success.

Importance of employee attendance reporting

The following are some reasons why it is important for a company to monitor the attendance of its employees.

1. Keep track of employee attendance

The major reason for adopting an attendance system is to monitor staff attendance and departure. Companies can observe how frequently their employees are coming late, leave early, or work longer than the normal working hour.

2. Obtain comprehensive and integrated data

This system helps a company to correctly record employee data. On the other hand, this assists the HR department in determining the number of absent workers.

See also: What is Office Automation? Here are the Types of the Systems

3. Components of employee performance appraisal

Attendance system allows the organization to evaluate the performance of its employees. Have they performed well or the opposite? The attendance system has the answer.

Types of employee attendance tracking system

There are two types of attendance system: manual and digital. Below are some examples of manual and digital attendance systems.

Manual system

Manual attendance requires employees to fill in their own present time. The manual system is classified into two types:

1. Attendance based on a book

If an employee arrives or chooses to leave, they must write down the time in the attendance book. It usually has their name, time of arrival, and signature too.

2. Analog system

In the analog system, each employee will have an attendance card to record their attendance. Since employees must keep the record of their own arrivals, this system is similar to book attendance.

Digital system (application)

Digital systems have been utilized widely in many organizations since they are considered safe and difficult to sabotage. Following are several types of digital attendance system.

1. Fingerprint

As the name implies, it is an attendance system that requires employees’ fingerprints to clock in and out. The strength of this system is that it is not easy to manipulate. However, this system may not recognize your fingerprint when your fingers are wet or dirty

2. Face recognition

Face recognition is more complicated than the fingerprint system. It examines the human face and eyes. If your face matches the data inside the system, it means you have been successfully clocked in and out.

3. PIN-based system

Each employee will have their own password. It can be in the form of numbers or letters. To record your presence, you just need to input your password to the system. It seems simple but it can be manipulated easily.

4. Website-based system

Each employee should have access to the website to log in their presence. What they need to do when the company uses this type of attendance system is browse the website, enter personal username and password, and clock in.

The weakness of a web-based attendance system is it requires stable internet connection, or else, it won’t record your attendance.

5. Magnetic cards

Employees only need to swipe the card on the machine. After that, your attendance data will be automatically stored in the system.

How to select the right system

You may be wondering which attendance system is best for your company. To help you, here are several things to consider before deciding to use a certain attendance system.

Data safety. Employee attendance is part of a company’s sensitive data. Typically, this data has been combined with personal information and employee salaries. As a result, it is critical to select an attendance system that is assured to be secure and not easily accessed by anybody.

Accessibility and efficiency. Not everyone is aware of how an attendance system operates. Therefore, you must use a system which has a simple operation. For example, it can be accessed through mobile phones.

Data accuracy. Since employee attendance is linked to payment, having an accurate system is crucial in order to prevent miscalculation on the employee compensation.

Easy to use. A system that is easy to use will affect work efficiency.

Fits your budget. Make sure the system you choose fits your budget. It is not recommended that a company spends excessive money on the system only.

See also: What is Shift Work and What are the Common Types?

Software for tracking employee attendance

As a Human Resources tools provider, Clockster has an employee attendance application that can track employees working hours from their arrival to departure time. Below are some features that Clockster app offers:

• It is a mobile phone app that uses geo-location to detect employees’ arrival and departure time. The GPS on employee’s devices will help this system to track and monitor the location the employees clock in and out.
• A reminder. It can be used as a reminder to come to work on time.
• Full integration with facial scanner biometric devices. All information about your employees is fully integrated in one application. Equipped with a facial scanner biometric system, your confidential employee data cannot be easily accessed by anyone.
• Records each employee attendance.

Above are some examples of attendance systems, from manual to digital one. These innovations will undoubtedly make everything easier especially when the company wants to track their employee attendance. So, has your company implemented a system like this? You may want to utilize the Clockster app for a more efficient clock in and out.