The Technology Behind Phone Time Clocks

It's a wonderful thing when technology works in your favor, isn't it? One way managers can have that experience is with a phone time clock. Thanks to an old-school standard, the telephone, and modern-day Internet capability, telephone time clock systems are extremely simple and effective. Just in case you're wondering if phone-based time attendance tracking would work for your company, here's a quick review of the technology behind these innovative systems.

Telephone time clocks require, as we mentioned, only a telephone and access to the Internet. Here's where the telephone portion comes in:

* Employees at remote locations or seasonal employees call a toll-free number to start their shifts.
* They key in their employee and location codes to register their attendance.
* When their shift ends, they again call in and key in the same information and the hours worked are automatically calculated.

But how does the Internet come into play?

* Individual accounts are set up for every company implementing this type of time attendance tracking.
* The server which houses the phone time clock software also stores each employee's hours.
* Managers and payroll department staff for each company can log in twenty four hours a day, from any Internet-compatible computer, to check real-time employee attendance.
* Via the Internet, it's also possible to log in, print time cards and review historical data for all employees.
* In a top-quality phone time clock system, the central server synchronizes itself daily to ensure complete accuracy.

So, what does all that well-blended technology really mean for frustrated managers? For one thing, being web-based means being able to manage remote locations from a central office (or even from home!) It means not having to call in and verify with shift managers that a full crew has reported for duty.

It means saving your payroll department hours of time chasing time cards, recalculating inaccurate time records and waiting for manager signatures. It can also mean a gold star in some manager's file if she's the wise person who suggested this time-saving, budget-conscious innovation.

Thanks to the amazing flexibility of the Internet and almost universal access to telephones, phone time clocks work, period. Very large companies and small, single owner firms have benefited from the technology that makes this all possible. Do your homework and find the righttelephone time clock system for your firm. Technology just made your life a whole lot simpler.