It was over 2 year ago that Randy and Lori, from Shiloh Property Services in Plymouth, MI, kissed their paper time sheets goodbye and took charge of their time tracking with TSheets Time Tracking software. I’ll never forget our initial meeting with all of the contractors. I’m sure they wondered “Who is this gal telling us that we have to give up our paper in the back of our cars/trucks?” I do remember one person grateful right out of the gate. He was the one who had to have his wife rewrite the time sheet every week so Lori (co-owner of Shiloh) could read it. I gave them training, we signed everyone into their TSheets app on their phone and we agreed to come back a week later with time sheets and data from clocking in/out. Needless to say, a week later, everyone came in with smiles and questions and were happy to move forward. When I asked “Where are your paper time sheets?”, they answered “We stopped using those the second day. We didn’t need them anymore.” Indeed!
Now, there are always those naysayers who feel like they don’t want to use the GPS tracking feeling it is an invasion of privacy. FYI, GPS tracking only tracks the employee whereabouts when they are clocked in. Good thing that TSheets made a preference that the Global Permission for requiring location tracking on the phone could not be turned off. It’s funny, the one person that kept asking probing questions about how the tracking worked and “what if” someone else had my phone, etc. ended up being fired because he wasn’t where he was supposed to be (he became fully aware of the GPS capabilities). In the past, I’ve had objections from company employees who say that it drains their IPhone battery, or that it is an invasion of privacy. As Shakespeare once said in his masterpiece Hamlet, “Methinks thou dost protest too much!” In our day and age, that translates to “If you are where you are supposed to be, doing what you are supposed to be doing, then JUST DO IT! (royalty payment to Nike is on the way).
Speaking of which, there is an amazing protection factor to the company that institutes TSheets and to the employee using it. I was just at Shiloh Property Services reviewing and reconciling their books when Lori received the phone call from a franchise location that said her crew did NOT come and service their sprinkler system. Consequently, they had a problem and wanted reparations. Lori, who has mastered the art of investigation, went into TSheets and zeroed in on the day that the crew was supposed to be there. She called up the manager and explained that, based on the location points of her Time Tracking software’s time sheet log WITH GPS TRACKING, she could prove that her crew was there. And one would hope that if they drove all that way, they were doing the job. Another example of GPS saving the employee is told by TSheets Time Tracking (they love employees). A worker was named in a crime and yet he was on the job at the same time. The court did agree to admit the GPS tracking log of his whereabouts via the System Log (this thing tracks EVERYTHING) and the employee was absolved of wrongdoing. I should say, employees should feel safer with this technology on their side!
Here are some other facts from Myranda Mondry, TSheets employee extraordinaire, about the GPS tracking feature on TSheets software:
- GPS tracking is only enabled when the employee is clocked in. It turns off when the employee clocks out (including clocking out for lunch) — in this way, GPS tracking respects the employee’s personal time
- GPS locations are recorded at ten minute intervals (with or without cell service — the time and location data is stored on the employee’s mobile device until they’re back in range, that data then syncs to their TSheets account)
- The Who’s Working feature uses GPS to show you who’s on the clock and where they are (many clients think of this as a safety feature
- It is Department of Labor and DCAA compliant
So, you’ve just read 700+ words about a system that could revolutionize your time tracking. My question is “Are you still tracking your time manually?” If so, Click Here for a free 14 Day Trial and call me for set up and support. Then, we can have a Happy Anniversary blog for you next year. And I promise, you will be happier kissing your paper time sheets goodbye!
