With nearly 37 percent of employees reporting that they have worked from home, it’s more important than ever for employers to ensure that productivity in the office and at home stays high and time theft is minimal. Time tracking software is increasingly being used by large and small companies alike to ensure that home-based employees are maintaining productivity.
If you’re considering implementing a time tracking system at your workplace, use these tips to gain the most your system.
Set Clear Expectations
Communication is always key when managing and monitoring employees who work for home. Working from home means different things to different people and having managers and employees on the same page about the expectations and outcomes is essential to building a strong relationship and ensuring maximum productivity. Managers need to communicate with their employees what will be monitored during their workday and how that will impact their job. Working from home requires its own policy so employees understand the expectations before they pack up their laptop.
Make Time Tracking Work for the the Position
Time tracking software is only as good as how it’s implemented. A good time tracking system has flexibility in what it tracks and personalizing that software to the position is essential. If keystroke logging or call logging will properly monitor whether home-based employees are performing their job, use that metric. If the position is more geared towards deliverable work pieces, have a system to submit work on a timeline to prove efficiency while working at home. Time tracking software needs to be customized to the position to be effective for managers.
Keep in Touch
One of the drawbacks to working from home is the lack of interaction and problem solving that can be done in the office. Home-based employees aren’t integrated into the office culture and that can be an issue when trying to gather information or work through problems. Pairing a time tracking system with a remote communication tool is essential to monitoring employee productivity and keeping employees motivated to produce great work. Set up periodic conferences with your home-based employees to review their progress and report any issues.
Trust but Verify
When managers spend too much time monitoring minute-by-minute updates of their home-based employees, not only does that information lose its value but also drains company resources by taking that manager away from their work duties. Time tracking software should be used as an aid, not a crutch. Employees should be trusted to use their time appropriately when working from home and managers should assess employee productivity using time tracking data on a larger scale.
Share Productivity
When companies employee time tracking software, they often don’t share much information with employees - unless that employee isn’t productive! Sharing the data gained from time tracking systems can be a great way for the business to optimize its use of the software and employees to address any productivity concerns before they become problematic. Make it a requirement to share productivity reports with employees and use feedback from managers and employees to optimize your time tracking system.
Time tracking software can be a great tool for businesses with home-based employees, if it’s used efficiently. Creating clear expectations with a system to communicate with home-based employees is the first step to using that software to its fullest. Then, employers need to find the best way to measure productivity, sharing those results with managers and employees to perfect the system. Time tracking software can take the fear out of allowing employees to work from home and provide employees with a much needed break from the office.
