Unfortunately, there are many myths circulating in the business world that prevent companies from experiencing the true potential of time tracking. From myths about employee pushback to the misconception that time tracking is only useful for tracking billable hours, accepting these myths as truth can hold your business back.
This article debunks the most common time-tracking myths and reveals how the right tools and strategies increase the success of your workforce.
We’ll explore how time tracking optimizes your workflows and business processes, while increasing worker satisfaction and efficiency.
Focus on growing your business, not managing timesheets.
Timeero streamlines time tracking and empowers your team.
Myth #1: Time tracking is just about monitoring employees
While time tracking can give managers insights into employee activity, it is not about playing Big Brother. In fact, keeping accurate time records is a legal requirement under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Tracking employee hours helps businesses stay compliant with federal and state laws. Additionally, time tracking improves job costing, increases worker productivity, and expedites payroll processes.
Myth #2: Employees will resist time tracking
While some initial hesitation is understandable, most employees come to embrace time tracking once they understand its purpose and the benefits it provides. Here is what you can do to make the implementation process easier:
Openly communicate with your workforce. Creating an employee time tracking policy will help you clearly communicate the reasons for implementing time tracking and how it will benefit all parties involved.
Provide proper training. Provide adequate training and support to ensure employees feel comfortable using the system and understand its value.
Focus on the positives. Highlight the positive outcomes of time tracking, such as improved productivity, better time management, and the ability to use data to identify areas of improvement.
Myth #3: Time tracking only benefits employers
While time tracking does benefit employers, time tracking provides significant benefits to employees as well.
With time tracking, employees:
Gain valuable insights into how they spend their time each day
Identify ways they can improve their time management strategies
Have access to time tracking data for performance reviews
Myth #4: Time tracking is impractical for mobile workers
The best GPS time-tracking apps continue recording work hours, regardless of where employees are stationed.
Companies that employ mobile workers should look for a tracking app that has the following features to make the most out of time tracking.
GPS tracking. Time-tracking apps with GPS location tracking capabilities provide insights into how much time an employee spent at a job site, on the road, or on break.
Geofencing.This feature allows you to create virtual boundaries around work zones to simplify time tracking and verify the validity of time records.
Offline functionality. Apps that allow you to track time offline are a great choice for mobile workers that work in rural areas without reliable internet connection.
Myth #5: Time tracking does not improve productivity
Tracking time increases awareness, encourages more focused work, and promotes effective time management.
A well built time tracking app will allow you to:
Identify time drains. With access to time-tracking data, you will be able to identify processes and jobs that take up a majority of your employees’ work hours. Time-tracking data provides you with the information you need to adjust schedules and assignments.
Optimize workflows. Timesheet datawill help you identify bottlenecks and streamline processes, leading to greater efficiency.
Make data-driven decisions. Based on accurate time data, you can make informed decisions about resource allocation.
Myth #6: Time tracking is only useful for billable hours
While time tracking is essential for accurate client billing, the feature can be used to improve many business processes. As mentioned above, the data time tracking provides can be used to simplify project management, identify the most profitable projects, and optimize workflows.
Myth #7: Time tracking is a hassle
Modern tracking software eliminates manual data entry and automates your time-tracking processes. Employees experience minimal disruptions when your company uses software with automatic time tracking capabilities.
The most efficient tracking apps use the features mentioned below to generate accurate timesheets and optimize workflows.
Streamlined tracking. Employees can track time spent on specific tasks or projects with minimal manual input.
Reminders. Many time-tracking apps send reminders to workers’ mobile devices prompting them to start or stop tracking time.
Integrations. Modern time-tracking tools integrate with popular project management tools and communication platforms to automatically track employee time.
Myth #8: Time-tracking systems complicate payroll processes
Time-tracking software integrates with your existing payroll systems to streamline payroll processes, expedite compensation, and reduce the likelihood of errors.
Automate calculations. Time-tracking software automatically calculates employees’ wages by multiplying their tracked work hours by their hourly pay rate.
Expedite compensation. Time-tracking tools ensure accurate and timely payments to employees, improving employee satisfaction and reduce the risk of payroll disputes.
Simplify compliance. Time-tracking apps allow you to keep detailed records of employee hours, making it easier to comply with state and federal labor laws.
Myth #9: Time tracking is too expensive for small businesses
There are many affordable time-tracking solutions on the market that address the needs of small businesses.
Small businesses can take advantage of the free offerings and budget conscious features time-tracking apps provide.
Free trials. Many providers offer free trials to new customers, allowing you to test the software before purchasing it.
Flexible pricing. Time-tracking apps generally have multiple plans customers can choose from. Choose a plan that fits your budget and meets your business needs, with options available for scaling as your business grows.
Cost-effectiveness. The benefits of time tracking—increased efficiency, productivity, and profitability—often far outweigh the cost of implementation.
Myth #10: All time-tracking tools are the same
Time-tracking tools vary significantly in terms of their features, integration options, ease of use, and data security.
Functionality. Time-tracking apps offer a wide range of features, from basic time keeping, location and mileage tracking, and advanced project management, to reporting capabilities.
Integrations. Each time tracking app may have different integration options. Some may integrate with payroll systems and project management tools, while others may offer no integrations at all.
Ease of use. The user interface and ease of use can vary significantly from app to app, impacting employee efficiency and satisfaction.
Data security. Each time-tracking software option can prioritize data security and privacy to different extents.
Myth #11: Time-tracking apps can’t accommodate non-standard work hours and flexible schedules
Many time-tracking tools easily accommodate different work styles and employee schedules.
Time-tracking apps accomplish this by allowing you to:
Log hours at any time. Employees can track their time whenever they work, regardless of their schedule.
Continuously track time regardless of work schedules. Good time management software adapts to various work schedules, including part-time, flextime, and shift work.
Myth #12: Time-tracking apps can’t handle different state labor laws
Businesses that operate in multiple states, each have their own unique set of labor laws. Time-tracking software is flexible enough to cover variations of labor laws across different regions.
Modern time-tracking software is designed with compliance in mind, and gives you the ability to:
Customize settings. The best time-tracking software will let you configure settings for different regions or employee groups, ensuring compliance with specific state requirements for overtime, breaks, and other relevant regulations.
Automate calculations. The software should automatically calculate wages and overtime based on the specific rules for each state.
Receive compliance alerts. Some time tracking solutions send compliance alerts, helping you stay informed and avoid costly labor violations.
Simplify time tracking with Timeero
To truly experience the power of time tracking, choose the right tools, implement them, and use the data gathered to make continuous improvements.
Timeero, a reliable time-tracking app allows you to:
Eliminate manual timesheets.
Gain valuable insights into project progress and employee performance.
Ensure accurate payroll and stay in compliance with labor laws.
Focus on what matters most – growing your business.
Timeero streamlines time tracking and empowers your team.
Natasa is a writer specializing in the IT and software industry with 6+ years of experience in content writing and online marketing. During that period, she wrote more than 1,000 articles and several ebooks. She majored in English language and literature and loves cats, sneakers, and candy. When she's not working, she's probably binge-watching Netflix.
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