A Great Economy To Sell Workforce Management

It's starting to sound like a broken record, but today's strangled economy is forcing all businesses to do more with less. Doing so requires a constant, watchful eye on every dollar spent, and that includes dollars spent on labor. Modern workforce management and time and attendance tools can help company managers and executives maintain that watchful eye, and the industry experts I spoke to stress that VARs selling these tools should be prepared to capitalize on the opportunity.

Defining ROI Is Critical
One thing all technology VARs should keep in mind is that demonstrating ROI is one of the most critical cards in the sales deck, even more so in a faltering economy. This can be especially true in regards to workforce management solutions. "People tend to have a misperception that a workforce management and time and attendance system will be far too costly and too complicated to implement," says Chris Willard, product manager for SYNNEX. "This is a false perception, and VARs must be prepared with examples that demonstrate ROI in terms of how much the customer will be saving by installing the VAR's proposed solution."

Defining ROI should be an easy task for VARs if you look at studies released by the APA (American Payroll Association). According to the APA, handling, correcting, or manually calculating employee time cards consumes an average of 7 minutes per time card. In a company with 300 people, this labor equates to 2,100 minutes — 35 full hours — spent handling time cards each week. In contrast, an automated workforce management system to track and calculate employee time and attendance cuts the time reviewing time reports to only 1 minute per employee, a savings of 30 hours each week. The APA also reports that organizations overpay employees an average of 30 minutes each day due to factors such as extended breaks, tardiness, or leaving early. At an average wage of $15 per hour, that same 300-employee company is paying $11,250 in lost production time every week. With an automated workforce management solution, VARs can help companies get their money's worth by turning this lost time into production time.

Peter DiMaria, founder and CEO of Accu-Time Systems, agrees that ROI is a critical selling factor, but cautions that a keen understanding and smooth presentation of end user benefits is just as important. "It's not just a workforce management terminal or piece of time and attendance software a VAR is selling, but a complete solution," says DiMaria. "VARs must speak fluently in terms of the benefits the customer will realize by implementing the solution, making the decision to purchase much easier."

DiMaria is right. Although the benefits of a workforce management solution are many, there are a few in particular that VARs will want to keep in mind when it comes to time and attendance.

n Automated time and attendance reduces payroll errors. By not manually checking time cards, companies can reduce employee overpayments that result from mistakes such as data entry errors and misapplied pay rules.

n Automated time and attendance can reduce FTEs (full-time employees) in the payroll department. As illustrated in the example above, manual time card methods take a considerable amount of time. Depending on the size of the company, reducing this time can lead to a reduction in staff.

n Automated time and attendance solutions eliminate the data entry required for processing payroll, thereby reducing payroll processing time.

n Reporting features in most time and attendance solutions can help organizations view trends in overtime and address those situations that don't correspond to increased labor demands.

n Reduce payroll inflation: Companies can reduce the impact of hours paid but not worked that result from the inaccuracy of an honor system or simple employee error.

Although automated time and attendance tools come in many different form factors, these crucial bottom-line business benefits remain the same across the board. Each benefit ties back to cost savings and efficiency for the organization and can serve as a VAR's perfect segue into a conversation about tangible ROI.

Supplement Time And Attendance With Access Control
While time and attendance tools are well-suited for improving operational and payroll efficiency, VARs can generate higher revenues by incorporating additional tools as part of a complete workforce management solution. "VARs that offer multiple solutions can better serve their customers' needs," says Willard. "Offering a bundled solution that integrates time and attendance with access control is a perfect example." Even in small companies, the days of the traditional lock-and-key entry system are numbered. Instead, VARs have a vast array of access solutions from which to choose. ID cards continue to be a popular access control method for many companies. VARs can take an ID card opportunity even further by selling ID card printers, lanyards, or other accessories.

Proximity access control systems also represent sales opportunities for VARs. Like traditional magnetic swipe ID cards, proximity cards or key fobs can be used to store personal information, as well as unlock doors. Proximity devices operate using RFID (radio frequency identification) technology and may increase a VAR's chances of securing workforce management sales in companies with tighter security requirements. These devices may also open up opportunities for VARs to incorporate another growing trend in workforce management — biometric access control.

"Biometrics continues to gain traction as enterprises continue to fight buddy punching [i.e. one person punches in for another person] and ghosting [where hours are recorded and paid to an individual who doesn't work for the company]," says Accu-Time's DiMaria. According to Nucleus Research, buddy punching results in losses ranging from 1% to 3% of a company's gross payroll each year. Biometric technology identifies people through physical measurements of unique human characteristics, such as fingerprints or hand geometry, making it an important technology for VARs that want to sell into high-security environments such as law enforcement and government.

You Can Sell Workforce Management Anywhere
Overall, workforce management is applicable in any vertical a VAR wants to target, but there are some tips that can help you excel. First, target companies where there are many workers with differing job functions such as healthcare facilities, big-box retailers, and large manufacturers. A workforce management system can be configured to enable companies to monitor not just when an employee is signed in, but also track which departments that employee is working in at any given moment. In addition, look for industries and companies that operate on a 24/7 basis. Sell time and attendance to monitor when employees report for — and depart from — work, and access control to make sure they are only in the facility during approved hours.

Workforce management is a highly visible, mission-critical solution within an organization, and VARs need to be diligent in learning about all of the available options. Even though many solutions look similar on the surface, not every one will meet the customer's unique needs, so taking the time to get comprehensive training for both sales reps and technical staff will go a long way toward ensuring long-term success. As mentioned, in today's economy, workforce management represents a major sales opportunity for VARs because the solutions can quickly make a positive impact on a customer's bottom line. Landing a sale is great, and making a customer more competitive in the process is always good for a VAR trying to build loyalty from customers.