7 Factors to Consider When Choosing a Scheduling Software
In most businesses, managers, supervisors, or even HR teams are typically tasked with creating employee schedules. What many don’t realise however, is that doing this incorrectly could have a bigger impact on productivity than they may first think. If employees feel overworked, underappreciated, or are paired with particular colleagues (friends or people they don’t get along with), there’s a chance that they won’t perform as well as they could. The good news is that employee scheduling software can be a more precise, more affordable solution.
Why use scheduling software?
There are a host of benefits to be enjoyed with the right scheduling software – and these are mostly associated with the speed and accuracy that is provided by automation. When you don’t have to rely on members of staff to undertake the often long and tedious process of scheduling, you will up productivity, improve output and potentially increase revenue as a result. This type of software will typically be able to:
- Optimise schedules and labour costs
- Simplify time tracking
- Meet shift requirements and make staffing adjustments
- Prevent payroll-related errors
- Find the right coverage at short notice
- Minimise potential schedule conflicts
- Improve employee work satisfaction
- Better manage last-minute issues or shift changes
- Establish under-staffing alerts
- Manage employee leave, vacations and time-off requests
- Generate shareable schedules and provide access to and from one central hub
6 factors to consider when selecting employee scheduling software
It can be worthwhile to keep in mind that not all apps will be made equal, so it can be a good idea to do some research to find the one that has the right features for your business and employee needs. With this in mind, here are the top points that may help you with your decision.
- User-friendliness
As with any kind of software, user-friendliness should be a main priority, as the easier it is to navigate for both employees and managers, the more benefits it will have overall. Some companies prefer software that has drag and drop functionality, whereas others prefer to have a little more control over how things look and function.
- Communication
Not all scheduling software has communication capabilities and this can be a deal breaker for businesses that want to ensure that individual employees are informed about their upcoming shifts. There are quite a few on the market that support email, SMS and push notifications, so if this is important to you, don’t overlook it.
- Reliable reporting
Many employee scheduling apps go the extra mile and offer reporting to allow businesses to get a deeper understanding of employee insights. These could be used to improve staffing decisions and accurately review employee performance, so that you can improve function even more (this isn’t a feature that all companies will need or be looking for, however).
- Compliance
A major reason why a lot of businesses turn to automated software is that it can help them to adhere to labour and employment laws. Some software will even be able to keep track of a host of locations and this can be especially worthwhile for those that have non-local or even international employees.
- Customisation
No two businesses are alike, so it can be a good idea to consider the level of customisation on offer from any given software. The more you can tweak your app to suit your needs, the better it is likely to perform for maximum results. This can be something to keep in mind when it comes to future expansion too, as your requirements are likely to change as your business grows.
- Mobile-friendliness
This is potentially the most important feature on this list, as the more accessible employee scheduling software is, the more functional it will be. Staff will have the ability to access their shifts anytime, anywhere and managers will be able to create, manage and change things in just a few clicks, so no one ever needs to miss out.
Final thoughts
Always be sure to check out customer reviews and testimonials before making a decision about the employee scheduling software you’d like to invest in. Those provided by third-party websites are likely to be more reliable and can give you better overall peace of mind
