Choosing the Right Attendance Machine for a 40-Year-Old Company: Biometric or Card?

I have a query regarding the installation of an attendance machine in our company. Our company has a strength of around 60 employees and it is a 40-year-old company. To track attendance, we have been using attendance cards. In order to streamline and simplify the process, management is planning to install an attendance machine.

Choosing the Right Attendance Machine

My question is, which type of attendance machine would be most suitable for our company - whether biometric, punching card, or other options. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the particular machine chosen? Please assist in identifying a suitable attendance machine that is also cost-effective.

At present, an attendance card is used to track workers' attendance. However, as it is an old system and consumes a lot of time to maintain the records, we are seeking some changes. Currently, various attendance machines are available in the market, which help simplify HR activities and make work more systematic. Since I am not very familiar with the usage and suitability of attendance machines, I would appreciate your guidance on this matter.

Interest in Payroll Software

Additionally, I am interested in learning about payroll software, how it is connected to the attendance machine, and how it functions.

Thank you for your assistance.

Choosing the Right Service Provider for Attendance Systems

Opt for a reputable service provider. Please ensure that choosing a low-cost product is not advisable. Select providers who understand your requirements and offer long-term solutions. The attendance system is a service-based product, so merely installing it will not fulfill your needs. You will need an active service provider who offers prompt service and customization for evolving needs, especially in software.

Basic low-cost devices come with freeware that may not provide effective solutions. Free software cannot be customized by low-cost service providers because they offer products rather than quality service with a long-term perspective.

Regards

Please type "Biometric Attendance" in the above "What do you Need?" box and click on the "Research" button. You will get plenty of earlier posts on this subject. We have already discussed the pros and cons of various biometric attendance systems. The selection of a Biometric Attendance system depends fully on the workforce involved in your industry.

Regards

Considerations for Installing an Access Control Device

Installing an Access Control device is a good idea, and you need to think about various aspects before installing.

- If your headcount is approximately 60, then you don't need a Biometric Reader, as it is costlier.
- If the nature or process of your company is very classified, then go for a Biometric Reader, since confidentiality is more important than cost.
- If you are using this reader for marking attendance only, then you don't need a reader installation. All you need to do is establish strict policies regarding timings.

Think in all possible ways and install, Rathi Naik.

Considerations for Installing a Biometric Device

In my opinion, a biometric device will certainly reduce your workload. However, you need to first list down your requirements before you start discussing with companies dealing with such devices.

- The number of shifts operating in your company with the timings for each shift.
- Do you have a flexi-timing option, or are the shift timings fixed?
- What is the grace time you intend to give to each employee every day for shift reporting?
- What is the cutoff grace time beyond which the employee is considered late?
- If an employee is considered late for work, what should the device do? Should it consider them absent, or will you manually intervene and mark them present as the case may be?
- If you are working in different shifts, what is the frequency of shift rotation (generally it is weekly)? If so, what is the pattern of shift rotation - A shift to B shift, B Shift to C shift, and C shift to A shift, and so on.
- If there is a shift change, how are your employees going to inform you, and what manual intervention do you propose to do?
- Do you intend to connect the attendance recorded to your payroll software?
- Do you propose to enter leave data also in the software?
- Do you propose to introduce the biometric attendance at all levels (including top management)? If so, up to what level? If you want to exclude top management people, how will their attendance be recorded?
- What are the reports you intend to generate from the software?

- Daily attendance report
- Daily late-coming report
- Daily late sitting report
- Shift changes report
- Early in/Early out report
- Loss of Pay report
- Extended Lunch report
- Absenteeism report

- Which of these do you want to view on the screen, and which ones would you require a hard copy for authorization purposes?
- The number of locations you would require a reader to capture the fingerprints. If the strength is less, then one reader will suffice, but if the number of employees is more, then you need to install more than one. The location of the reader must be accessible for employees, and if there is crowding, it creates a time delay in registering attendance.

Some reports are available in the software by default but may require some fine-tuning, while some reports have to be customized.

There are two elements in biometric attendance devices: the cost of the device and the associated software. Clearly understand the cost implications and then propose it to the management.

Ask the service provider shortlisted by you to provide the device for one month for you to test it out. Generally, companies agree to this.

After one month, generate reports sought by you, and then decide on the matter. More importantly, you need to educate your employees on registering the attendance on the device.

Regards