What can companies do to keep track of where their employees are?
Companies have plenty of opportunities to locate their employees at different work locations instead of only having one physical office. Examples of these other types of locations include clients’ offices, job sites, field workers, and employees’ homes.
Trying to use traditional methods (such as registers and biometric readers) often will not work for these employees because many of them work at these different locations during normal business hours, and therefore can’t use traditional attendance systems.
This is why companies will benefit from the use of Geo-tagging and GPS-based attendance systems. These systems have the ability to track employees’ actual work locations in real time, improve visibility of employee time and attendance information for supervisors, reduce opportunities for employee fraud, and improve the efficiency of managing employees in the workplace.
What is Geo-Tagging?
Geo-tagging refers to the practice of obtaining and attaching real-time geographic location (i.e., latitude & longitude value) of the employee as proof of attendance.
It creates an authoritative record, thus permitting the company to confirm the employee’s attendance accurately, and the real-time location where they are checked in or checked out.
Geo-Tagging Offers:
- Accurate GPS coordinates when checking in/out.
- Record date and time, in addition to GPS coordinates, of where the employee checked in and out.
- Optionally, it provides a map of the check-in and out location.
- Confirmation of whether the employee is reporting to work at an approved location.
- Prevention of false or proxy attendance.
What is a GPS Attendance System?
A GPS Attendance System (GAS) is a type of electronic attendance system that is based on Global Positioning System (GPS) technology and is used to confirm and document attendance by employees at work based on their actual location.
Due to the nature of remote working, GPS Attendance systems are increasingly used for verifiable and approved locations where employees can record their attendance instead of using a stationary biometric device, such as a fingerprint scanner.
Some of the Key Features of GPS Attendance Systems are as follows:
- Mobile-based attendance recording.
- Real-time geographic location verification.
- Geo-fencing.
- Cloud-based storage of attendance data.
- Integration with payroll and HR systems.
How Geo-Tagging & GPS Attendance Works?
Understanding how this system works helps various companies implement it effectively.
1. Employee Login
Employees can log in to the HRMS or the attendance mobile application with secure credentials (such as employee ID and password or OTP confirmation).
2. Location Access Permission
The application will request access to the GPS services of the employee’s device; the employee must enable GPS for attendance purposes.
3. Check-In & Check-Out Process
When employees check in using the “Check In” button, the system will:
- Capture the GPS location.
- Record the date and time when the employee checked in.
- Validate whether the employee is present in an approved attendance check-in location.
- Store all records and the location of the employee (GPS coordinates) in a secure (cloud) format.
Except for all steps in the check-in process described above, the same will occur for check-out.
4. Geo-Fencing Compliance
Most attendance tracking systems use geo-fencing to create a virtual barrier around one or more locations (examples include):
- Place of work
- Client location
- Factory or place of work
- Project site
If the employee is within the defined radius (e.g., 100m from the check-in and check-out location), then the employee’s attendance record will be successfully created. If the employee is outside of the radius, then the employee’s attendance record may be impacted or flagged as an exception.
5. Real-Time Sync
All attendance data will be synced in real-time to an HR dashboard where HR managers and supervisors will be able to access:
- Attendance report for that day.
- Attendance history by location.
- Daily late check-ins.
- Daily early check-outs.
- Employee activity during field visits.
Why Modern Businesses Need GPS Attendance?
Traditional attendance methods are becoming outdated, especially for organizations with field teams or multiple locations.
Here are the key reasons why GPS attendance systems are important:
1. Managing Remote & Hybrid Workforces
Employees can work remotely or in mostly hybrid configurations; GPS attendance will allow organizations to record time-based check-in locations, allowing them to keep employees accountable without having a physical location on-site.
2. Efficiently Tracking Your Field Employees
Businesses have individuals (sales, service, and delivery) who will be located at multiple customer locations on a daily basis; the GPS attendance method will validate these individuals as having “visited” the customer locations where they are expected to be assigned.
3. Preventing Attendance Fraud
A primary benefit of a GPS-based attendance program is to reduce the employee attendance process of submitting false or “fake” check-ins. By providing the real-time latitude and longitude of where an employee has submitted their daily check-in, employers cannot have their attendance records falsified or “punched in” from a location where they are not present.
4. Providing Visibility to Managers
Managers will have a real-time view of monitoring employee movement and attendance patterns within their company. The result of this visibility will be increased ability for managers to supervise employees, increase response speed, and improve communication between multiple branches or project sites.
5. Decreasing the Cost of Infrastructure
The infrastructure in order to support a GPS attendance program does not exist like that of a biometric-based system, which requires multiple pieces of hardware to create a solution; therefore, customers of a GPS attendance program will save on both hardware and ongoing maintenance costs relative to those of a biometric attendance program.
6. Simplifying Payroll Processing
Payroll systems use attendance data that is accurate, verified by location, and integrated into their payroll systems, reducing manual errors, preventing disputes over pay calculations, and ensuring pay calculations are accurate and on time.
7. Supporting Multi-Location Expansion
GPS attendance can help businesses manage their entire workforce across many cities and regions without having to set up physical systems at each new branch.
Major Features of a Geo-Tagging & GPS Attendance System
A well-designed system includes various advanced features:
1. Real-Time Location Capture
This innovation allows for the capturing of precise GPS coordinates at check-in and check-out for the purpose of assisting with maintaining end-to-end records of attendance, as well as preventing any manipulation or fraudulent usage of attendance based on location.
2. Geo-Fencing
Utilizes virtual boundaries placed around approved locations of work such that attendance is allowed only to those locations defined within the virtual boundary, and also automatically flags attempts to mark attendance outside of the defined place.
3. Selfie Attendance
Utilizes a photo taken at check-in to verify the identity of the employee to minimize buddy punching and to increase the level of authentication provided by employees who work remotely or within a field environment.
4. Offline Mode
Allows employees to mark attendance where there is no internet access and will store that attendance data until there is internet connectivity available to securely sync that data.
5. Route Tracking
Allows managers to determine the path taken by any employee during their working hours, allowing them to validate any approved visits to a customer, assist in route optimization, and increase accountability for field-based employees.
6. Automated Reports
Utilizes real-time data to provide an overview of attendance and to generate detailed timesheets and reports for download, simplifying the management of employee time in terms of analysis, compliance with regulations, and generating new payroll development.
7. Integration with Payroll
Calculates an employee’s salary in real-time via this data and ensures an employee receives their correct wages with the least amount of time required to administer payroll, and minimizes payroll errors.
Benefits of Geo-Tagging & GPS Attendance Systems
1. Eliminates Buddy Punching
With the proper use of GPS technology to verify the location of employees’ clocking in and out, there is no possibility for employees to use their devices from a different location or have other employees clock in and out for them.
2. Reduces Attendance Fraud
Employees’ location is tracked in real-time via GPS, preventing them from clocking in and out with fake entries or manipulating the time they do so.
3. Increases Productivity
Using location-based GPS, management will know where employees are located at all times and can therefore provide better supervision, motivation for employees to be on-site at the right times, and increase efficiency.
4. Saves Cost
Using a mobile-based GPS attendance solution eliminates the cost of having to install and maintain biometric attendance equipment and reduces hardware and infrastructure expenses incurred across multiple facilities.
5. Simplifies Payroll Processing
Integration of GPS attendance data directly to payroll eliminates the need to manually enter hours worked, reduces the number of payroll disputes, and ensures employees are paid on time.
6. Enhances Compliance
Digital attendance record keeping via GPS will support auditing, provide transparency, and aid employers in complying with current labour legislation and regulations.
Which Industries are Benefit Most from Geo-tagging and GPS attendance?
GPS attendance systems are highly beneficial for:
1. Construction Companies
Construction Companies are able to track on-site workers across multiple projects, verify they were at a job site, and ensure accurate attendance of contract and daily wage employees.
2. Logistics & Delivery Services
Logistics and Delivery Services monitor where delivery staff are in real time, check the completion of routes to confirm, and ensure accurate attendance records of distributed transportation teams.
3. Real Estate Firms
Real Estate Firms will confirm site visits by agents, track field executives, and ensure client assigned property inspections occur.
4. Healthcare Providers
Healthcare Providers will manage attendance of visiting nurses, field health workers, and multi-location staff while ensuring accurate records for compliance.
5. Manufacturing Industries
Manufacturing Units track shift-based workers across large factory facilities and multiple plants to ensure punctual attendance and timely processing of payroll.
6. Facility Management Companies
Facility Management Companies will monitor the location of cleaning, security, and maintenance staff deployed across multiple client sites with real-time location verification.
7. IT Companies
IT companies that have remote teams will use secure attendance marking by remote employees who work from approved locations within a hybrid work model with accountability.
8. Sales-driven Organizations
Sales driven Organizations rules will provide sales representatives with client meeting locations, market visit verification, and improved field performance tracking through location-based attendance systems.
How Savvy HRMS Simplifies Geo-Tagging & GPS Attendance?
It is no longer practical to manage attendance in the workplace by hand. A strong HRMS solution, such as Savvy HRMS, includes a full geo-tagged and GPS attendance solution that is specifically designed for Indian businesses.
Savvy HRMS includes:
- Real-time GPS-based attendance
- Smart geo-fencing controls
- Mobile app for employees
- Automated payroll integration
- Complete HR dashboards
- Secure cloud-based data storage
Whether you need to manage remote employees, field teams, or employees that work at multiple locations, Savvy HRMS will provide you with an accurate, transparent, and automated method of managing your workforce.
Conclusion
Geo-Tagging and GPS-Based Attendance Solutions are revolutionizing how businesses track their employees. They supply immediate location proof, cut down on time theft, create a sense of responsibility for work done, and make payroll processing easier. Continuing to utilize remote or alternate work environments implies adopting sound GPS-based attendance solutions has become unavoidable; it is therefore important for every organization to have a working GPS-based attendance software program. An intelligent platform like Savvy HRMS has enabled companies to update their attendance practices and provide them total command of managing their employee operations.
Contact Savvy HRMS to schedule a FREE demo of this exciting new method of managing employee attendance by using the most efficient geo-tagging and GPS systems.
