Table of Contents
Introduction
Time tracking is crucial to any organization. Being a front-end system, data from time tracking systems feeds into other important systems — including HR, Payroll, and ERP — that are used to record spending and income. Clearly, the need for a world-class solution to track time cannot be underestimated.
Searching for the ideal time tracking solutions provider can be a challenge, with several companies in the market claiming to have the best solution. Decision makers must choose a provider after weighing the pros and cons of each one. Given the fact that some very large payroll and HR solutions companies also offer time tracking solutions, it may be tempting to accept their offer of a solution that is either bundled with their payroll and HR solution, or offered at an enticing add-on price.
With this in mind, we asked some of our customers about their experiences with bundled time tracking offerings from large payroll and HR service providers. These customers ranged from small and mid-sized businesses to large corporations spanning several industry segments and geographies. All of them use well-known payroll and HR systems, but either decided not to choose a time-tracking solution provided by these vendors, or quickly shifted away from them.
Top 5 Reasons to Avoid Time Tracking Solutions from Payroll and HR Providers
Core competence vs. fringe service: Time tracking as a core competency was the main reason most companies gave for choosing a specialized time tracking solutions provider. Core competencies are particular strengths organizations have — relative to other organizations in their industry — which provide them with a fundamental basis to create a selling proposition. The core competence of the payroll or HR provider is just that: they have their top resources working on their payroll and HR applications. All of their R&D spending is focused on making their primary products better and more feature-laden. Other functions must rally around to help bolster their main product. For the provider, time tracking is, and always will be, a fringe or secondary offering — hence, no great focus or effort will be put into making it better.
Ease-of-use: Though time tracking is an important function, it does not constitute an organization’s main focus. Therefore, employees should not be spending too much time on this routine activity. This makes ease-of-use an important factor when choosing a solution. Time tracking solutions from most payroll and HR providers score very poorly on this account. Generally, time entry and approval procedures in these systems are cumbersome, leading to poor adoption rates. Without an intuitive user interface, employees will certainly require training to begin using these systems — and constant nudging to continue using them.
Flexibility and ability to scale up: Generally, time tracking systems from payroll providers are rigid and lack the flexibility to meet the changing needs of growing organizations. Customers who started using these systems discovered just how inflexible they were and contacted Replicon to help them meet their needs. Most systems from payroll providers lacked robust reporting functionality to provide real-time visibility into the organization’s performance, which hobbled their decision-making abilities. Moreover, time tracking solutions from payroll and HR providers are not well-suited for modern business environments, as they are not scalable and are quickly outgrown within a few months. They are neither capable of handling detailed business rules, nor very adaptable to the changes taking place in growing organizations.
Unplanned obsolescence: Time tracking systems from payroll and HR providers can best be described as archaic. Implementation time is high, and upgrades are rare, as their developer resources are not focused on the time tracking part of the solution. This results in most customers getting stuck with an outdated system and not receiving continual upgrades.
Lack of support: Time tracking systems provided by payroll and HR providers lack dependable support. Feedback from Replicon customers indicates that they neither provide satisfactory deployment nor integration support. There is no single point of contact to help resolve time tracking problems, and customer service is usually lethargic and unhelpful.
Conclusion
The myth about companies benefiting greatly from using a common vendor for payroll, HR, and time tracking is just that — a myth. The assumption that there will be effortless and smooth integration between disparate software suites, just because they were developed by the same company, is false. Due to the reasons stated above, many companies have chosen Replicon’s hassle-free solutions.
Vendors who are serious about providing a vital and user-friendly time tracking system go the extra mile by refining the process of integration between their application with payroll and HR systems commonly relied on by companies worldwide.
All of these reasons make it imperative for organizations that are looking for time tracking solutions to avoid outdated solutions from their payroll and HR providers. By adopting best-in-class time tracking solutions, they can benefit from:
Rapid adoption
Faster time-to-value
Seamless upgrades and maintenance
Superior customer experience
At Replicon, we strongly believe that business solutions, the user experience, and ongoing maintenance should be hassle-free from the moment a customer requests a free trial and throughout the entire implementation and life cycle.