Pros and Cons of Employee Tracking Apps

When you’re considering implementing employee tracking in your business, it’s normal to have a lot of questions. Employee tracking apps have many pros and cons, along with varying features to suit different needs. 

Deciding which app is best for your business can be a grueling process, but once you find one that works for your company and its employees, your business will thank you. 

So let’s dive right in. What are the pros and cons of employee tracking apps? 

👉Related: Ultimate labor tracking guide for business owners

You’ll have more information to guide business decisions

Employee tracking apps can provide a lot of information – GPS location, hours worked, communications, mileage, and more. This information can be used in a lot of ways to inform important business decisions. 

Having GPS location information for your employees holds them accountable to be where they’re supposed to be when they’re supposed to be there. You’re able to monitor who is on which job sites and when, along with time spent commuting between jobs and the office or home.

It allows you to audit how jobs were quoted versus how long they took to complete, which gives you the power to provide better estimates in the future and more accurately project revenue. 

You can track which employees are clocking in on time more accurately, when they’re taking breaks throughout the day, and who is clocking out early.  Instead of relying on inaccurate paper timesheets, utilizing employee tracking apps provide a more comprehensive look into how your labor force is really working.

Employees can track their time more easily

Employee tracking apps that offer time tracking make it a simpler process to clock in and out and track hours. Dealing with paper time sheets can be a hassle. They get lost. They get damaged. They’re forgotten and aren’t submitted on time. 

Using an app allows for time tracking from your employee’s smartphone, tablet, or computer. Providing multiple options gives your employees more flexibility and more access to submit their information. 

Apps also allow your office staff to process payroll easier – no waiting for employees to bring their timesheets back in. Just pull the report from the app platform, process payroll, and go about your day! 

Technical difficulties can happen

It goes without saying that when you rely on technology, technical issues happen now and then. No system is perfect. There might be difficulties with the software itself, with user error, or with device malfunctions. 

While technology can make life easier in many ways, technical difficulties do happen. Finding an employee tracking app with great technical support and customer service will help alleviate this strain. Before making your decision on which employee tracking app to use, research how support is offered and how you’re able to get help when needed.

You might experience some push back from employees

No one likes to feel micromanaged – it’s not a good feeling for anyone involved. When you implement employee tracking apps, your employees may be less than accepting. The idea of being tracked doesn’t sit well with everyone, so how do you combat that hesitation? 

Information is key. Being transparent with your employees about exactly what is being tracked and how that information is going to be used is likely to relieve some of the tension. When your employees know how the tracking app will be used and why you’ve decided to implement it now, they’ll be more likely to adopt its use. 

Share how the use of employee tracking apps actually benefits the employees – things like more simple timecard submission and more accurate pay and mileage reimbursement. All of the benefits to employees will vary depending on how your business implements employee tracking apps, but there will be benefits regardless of how you use these apps. 

Employee tracking apps can save (or cost) your business money

Depending on the pricing structure of the employee tracking app you choose, the app will either save your business money, or cost it money. 

When you consider the time associated with manually running payroll, calculating mileage, and other tracking-related tasks, you’ll see that manually doing these tasks costs a lot of man-hours each month – therefore, a lot of money. 

So, when you then compare the cost of an employee tracking app to the cost of manually performing these tasks, and include the time saved by having the app, you might find that the tracking app (while an “expense”) will actually save you money. 

Labor Sync, for example, is priced at $10 per active employee per month. So if you’re paying your administrator $25/hour and it takes them five hours to sort through paper time sheets and process payroll every two weeks, your payroll is costing you $250 per month to run. If you have 20 employees, and the time to run payroll is cut down to 30 minutes per pay period, you’ll be saving $25 per month. 

The Bottom Line

Using employee tracking apps can redefine how your business operates. Finding the right one is important, and implementing it correctly will set you up for success. Make sure your employees are informed and understand why you’ve decided to use employee tracking apps. Ensure your employees receive proper training and support to effectively use the app you choose. 

Employee tracking apps can be an incredible tool and asset for your business.