9 Key Features to Look For in a Workforce Management Software

What is your most valuable resource? For most businesses, the answer will be the same: our people. Overseeing, maximizing and even developing resources are not tasks that should be left to chance. This is when a business should investigate workforce management software.

What is workforce management software?

The strategies an organization uses to allocate people, skills and resources to tackle business objectives is referred to as workforce management. The technology enabling those strategies is workforce management software. Not every piece of software handles the same functions, but many of them address the same core functions.

9 key features of workforce management software

1. Labor planning and management

Labor is likely to be one of your largest single expenses, so it only makes sense to track where those labor dollars are going as you ensure that cost centers have the labor they need to be successful. Labor allocation software will give you the ability to track where those expenses go according to the job, location, department or any other cost center. Employers also have to deal with a complex web of employment laws, and being able to follow your labor allocations in real time helps you stay one step ahead of costly noncompliance risk.

2. Automated employee scheduling

With user-friendly tech, employee scheduling no longer has to be a tedious, manual or time-consuming process. Schedules can be created quickly and distributed automatically to employees, so they have maximum visibility of when they’ll be working. Leadership will have easy insight into employee schedules and real-time analytics to understand the trends and centers for labor expenses. The best tech on the market will also offer easy ways for employees to trade shifts.

There are also tools on the market to automate the decision-making process for time-off requests. This tech makes it easier for employees to take advantage of their time off, improving their employee experience. Managers no longer have to worry about scheduling confusion, impartially applying company policies or the decision fatigue that comes from dealing with a constant flow of time-off requests.

3. Overtime management

Overtime is inevitable and doesn’t have to be a negative part of the labor management experience. When overtime is left unmanaged, however, it can quickly eat into financial resources, break budgets and make forecasting difficult. One strength of a robust workforce management software is the ability to track labor usage and prevent excessive overtime with advanced budgeting tools and automated notifications that warn managers when employees cross a predetermined threshold for hours worked.

4. Time and attendance management

It’s important that you have time-tracking tools that simplify the process for employees and managers alike. Accurate timecards simplify life for the payroll team, and when that pay is accurate, the organization can steer clear of compliance risk related to payroll errors.

5. Labor law and compliance tracking

Unchecked regulatory issues can bring any business to a halt. Burdens like costly fines, tedious paperwork and undue stress can be avoided when a workforce management software includes tools to support HR compliance. These tools make it easy to keep track.

6. Automated reporting and progress reports

Manually collecting and presenting data should be a thing of the past. An important part of workforce management tech is a tool or suite of tools that gather data and create timely, informative reports. Going a step further, this tech should also simplify the process of accessing these reports. Either through a mobile-friendly interface or a system that automatically creates and pushes reports to the proper parties, workforce management tech should give you a single source for the reports you need to manage your workforce, drive business success and support your compliance strategy.

7. Employee self-service features

Workforce management software isn’t just for leadership. These systems are driven by information, and employee data makes up a huge part of that information pool. And who knows employee data better than the employees themselves?

When members of your workforce have the tools to manage their personal information, you can be confident that this information is correct. And today’s employees don’t just want access to their data — they demand it. It’s possible with employee self-service tools that can improve data accuracy. Self-service tech that lives up to the name will also notify them of tasks they need to complete, connect them with answers to their questions and empower them to improve their employee experience.

8. Mobile accessibility

Managers can’t be chained to their desks and employees won’t always have access to a computer. With mobile-friendly tools, every member of your workforce can be connected to the tools they need without being pulled away from the tasks requiring their attention.

When they’re not at work, these same tools can connect them with their benefits, help them complete essential training and give them a way to communicate quickly and directly with their organization. And as we mentioned earlier, it gives them a quick and convenient way to manage their data so that data can be as accurate as possible.

9. License and certification tracking

Staying compliant with government regulations surrounding professional licensing and certification is a responsibility that never stops. Meeting these standards requires diligence, consistency and organization. Even if you manage to stay on top of a shifting regulatory landscape and a workforce that’s always on the move, audits and inspections can still happen. Being able to quickly generate necessary reports can help to satisfy auditors and regulators.

Workforce management software can help by giving managers a single, easy-to-access tool for these essential documents. Scheduled notifications can easily ensure that employees and managers alike are aware of when expirations are near. When connected with a learning management system, essential training can be automatically pushed out to employees to make sure they meet the standards of their profession.

Common workforce management challenges

There are numerous benefits to implementing a robust workforce management software. The flipside, however, is that failing to use the best-available tools to manage your workforce can open the door to a host of issues, only a few of which we’ll examine here.

1. Inefficient scheduling and time tracking

Not only is manually creating schedules complicated and time-consuming, but it also creates situations where you may be missing out on productivity because of under-staffing or incurring higher-than-necessary labor costs because you have too many people on the schedule.

2. High labor costs

When timekeeping tools are inefficient — or worse yet, manual — it’s difficult to avoid unnecessarily high labor costs because managers can’t see when employees are approaching the overtime threshold. Less-than-accurate time-tracking methods also put you at risk of overpaying due to time theft and force you to spend extra time fixing errors after payday due to missed or inaccurate punches.

3. Compliance risks

And if overpaying on payday seems costly, consider the expense that comes with increased compliance risk. Organizations that don’t have the tools necessary to tackle areas like employee leave, FLSA regulations, unemployment regulations, COBRA, workplace safety, certification tracking and others are likely to experience fines and expenses associated with noncompliance.

4. Lack of employee engagement

As mentioned above, employees can easily become frustrated if they feel that the tools and processes in their organization are difficult to understand or use. These feelings can cause disengagement in the workforce, which in turn can result in lowered productivity. If they believe that their employer isn’t committed to finding the best way to get work done, then why should they have to go above and beyond in their work?

5. Poor employee retention

When employees become disengaged, their frustration can easily cause them to start looking for new opportunities elsewhere. Organizations that can’t provide employees with an experience that’s consistent, efficient and at least seemingly fair are likely to lose employees to employers that can meet these standards.

Evaluating workforce management software features

Because workforce management is so essential to the effective functioning of an organization, there is no shortage of options when it’s time to start looking for workforce management tech. But because the field is so crowded, the right option isn’t always obvious. Here are four things you should do before making an investment in workforce management software.

1. Compare features between software vendors

No two businesses are identical, and the same can be said for the different names in workforce management software. Your business has a unique set of requirements, so take the time to see if a vendor has the features and capabilities that match your goals. Here’s a few factors to consider:

• Do the reporting capabilities meet your needs?
• If you anticipate growth, can the software scale alongside you?
• Does it support compliance management?
• What kind of employee experience will it provide?

2. Real-time decision-making requirements

When it’s time to make any decision that impacts the future of your operation, you want to know that the data driving that decision is accurate and timely. Consider your own decision-making needs when choosing a workforce management software, as this software will be a key part of your organizational performance going forward.

3. Increased compliance requirements

Compliance should be a given in any business environment, and you should always look for tech that simplifies workforce compliance. Verify both the security standards of your workforce management software as well as the tools it offers to address your regulatory requirements. For example, software that automatically notifies employees and HR about soon-to-expire credentials can help you prevent penalties and other issues. And tech with extensive reporting capabilities could help you prepare for and address audits.

4. Hybrid and remote work adaptability

The nature of work is changing, and it’s reasonable to believe that there will be more change in the future. If your business includes remote or hybrid employees, they need tools that allow them to be fully connected anytime, anywhere. You should also keep in mind that there are unique compliance requirements that may impact remote or hybrid employees, especially if they’re working in a different state than that of the primary business.

Streamlining workforce management with Paycom software

If you’re looking for workforce management software to help your business move forward, look no further than Paycom.

From the beginning, our single database was designed so our tools work together. And because all data in Paycom flows seamlessly and automatically between tools, the real-time information you need is always just a click away.

Juggling multiple HR and payroll tools as part of your workforce management software doesn’t help you achieve true automation. Because we designed every part of Paycom to work seamlessly together, you get to experience true full-solution automation.

Frequently asked questions

What does workforce management software do?

Workforce management software is technology that allows businesses to optimize employee productivity by streamlining the processes that manage their workforces.

What’s the difference between workforce management and HR software?

While there is a lot of overlap, workforce management software focuses on the operational processes that manage the workforce’s activities and efficiency like scheduling, labor allocations or productivity. HR software deals with all employee-related functions like recruiting, onboarding, benefits, performance evaluations and overall work culture.

Can small businesses benefit from workforce management software?

Every business can benefit from workforce management software. While a smaller workforce may be easier to manage, there are still opportunities to optimize productivity, manage labor expenses and forecast to help achieve strategic goals.

What is the most essential feature to look for in workforce management software?

While there are many important features, the most essential feature is the ability for different tools to communicate, ideally in a single software. This feature will be key to providing you with accurate, timely data.

How long does it take to implement a workforce management software?

There is no exact timeframe, as every company and implementation process is different. The implementation time could vary from a few weeks to months, depending on the scope of the project.

How can organizations improve employee retention using workforce management software?

Workforce management software allows employers to improve the employee experience by providing more effective scheduling, access to mobile-friendly tech and improved payroll accuracy. When employees experience fewer disruptions that make it difficult for them to succeed in their work or errors that impact their pay, they are more likely to have confidence in their organization and are less likely to look for a more consistent and efficient workplace.

Can workforce management software integrate with an organization’s existing business tools?

Sometimes. It all depends on the existing tools and the workforce management software that is attempting to integrate with those tools. Before selecting a workforce management software, it’s important to determine the compatibility of your existing systems with the new software.

Is most workforce management software scalable?

Scalability is certainly a plus for any workforce management software, but it’s not a standard feature in every offering. If scalability is a must-have for workforce management software in your organization, be sure to carefully examine any prospective technology for its ability to meet the projected needs of your operation.

How does a workforce management software help employers stay compliant?

Employment law demands that employers comply with a variety of laws, and many of these regulations cover areas that workforce management software is intended to optimize. Areas of potential compliance risk that fall under the umbrella of most workforce management tools include accurate pay, proper scheduling of breaks and time off, communication of work schedules and rules covering workplace safety. When these areas are sufficiently covered by a robust workforce management software, compliance risk for employers can be significantly reduced.