Shift Based on First Record of The Day

In organizations where employee shifts are changed in ad hoc manner, the timekeeper finds it difficult to keep track of their working shifts. TAS2000 has a feature which can change an employee's shift based on the first record of the day. This works perfectly for day shifts, but may need manual correction for night shift employees. Here is a link which discusses challenges when this powerful feature of TAS2000 is used:

 

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/shift-based-first-attendance-record-day-challenges-skand-bhargava

Regards,

For Softools Middle East, A Dubai Based Company

Skand Bhargava
TAS2000 & HR2020: Serious Attendance & HR Systems
PO Box 14959, Dubai
Tel:  +971 4 2680533, Mob: +971 50 6340258 

 

Creating Manual Records Is Easy & Safe

Recently a client asked a question regarding one of the powerful features of TAS2000 Time & Attendance System. I replied to it and used that opportunity to post this blog.

Manual records cannot be avoided because Time & Attendance system involves people. Not just people, it involves devices also. Just like people may forget to punch, so can a device become unusable and need repair or replacement. TAS2000 provides a very nice interface to create manual records. It is designed to keep time wasted in creating a manual record as low as possible.

It will be prudent to add here that attendance records created at attendance devices cannot be deleted by users of TAS2000. The date and time logged on such records can also not be modified by them.

Regards,

For Softools Middle East, A Dubai Based Company

Skand Bhargava
TAS2000 & HR2020: Serious Attendance & HR SystemsPO Box 14959, Dubai
Tel:  +971 4 2680533, Mob: +971 50 6340258 

-----Original Message-----
From: Skand Bhargava [mailto:skand@softoolsme.com]
Sent: Tuesday, July 19, 2016 1:20 PM
To:  XXXX

Subject: RE: inquiry

Dear Ms.  XXXX 

They are for convenience and reducing data entry effort. When an employee forgets to punch attendance and you are creating a manual record, you can select one of these six radio buttons and then click on "Add" button. When you do this, a new record space holder is presented to you (record is not added yet). Here in "Scan Date and Time" the date is taken from "Starting Date" and time is taken from Shift Master as per below logic:

If you selected "S", time will be START of the Shift time.

If you selected "E", time will be END of the Shift time.

If you selected first "L", time will be Out for LUNCH (Break-1 out) time

If you selected second "L", time will be Back from LUNCH.(Break-1 In) time

If you selected first "T", time will be Out for TEA (Break-2 out) time

If you selected second "T", time will be Back from TEA.(Break-2 In) time

As I said, these six radio buttons are for convenience sake only, as most of the times when you create a manual record, you use one of these six timings. However please remember that you can edit all the information before actually adding the record into the system. For example, an employee who was supposed to come at 8.00 am did not punch in morning. You found out that he actually came only at 10.00 am. In this case while creating the manual record, you can select any one of the six and then change time to 10.00 am.

"Daily Attendance" and "Time Card" reports also show which record of the day (if any) was created manually.

Note: You CANNOT change date or time in "Scan Date and Time" when record is not manual, meaning when record is coming from attendance reader device. This is to ensure system integrity.

Regards,

For Softools Middle East, A Dubai Based Company

Skand Bhargava
TAS2000 & HR2020: Serious Attendance & HR SystemsPO Box 14959, Dubai
Tel:  +971 4 2680533, Mob: +971 50 6340258Tel:  +971 4 2680533, Mob: +971 50 6340258 

-----Original Message-----
From:  xxx @ xxxxx . xxx [mailto:xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxe]
Sent: Tuesday, July 19, 2016 12:26 PM
To: skand@softoolsme.com
Subject: inquiry

Dear Mr. Skand,

I forgot the meaning of the ones in the red box.

Kindly identify so I will have a copy and I don’t have to call you next time.

Thanks!

Best Regards,

xxxxx  

What to do if you did not close TAS2000 Operations before computer shutdown

Below is our response to customer's support query:

===================

Hi

Do the following:

1. Close Operations on all computers

2. Login as "siteadmin" (the user id shown in Information Box) in Operations on Server

3. Exit

4. Login as "TAS2000" in Operations on Server

The corner will become GREEN. You can then work from your own desktop computer.

Note: (a) User "siteadmin" is to be used only for administrative purposes, not for normal use. Please use your own login id to work in Operations

         (b) Always exit from Operations before shutting down your computer

Regards,

For Softools Middle East, A Dubai Based Company

Skand Bhargava
TAS2000 & HR2020: Serious Attendance & HR SystemsPO Box 14959, Dubai
Tel:  +971 4 2680533, Mob: +971 50 6340258 

-----Original Message-----
From:  customer@...  .

Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2016 10:00 AM
To:  support@softoolsme.com

Cc:
Subject: RE: TAS2000 Issue

 Hi ,

We are receiving the below message on server.

Also the colour in the top right corner of the status window is not turning green either when we log in to TAS2000 on the server.

Please help us resolve this issue.

  

Regards,

Use only the first scan and the last scan of the day?

In some companies which have multiple locations, there are access control readers for entering into one office (like HO) but not in other (like Showroom). Management wants to minimize investment and wants the access control reader to be used for attendance also.

 

As far as technology is concerned, this is not a challenge. Market is full of readers with Function Key or Keys that allow you to specify reason why you were opening the door. You just use the keys properly to mark the event. For example, when you come in the morning, use F1 key. In the middle of the day if you are opening door for events that do not affect attendance (like going to rest room or for office work like marketing, meetings etc), use F2 for going out and F3 for coming back. When you are leaving for lunch break or home, use F4 key. A good Time and Attendance System like TAS2000 will be able to ignore all records with F2/F3 status and use only F1 and F4 records for the purpose of attendance.

 

So what is the problem?

 

The problem is, in come companies, management is not confident that their employees will properly use Function Keys. and the time-keeper will have additional work for sorting out the mess. This leads to them asking next question, "Why not use just First and Last records of the day, and ignore all in between records?" Management is happy when we tell TAS2000 can be setup to do exactly this.

 

But this not the end. Management then points out that in Showroom, the picture is different! They inform that in showrooms there is no access control. The readers are purely for attendance. They close showroom in afternoon for 3 hours (lunch break) and the employee punch 4 times in a day. For showroom, all punches must be reported in attendance system because they wish to monitor punctuality for lunch breaks also. When we tell that TAS2000 can do this too, it's a big relief for all.

 

TAS2000, once configured to use the First IN/Last OUT feature, allows actual control at individual employee level.

 

In Configuration the option "Use First, Last Scans Only For Attendance" must be selected first, as shown below:

 

Once this option is configured as above, in Employee Maintenance each employee can be marked whether system will use only first/last scans of the day for him or otherwise. See below:

 

Need clarifications or more information? Contact me as follows:

Softools Middle East

skand@softoolsme.com
+971 4 2680533, +971 50 6340258

Some Of The Feature To Look For In An Attendance System

When you need a real time attendance system look for features like below. Most TA system providers would not talk about them:

1. Get data from remote readers without costly site to site VPN.

2. Job Costing module for those who need to monitor man hour cost on different jobs/projects.

3. International Module for companies with centralized attendance management having readers in different time zones

4. Absence, Presence, Lateness, Indisciplined Punching information sent automatically by email to manager, cost-centre heads and timekeeper at specific time of day.

5. Graphs for management for quick overall view of over time, absence, punctuality, indisciplined attendance punching and maintenance of attendance system.

6. Automatic association with a shift, depending on first punch of day

7. Rounding off worked hours to 15 minutes, half hour or full hour.

8. Works with readers from most of the popular brands in market.

9. Export module for payroll software

10. Possibility to ignore time before day start in calculating total time worked

11. Possibility to use only first in and last out of the day - when combining with Access Control system

12. Ability to send email or SMS to employees who are absent or did not punch properly the previous days.

And there are many such features that are needed which you may think of AFTER the purchase. It is better if these questions are asked BEFORE.

TAS2000 gives information quickly and lets you take action in a fast and secure manner.

Need clarifications or more information? Contact me as follows:

Softools Middle East

skand@softoolsme.com+971 4 2680533, +971 50 6340258

Attendance System: The Head Office and Branches Challenge

The Scene:

Your company has Head Office and Remote Locations like branches, sales outlets, warehouses, factories, staff in buses etc. You have Internet connection at every place or you are ready to provide need based 2G/3G/4G GPRS based Internet connection. You have centralized attendance related activities.

The Requirement:

You want all attendance data recorded on the attendance readers in various remote locations to come to HO.

The Challenge:

If you have setup a site-to-site VPN in your organization, then of course getting all your attendance data from remote locations to your centralized database in Head Office is easy. The problem arises for most solution providers when there is no VPN.

Our Strength:

This is where we shine. If you have normal or GPRS based Internet connections in HO and in Remote Locations, our TAS2000 Time & Attendance solution will get data from branches to HO, even when you do not have the costly site-to-site VPN setup. 

About TAS2000: Please read http://www.softoolsme.com/TASVISION. Even the experienced timekeeping professional will find features in TAS2000 very impressive.

• The graphs help top management in getting overall picture of overtime, punctuality, absenteeism, indisciplined punching with just a glance. 
• Section heads receive automatic emails at start of duty about absence/presence - and also indisciplined punching the previous day.
• Various  screens and reports help staff in-charge of Operations, HR, Accounts and Timekeeping functions by way of providing timely and accurate information.

...these are just tip of the proverbial iceberg.

For more information contact us as below:

Softools Middle East, A Dubai Based Company

TAS2000 & HR2020: Serious Attendance & HR Systems

Alert Financial Controller

Recently I was in a meeting with a Financial Controller of a company for their Time Attendance requirements. They had already purchased some time back few Face cum Fingerprint Readers from another vendor. ZK is one of the well known Chinese brands. However he needed something more than what the existing system was providing. So he wanted a meeting with me.

During our discussions, I informed him only those who are entitled for overtime will get OT. System will not calculate OT for employees who are not entitled for it.

Some time later I told him of another feature which gives automatically full attendance to employees (if they are present), even if as per IN/OUT time, number of hours worked by them is less than the regular hours they are supposed to work. This feature is for employees like marketing executives, managers etc whose job requires them to be out of office.

The FC was appreciative of both features but immediately said that system should not allow a person to be marked both with "Entitled for OT" and "Auto Full Attendance".  This is because those who are paid overtime, also have their salary deducted (usually) for working less than required hours. Therefore it will not be a good idea to give them full attendance automatically. 

I was impressed by how fast he caught on to this point. I have to say that not many get it immediately. He was happy that our system works exactly as he had observed. See below, as soon as one tries to tick both, a pop-up comes up that this cannot be done.

Need clarifications or more information? Contact me as follows:

Softools Middle East

skand@softoolsme.com

+971 4 2680533, +971 50 6340258