Time tracking blog

What if workers could clock in and out via their cell phones with simple voice commands?

“Clock me in on the 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway Paving project. Note that I’m meeting with the client at 9.”

TSheets has recently completed integration with Jott, a voice to text gateway, that allows users to make simple toll-free calls to track their time.  The sentence above would clock the user in under the “1600 Amphitheatre Parkway Paving” project code, and attach the notes “I’m meeting with the client at 9″ to their work log.  Once the clock is running, confirmation is sent to the user via email or SMS text.  When the user wants the clock to stop, he simply makes another call.

Listen to an example Jott phone call:

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“… a new time tracking standard for mobile workers.”

Getting Started:

1. If you don’t have one already, setup a TSheets account
2. Click “My Account” and enable Jott from the “Add-ons” list
3. Click “Jott” from the main menu for additional instructions

Once an account administrator has completed these steps, any worker with the “Mobile Time Entry” permission can then link their accounts to Jott and start tracking their time.  Jott will ask them who they want to jott, confirm their answer, and listen for commands that tell TSheets what kind of action to take.

For more integration information, check out the wiki.

Example

You : Call Jott (866.568.8123)
Jott : “Who do you want to Jott?”
You : “TSheets”
Jott : “TSheets, is that correct?”
You : “Yes”
Jott : Beep
You : “Hi TSheets, please clock me in under the project code, meeting external, and attach the notes: meeting with Jim Stevens about bathroom remodel and proposal. Thank you.”
Jott : “Got it”

How does it work?

Jott translates your voice messages and sends the text to TSheets.  TSheets then analyzes the message, determines actions based on personalized project codes and key-words,  and then takes action for you.  If you’re not a reader but want the inside scoop, here’s my brain dump on it:

The Future Is Here

“Being able to just call in, clock in and be done gives me the flexibility I need to fight crime all around the world.”

Tony Stark (Stark Industries)

Now anyone can use their voice to clock in and out. Just like in the Marvel movie, Iron Man, you say the words and we know what to do. The Future is here. 

Small businesses need quality software to track time and attendance. In the past, time and attendance was tracked by wall-mounted time clocks or paper time sheets, but this method has been replaced to increase accuracy and allow for remote time tracking.

Software for Tracking Time and Attendance, What Is That?

Businesses can benefit greatly from the latest tools for tracking their employees’ time and attendance. Software (web-based software in particular) is rapidly replacing wall-mounted time clocks and installed software applications.

Time and Attendance Software Replaces What?

No longer do your employees need to worry about filling out paper time sheets. Your bookkeeper doesn’t have to spend hours trying to read employees’ hand writing to total out the entire company’s time and attendance. Disjointed solutions like MS Excel spreadsheets for tracking time go away.  This leaves a common environment where employees manage their time. This negates the need for managers to spend hours calculating time and attendance for each individual. A simple report tells the story, leaving them to move on to more important tasks.

Will Time and Attendance Software Really Help Me?

Whether you are an individual interested in making sure your time is spent wisely or an employer looking to make your company more profitable, using some kind of time and attendance software is a necessity. Having an accurate time tracking system is an invaluable asset to your company and personal life.

Many companies start with using some sort of honor system, whether it is a paper timesheet or an excel document that employees manually enter their time into. Until recently it was very expensive for employers to be able to afford more accurate methods of tracking employees’ time and attendance. These employers don’t take into account the amount of money they are loosing from traditional rounding methods and the amount of money they are spending on the extra time it takes to collect, compile, and calculate their employees’ time. These two items alone have the potential of saving thousands of dollars every year. TSheets offers a free personal version of their time and attendance software, while business owners can use it for as little as $9.95 a month.