Do You Need an Automated Timekeeping System for your Cleaning Business
By: Steve Hanson

As your cleaning business grows and you add employees, keeping track of time sheets and adding up hours can be a big headache. If you have just one or two employees a paper time sheet where employees "clock in" and "clock out" for each location they clean may be all that you need to track their hours. However, deciphering data and adding up hours from numerous time sheets can take time away from other profit-making activities as you burn up your time doing payroll.

There are options available to your cleaning company other than hiring a full-time bookkeeper. Telephone timekeeping systems are ideal for cleaning companies. They allow employees to call from any location they are working at and "clock in" and "clock out" by using their employee pin number and location pin number.

These timekeeping systems have many time-saving benefits and features:

1. Tracks each employee's time down to the minute.

2. Reassurance that there's no cheating, as there can be with a handwritten time sheet.

3. Tracks travel time between buildings.

4. Caller ID capabilities to ensure employees are calling from the correct location.

5. The ability to leave messages for employees. As soon as they call into the system they receive their messages.

6. Employee scheduling and management.

7. Tracking of no shows or late arrivals. The system alerts supervisors with a call to their cell phone or pager.

8. Supervisors can call into the system to see who is clocked into a building at any given time.

9. The ability to track by job number as well as employee.

10. Easy way to import payroll information. Hours are automatically added up for you, including travel time. Various reports available. Two such automated timekeeping systems are: Express Time from A&B Express Products LLC, http://www.expresstime.net/index.html, and MITC's Telephone Timekeeping Software, http://www.mitcsoftware.com.

MITC's software has a one-time fee. You can buy added blocks of support time from them. Express Time is different in that it has a monthly charge as well as a per call fee. The MITC program does require added hardware and software installed on your computer or you can buy a ready-to-use computer from them.

Express Time has two different systems available: Express Time and Express Time Online. Express Time has a one-time fee, and you can buy added support hours. Express Time Online has a recurring monthly fee as well as a 12 cent per charge for each incoming call. Each system has software that must be downloaded on to your computer. They do not have hardware that is installed on to your computer, but they do have specific computer recommendations for the software to work efficiently. Express Time also states high-speed broadband is needed for technical support.

On either system, employees can call in any time of day, seven days a week, as long as you have the software is running on your computer. The MITC system has different modules that can you can add depending on your specific needs.

Either software, MITC or Express Time, will require a time commitment on your part to learn the system, which may seem overwhelming at first. But after a couple of weeks using the system you will be flying around it like pro.

Adding an automated timekeeping system may be the next step to growing your cleaning business. Any type of automated system you buy will require a financial investment, but it will free up your time from doing the mundane tasks of timekeeping and allow you to spend your time in more productive ways.

Steve Hanson is co-founder of TheJanitorialStore.com, an online community for owners of cleaning companies. Sign up for Trash Talk:Tip of the Week at http://www.TheJanitorialStore.com. Read success stories at http://www.cleaning-success.com.

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