People management experts, HR directors and industry analysts recently converged for an interactive forum, hosted by Accsys, focused on advances in technology and other key factors impacting time & attendance management. Delegates agreed that big data, mobility and biometric security have combined to substantially alter the way this facet of business is handled.
Accsys is a member of the Business Connexion Group (BCX) and national supplier of people management software and hardware solutions within the HR, payroll and time & attendance space.
The Company is rated as one of the country’s top five payroll service providers and is differentiated in the market by the fact that its solutions can run either in the cloud or on servers.
The recent announcement of the Accsys PeopleWare MobiApp, a mobile extension of the Company’s Employee Self Service offering, has once again raised the Company’s profile in the market.
This mobile app can be used from anywhere in the world to authorise leave requests, sign-off overtime payments, approve training, and even "clock" into a T&A area using a smartphone's GPS or WiFi geolocation capabilities.
The offering is freely available on Android and iOS, and has now been uploaded to the BlackBerry Platform. Usage is based on a pay per use model.
Presenting an overall picture of how mobility and data management has helped employees transcend traditional time & attendance practices in business, Adrian Schofield, Manager, Applied Research Unit, Joburg Centre for Software Engineering at Wits University, explained that today technology facilitates a change in mindset over working parameters in not only the employee, but also the employer.
The Company’s CTO, Dr Liam Terblanche, reiterated the significance of biometric technology integrated with smartphones. He spoke of the relevance of the concept of ‘quantified self’ or the development of statistics and information about oneself that can be applied to mobile applications and devices to address issues, problems or situations before they arise.
“We are in a very exciting time in human history – we can do something for ourselves before things actually happen. We have the technology in the form of apps on mobile phones that can measure our heart rates, blood pressures and more,” Dr Terblanche added.
The Forum provided an opportunity for delegates to discuss the influence of regulation like POPI and issues surrounding the privacy of information (covering data, storage and use) and of the rights & responsibilities of individuals.
Teryl Schroenn described the session as a success and said businesses today have a real opportunity to take advantage of big data and analytics, specifically in terms of the dynamics of volumen, velocity and variety.
The consumer of the future is willing to share, always connected and is happy to communicate with digital entities. This is the climate in which businesses now find themselves competing and there is a significant opportunity to grow and expand services by tapping into this digitised environment,
Schroenn added.
