Time and Attendance and Software as a Service

pWeb based time and attendance is a relatively new kid on the block. It comes in a few different flavours so it warrants further explanation./p
pWeb based means that the user interface is delivered via the web rather than by a server\client software installation.. This can be a locally published web server such as Windows Internet Information Server (IIS) or perhaps your Linux web server. Alternatively it can be a strongS/strongoftware strongA/strongs strongA S/strongervice (SAAS) application provided by a third party provider/p
p To access thenbsp; the a href=http://www.timeandattendanceconsultant.com/ target=_blanktime and attendance/a system you simply open an interface in your web browser. The clear advantage here is that the time and attendance system can be accessed on any PC with access to the network in the case of a locally published application or in the case of a SAAS solution, access to the Internet./p
p The typical web based time and attendance can usually handle more individual user sessions across local area networks (LANS) wide area networks and via Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) because the server takes care of all the processing and the web interface requires a lower network bandwidth that a server/client stylenbsp; interface./p
pLocally published web based time and attendance is by far the more common solution particularly when data collection terminals (time clocks) are concerned. This is essentially because there is an interface between the a href=http://www.timeandattendanceconsultant.com/ target=_blanktime clocks/a on your network and the software behind the web interface, again on your network and the associated database. The application is limited to your network, your hardware and your time and attendance database./p
pSAAS by comparison is hosted on a remote server and it runs a database for many companies. It may have to communicate with time clocks on your network and it needs to get through your firewall do do that. It then has to replicate this for many organisations who share the web application. There are technical barriers here that need to be overcome but there are also very clear potential benefits because the product is delivered in a unified and consistent fashion to all users./p
p The advantage here is you end up with a more consistent and stable product because every user is impacted by product issues which increases the need for the service provider to both react to issues and to ensure that system maintenance and up-time is maximised… because the whole client base will be affected ./p
pTime and attendance providers maynbsp; offer a dedicated hosted option which basically is not a SAAS product but in effectnbsp; web server software and database on a hosted server which can reduce your need for capital investment in server hardware and infrastructure. The cost of this hosted service is usually quite high as the cost of the systems is not spread between a large number of end users./p
pTo summarize; If your company has multiple sites where payroll is managed centrally but authorization of staff attendance is performed locally this is an ideal application for both locally hosted and SAAS web based time and attendance software.nbsp;/p
pWhen sourcing potential suppliers you will need to determine their ability to collect from time clocks or a href=http://www.timeandattendanceconsultant.com/ target=_blankbundy clocks/a on all sites ( if this is a requirement of yours) and you will also need to consider those employees who are not able to use time clocks and may need alternate log in methods such as a web interface or a telephony based option.nbsp;/p
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