Software company Accsys specialises in people management solutions and recently held a highly interactive forum addressing the issue of time and attendance and the contribution that technology can make.
The monitoring of time and attendance is receiving increasing attention at boardroom level due to the potential for a substantial return on investment. Hosted by Accsys CEO, Teryl Schroenn, the conference focused on the role that biometrics and mobility can play. The very effective format consisted of a series of talks by industry experts, each followed by a hosted round-table networking session and then a feedback session. Here is a cross-section of some of the talks.
Making the impossible possible through technology
Schroenn addressed the question of whether there are tools out there that can help managers manage people more effectively, spending less time on systems and more time on people. She introduced Peopleware MOBI, Accsys’ newly launched mobile app, which is an extension of the Peopleware platform. Using satellite technology, this app allows staff to use their smartphones to clock in, view payslips, get a leave history, apply for leave, approve leave, put in travel claims – and more – from anywhere in the world.
‘Work’ vs ‘at work’
Adrian Schofield from the University of the Witwatersrand talked about the concept of 'work' as opposed to 'at work' and the challenge of managing this. Examples of traditional key measures are time, distance, speed, number of orders or lines of code generated. Today there are many more technologies on offer and mobile devices are all pervasive. With wireless technologies, Wi-Fi, location aware devices, Bluetooth and near field communication (NFC), a person or object can be tracked through almost any environment.
The issue is real time management as opposed to real-time management. Mobile technology can give managers a broader reach, with more diverse teams motivated to work smarter and harder, allowing them to focus on the deliverables and on collaboration.
Lessons from biometrics
Marius Coetzee from Ideco took the delegates through the various types of biometrics – the human body is so unique that virtually any part of the body can be used. Trends are changing and there is a shift to newer technologies. The use of voice recognition technology has grown from 3 to 13% since 2009 and iris recognition from 5 to 15%, while the use of fingerprints had dropped from 66 to 31%.
He also gave an insight into the mechanism of fingerprint recognition and the associated problems. In one case study he described how a distribution company with 200 employees cut down on ghost employees, eliminated fraudulent collections and improved attendance accuracy by increasing its biometric access points at a cost of R980 000.This resulted in savings of R4 million.
Consumer perceptions are an issue. In a recent survey on the reasons for resistance to biometrics, 27% of the respondents cited hygiene as a factor, 87% had concerns about accuracy, 16% had privacy issues and 46% were worried about safety. However, 85% expected biometrics to continue to be used in future.
However, while biometrics deters criminal intent, it must comply with all relevant standards. The technical framework must be right, otherwise it is not worth implementing.
Biometrics on mobile devices: future or fad?
Liam Terblanche from Accsys described how biometrics can offer far more than just identification of a person, and the smartphone is central to this. He gave some examples of the ‘quantified self’, where the combination of biometrics and mobile devices can make life better by measuring what a person does. This is called anthropometry – the measurement of the body. There are already mobile apps which wirelessly track distance run, sleep patterns or weight. It is now possible to get an online gene analysis or acquire a Bluetooth-controlled pacemaker. Soon we will have contact lenses that can measure blood glucose levels; and with epidermal electronics, a wafer-thin circuit board printed on the skin will measure sweat levels, blood pressure and muscle EMG signals.
Terblanche concluded that the cellphone has become a mobile computing device. By collecting data it can provide an early warning system and pre-empt medical scenarios – we live in fortunate times.
What’s happening on the privacy scene
Eugene Vivier and Rachel Best from Price Waterhouse Cooper (PWC) explained the intricacies of the upcoming POPI bill, as defined by the Protection of Personal Information Act. Privacy means different things to different people. It can be the right to private space, to be free of surveillance, to conduct private communications, or to be left alone. This right extends to data and information. In a recent PWC survey, 75% of people said they have lost control of their personal information and 54% believed business does not handle this properly.
The Act was signed in November 2013 and companies will have to comply by about 2016. It covers eight information protection conditions and includes direct marketing (opt in vs opt out) and the rights of the individual. For example there must be a good reason why information on an individual is obtained, it can only be kept for as long as it is needed, it must be kept secure and people must have access to their own information. There are huge penalties for contravening the Act and companies will need to know what their responsibilities are.
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