Whether you’re a small, medium, or large enterprise, you need to efficiently manage and schedule your resources to improve productivity and save time cost. Creating timesheets and scheduling shift requirements are critical tasks that are prone to human errors and may result in loss of time and resources if done manually.
An employee scheduling software is a workforce management tool that automates and streamlines the process of creating schedules for hourly workers, tracking time and attendance, managing labor costs, and communicating with your employees.
Ranked as one of the best employee scheduling tools by users and major technology review sites, let’s have a look at some core features of the When I Work scheduling app.
What is When I Work?
When I Work is a scheduling platform and workforce management software that empowers small to large-sized businesses to efficiently manage their employees through shift scheduling, time tracking, attendance management, and team communication.
Managers or small business owners can easily send notifications related to shift changes to workers on their mobile phones through the When I Work app. Employees can view their schedules, clock in and out, swap shifts, share availability, request time off, or communicate with coworkers—all from their mobile devices.
In addition to a 14-day free trial, When I Work offers two pricing plans.
- Small business plan: $2/user; up to 100 employees
- Enterprise plan: 100 to 10,000+ employees; contact When I Work to schedule a demo
Though some users complain about login and GPS connectivity issues, app glitches, limited reporting, lack of integration with payroll, and customer support, there are several standout features of When I Work that make it one of the leading scheduling tools.
When I Work Features
Let’s have a look at key features of When I Work to better understand its capabilities and suitability for your business needs.
Employee scheduling
With When I Work employee scheduler, you can easily manage shifts and keep your employees updated about their schedules. The scheduling app lets you create accounts of all employees, add their positions and jobs as well as location, and color code them on the basis of their departments. The schedules can be set on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
You can manage time-off requests and fill shifts according to manpower requirements in different areas. With the OpenShifts feature, available employees are adjusted in open positions based on their pre-set availability; seniority; and first-come, first-serve basis. This way they can earn some extra hours while working overtime.
Once the schedule is set, you can “publish and notify” everyone through a single click. You can also save the Shift Template for later use. This time-saving feature is particularly useful for managers handling large workforces in multiple geographical locations. Employees can swap shifts, work overtime, and communicate with supervisors and coworkers through the app.
Payroll management is made simpler and accurate by adjusting their extra hours through timesheets and quick integration with payroll providers such as Gusto, Paychex, ADP, or any other. This feature also helps you manage your budget by including the salary information of each employee and monitoring how much it will cost per employee for every schedule you create. The payroll data can be easily exported as a CSV file.
Time clock & time tracking
The employee time tracking tool allows employees to clock in and out, logs punches to digital timesheets, and creates reports. With its easy-to-use time clock tool with GPS for accurate clocking, you can save a lot of time tracking employee hours. It lets you track employee attendance, time off, and breaks with ease.
The GeoCheckIn feature allows you to track the location of remote employees in real time, which ensures accountability and enhances work productivity. The clocking feature makes sure that employees don’t clock in early or monitor those who don’t show at all. Overtime alerts keep workers updated about their schedules and notifies them when their shift is over. It helps managers track time, prevent unnecessary overtime, and control labor costs.
No paper time cards or manual entry are required for attendance management. Employees can update their supervisors and colleagues if they’re running late or can’t make it to work due to some emergencies, all from the ease of their mobile phones.
Some users suggested that the app could have more customization capabilities and drag-and-drop shift features. Also, the print feature needs improvement with the ability to export color-coded sheets directly to the printer.
Team communication
Without a centralized communication channel and a holistic platform, your team can easily run into chaos and lose productivity. A team messaging app helps your organization streamline communication to one secure platform and ensures everyone is always on the same page. With When I Work, you can send messages, images, files, documents, videos, and more to individuals or groups.
You can engage in a one-on-one conversation with employees or interact in a group through a team chat feature. It also protects your privacy without sharing phone numbers.
Broadcast messaging allows you to send a quick announcement to everyone in your department or organization simultaneously. Employees are updated about any new piece of communication through the instant notification feature. It provides you with real-time visibility of important activities.
Employee timesheets
An online timesheet is a way for employees to track their time digitally and submit their timesheets electronically to their supervisors. It also removes the hassle of manual entry and includes the clock in and out times and when they take breaks.
The When I Work online timesheet app lets you fine-tune digital timesheets of employees as well as directly export them to payroll software. No special integration is required as your payroll provider is already integrated with the When I Work app.
Employees can also check their timesheet through the app by navigating to the Attendance tab and selecting the pay period they’d like to view.
Is When I Work Suitable for Your Business?
Companies have diverse requirements and objectives, and there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to scheduling and efficient workforce management.
When I Work is a solid scheduling, time-tracking, workforce management, and shift planning tool with an intuitive and user-friendly interface. It’s well-suited for organizations where you’re required to manage shift-based operations and track employees’ work hours.
Generally speaking, such software is ideal for organizations employing and managing a large workforce, so they can efficiently manage their shifts and keep tabs on employees. Though small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) consist of a smaller number of employees, productivity can still be improved with a good scheduling software. When I Work offers free scheduling and communication features for organizations of 75 or fewer employees. Most SMBs operating from a single location can improve their scheduling processes with the affordable small business plan.
Though a small business plan costs only $2/user/month, it comes with limited capabilities. To get all the enterprise-level employee scheduling and labor management features, you’ll have to pay extra. Still, it’s one of the most cost-effective alternatives as compared to its competitors.
When I Work is not without its limitations. The dashboard is limited to showing 100 shifts at a time, so if you’ve got a large team working different shifts, you may not get the full view of the day.
You can check our top scheduling software and apps list to see which one’s best for your business needs.
