Posted by Mairead Walsh on Thu, May 10, 2012
Andrew Ferguson, CEO Softworks has been invited by Legal Island to speak at their "All About Absence" events in Dublin and Belfast in June. Click here for further information about the event and the excellent speaker line-up that includes; occupational health medical experts, top employment law firms in Ireland and other consultants and specialists.
The 10 speakers will cover the following subject areas:
- Risk Management Practices
- Stress & Mental Health Issues - A Psychiatrist’s Opinion
- Interacting with Medical Experts 1 – A Lawyer’s Advice
- Interacting with Medical Experts 2 – An OH Opinion on Handling Stress and Conflict
- Role Play: How to Conduct an Effective Return to Work Interview: from Planning to Recording
- Fear of Failure – How to Inspire Employees to Engage
- Latest Innovations in Controlling Absence
- The Return of Long-Term Absentees - Varying Terms
- Justifying Dismissal for Short-Term & Frequent Absences
- Update on the Working Time Developments and Absence-Related Issues
You can download the full brochure and find out more about the conference incuding booking details
here
Posted by Mairead Walsh on Tue, May 08, 2012
Today’s most successful brands differentiate themselves by their workforce
Time and time again we hear company CEOs and Managing directors say “Our greatest asset is not in our inventory or our sales or our products—but in our people."
This is of course very true, however as an organisation, are you actually realising and leveraging your employees’ full value?
Was your brand built from the inside out? Did you start with your employees and your corporate culture? If not this could be the perfect opportunity to revisit this area. It could be time to see how well your brand sits with your internal workforce management policies, procedures and work practices. With social media and word-of-mouth marketing a reality of today’s workplace, what happens inside is reflected in the way you and your people are perceived on the outside.
Leading companies today are realising that their employees need to be an integral part of their brand. If you really want to leverage your greatest asset – your workforce, you need to strike a balance between the needs of your business and the needs of your employees.
By achieving this balance, you can attract, retain and develop your workforce, who will in turn assist you, achieve your goals and most importantly put a human face to your organisation. The so called 9 to 5/eight hour working day originated out of necessity during the Industrial Revolution in Britain in the 1800s. So much has changed since then in terms of how, when and where we do business, it makes you wonder why we are holding onto a working day that was created over 200 years ago.
CEOs and managing directors have come to realise that In order to compete effectively in today’s business environment, they need their workforce to both understand and share their vision. It is the workforce who will be instrumental in the successful implementation of an organisation’s objectives. The recognition of the importance of achieving this buy-in from the entire organisation has prompted active involvement by CEOs and Managing Directors in workforce managment projects. This involvement proves to their employees, both their commitment and their understanding of how their workforce is paramount to the success of the business.
If you would like to read more about why today’s CEOs and Managing Directors recognise both the importance and the benefits of taking an active role in Workforce Managment Projects, you are very welcome to download our free guide.
Posted by Triona Cahalane on Wed, May 02, 2012
We have another exclusive Softworks competition this month and the winner will receive a very special Moet & Chandon Champagne Gift Basket.
To win this great competition – download any of our white papers to be automatically entered into the draw with a chance to win!
Softworks Resources provides various types of information such as white papers that can be used to gather more information on workforce management solutions.
Posted by Mairead Walsh on Thu, Apr 26, 2012
According to research conducted by People Management seven out of ten HR professionals are not aware of how much poor health and absence costs their organisation. While 65 per cent of respondents were confident that they knew their firm’s true sickness absence rate, 70 per cent were not able to estimate the total cost of ill health to their organisation – including indirect expenditure such as health insurance.
“In order to make effective decisions about the costs and benefits of health policies, HR professionals need to have a firm grasp of the figures and finances behind them,” said People Management’s news editor James Brockett.
“The survey shows a high level of awareness of absence rates, as one might expect, but practitioners would do well to look beyond absence if they want to accurately consider employee health issues in the round.”
Interesting research from People Management. If you are in the 70 per cent range of HR professionals that are not able to estimate the true cost of ill health to your organisation, join Softworks next Tuesday 1st May for a 45 minute free webinar and we will reveal all.
Furthermore we will demonstrate why absenteeism remains a persistent problem for organisations despite the fact that many organisations have first class policies on absence management in place. By the end of this session you will learn the true costs of absenteeism, how to put absenteeism policies in place that will actually delver and how you can reduce absenteeism costs permanently.
Register for this webinar
Posted by Mairead Walsh on Tue, Apr 24, 2012
The area of Time & Attendance, Labour Scheduling and Absence Management (Workforce Management - WFM) has undergone significant change in recent years. Some of this change has come about due to advances in technology, and some due to the way modern businesses operate, compete and utilise labour resources. This free guide explains the changing role of the CFO/ Finance Director and how Workforce Management Solutions can assist them as efficiency driver, strategic partner, forecaster and corporate governance expert.
In this paper
- We demonstrate how the active involvement of the CFO/FD in Workforce Management projects can provide a framework, to ensure that the objectives of both the Finance department and the organisation are achieved.
- We investigate how modern Workforce Management solutions, are driving business performance and profitability, by striking a balance, between the needs of the business and the needs of the employee.
- We reveal why today’s CFO’s/FDs have recognised both the importance and the benefits of taking an active role in Workforce Management Projects.
DOWNLOAD FREE GUIDE
Posted by Mairead Walsh on Thu, Apr 19, 2012
Join Softworks CEO, Andrew Ferguson for a 45 minute free webinar on - Why current Absenteeism reduction policies alone will "never" work.
REGISTER FOR WEBINAR
Key Learnings of this session
- Why some of the best absence policies are and will continue to fail
- The true costs of absenteeism
- How to put policies in place for early intervention and to ensure all legal obligations are met when dealing with absenteeism
- How automation will create a full audit trail so that managers and the organisation is protected
- How the latest in technology can reduce absenteeism costs permanently
- How your input now will send a positive message and build a platform for future growth
Date & Time: Tuesday 1st May 2012 @ 12pm (45mins)
Posted by Mairead Walsh on Wed, Apr 18, 2012
On 8 February 2012, telecoms firm O2 asked their entire UK head office to work away from the office for the day. The initiative resulted in an extra 1,000 hours worked by staff, according to figures released by O2. Flexible working offers a range of advantages to both employers and employees.
With more and more private companies realising the tangible benefits of flexible working including; better retention rates, reduced costs and improved productivity, this could well be the perfect time for your organisation to introduce flexible options.
For further information and a practical guide on how to successfully introduce flexible working into your organisation download our new paper - Introducing Flexible Working Into your organisation. 
In this practical guide you will learn
- What to consider before implementing a flexible working environment
- The types of flexible working schemes
- The benefits of flexitime to the employer and employee including case studies
- Practical Steps for implementing flexitime
Posted by Triona Cahalane on Tue, Apr 10, 2012
According to an OfficeTeam survey of 210 Canadian works, 38% of professionals identify work-life balance as the top contributor to their job satisfaction. In 2nd place with 20% was the opportunity to learn and down.
The survey asked "Aside from salary, which one of the following aspects of your job is most tied to your satisfaction?"
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Work-life balance
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38%
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Opportunities to learn and grow
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20%
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A good working relationship with boss
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16%
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Ability to accomplish goals
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9%
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Don’t know
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6%
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"Professional priorities change over time," said Robert Hosking, executive director of OfficeTeam. "Because there's no one-size-fits-all formula for encouraging job satisfaction, supervisors should get to know their team members individually to better understand what motivates and inspires each of them."
Click here for more information on this article
Posted by Triona Cahalane on Mon, Apr 02, 2012
Last month, we ran a competition to win a delicious Chocolate Hamper and the winner picked at random was Aoife Rafferty who correctly answered our Competition Question: What can you save by using Softworks? The answer was of course Time & Money
Well done to Aoife and keep an eye out for our next Softworks Competition which will be coming soon!
Posted by Mairead Walsh on Wed, Mar 28, 2012
Advances in technology are enabling the retail industry to more effectively forecast and schedule their workforce. Effective workforce management has never been more critical to the retail sector due to the competitive nature of the industry and the necessity to control operating costs. As the workforce is the single largest controllable expense for retail, labour is often a key driver to financial success or otherwise.
Today’s Integrated Workforce Management (WFM) Solutions give retailers the tools and processes they need to balance the high cost of labour, tight budgets, variable staffing needs, complex labour laws and union agreements without putting customer loyalty, compliance, employee satisfaction, or profitability at risk.
Workforce Challenges in Retail
Retailers face the following 5 challenges;
(1) Forecasting customer demand
(2) Determining employee supply based on this demand
(3) Employee scheduling
(4) Real-time adjustment of these schedules as required
(5) Satisfying budget requirements and constraints
Challenge 1 – Forecasting customer demand
Forecasting customer demand in retail has always been challenging due to the many external factors that affect footfall. Factors such as seasonal demand, promotional activity and competitor activity are just a few that springs to mind. However, in today’s economic environment it’s even more challenging - as customer spending continues to be restrained, retailers big and small are facing major challenges.
Challenge 2 – Determining employee supply based on this demand
The second challenge is calculating the number of employees that are required to meet the demand forecasted. Ensuring that you have the correct number of employees, with the right skills during a specific time period, is very challenging as both overstaffing and understaffing are costly mistakes.
Challenge 3 – Employee scheduling
The third challenge is to create the actual work schedule. For this you are trying the balance the needs of the business with the desires of the employees. It’s not good enough anymore to just copy last month’s schedule – not if you want to develop, motivate and retain your best employees. A happy workforce creates a shopping experience that is profitable for retailers and satisfying for customers.
Challenge 4 – Real-time adjustment of these schedules as required
The fourth challenge involves changing the schedule as needed in real-time due to actual demand, to ensure you have optimum customer service. Today’s most successful retailers are reacting to changes with speed and precision. Responding to variable customer demand remains a fundamental mission in the retail sector.
Challenge 5 - Satisfying budget requirements and constraints
The final challenge is to ensure the business is profitable. Managers making daily call-in decisions need to appreciate the effect their immediate actions will have on the performance of the overall budget.
How Workforce Management Solutions can meet these challenges
Modern Integrated WFM Solutions manage the complex balance of workforce supply and customer demand. Sustaining this fine balance requires precise daily operations. Agile employee scheduling, time and attendance and analytical insight empower retailers to optimise their workforce and make changes in response to internal and external changes.
They empower retailers to understand and react to revenue patterns in their business by managing labour costs. By automating workforce management processes you are eliminating error prone paper-based schedules and excel spread-sheets along with time consuming administrative tasks. With a WFM solution allocating resources where and when they are needed is easily achieved via innovative automated scheduling tools. This allows managers to work within predefined budget allocations and optimise schedules accordingly. It also means they can keep a close eye on overtime, absenteeism and other unplanned costs.
If retailers are to meet all five challenges they must eliminate inefficiencies and more accurately schedule employees. This transformation of workforce management will allow retailers to reduce unnecessary costs and payments, improve productivity and efficiency and ensure a consistent and superior customer experience. Armed with the latest Workforce Management technology, meeting these challenges is 100% attainable.