One of the latest HR software products to hit the construction industry is a product that helps track the work hours of employees by using geofencing. At this point, you’re probably asking, “What the heck is geofencing?”
Geofencing is virtually defining areas based on GPS location and then triggering responses on mobile devices that enter or exit that virtually defined area. In reference to time tracking and construction,workers would be prompted to clock in on their phone when entering the pre-defined geofence (the construction site) and then prompted to clock out when leaving the pre-defined geofence (the jobsite).
In theory, this sounds great, but once you dig a little deeper, it gets messier than a jobsite porta-john.
Access and Privacy
First, geofencing for time tracking would only work if all workers had their own company-issued mobile device or if workers were comfortable using their personal mobile device for GPS tracking.
Second, workers would need to be trained and competent with the new technology, and we all know how much they love to be trained on anything beyond their primary responsibilities.
Third, who the heck wants to be tracked more than we already are?
In this era of social media and digital information, people are expected to give up more and more privacy at every turn.
Forcing construction workers to constantly share their location for the purpose of time tracking sounds harder than excavation during a Wisconsin winter. Many workers use their company-issued mobile device as their personal mobile device. Tracking the location of workers may open the door to future legal issues and privacy concerns for a company.
Trusting Field Leadership
Implementing a new construction software that tracks workers’ geo locations may show a lack of trust in field leadership. It is important to show foremen and superintendents that they are empowere and trusted to manage labor productivity.
Taking time tracking out of the hands of foremen may seem convenient at first, but on the other hand, it may show that office leadership doesn’t keep field leadership accountable. At the end of the day, who knows the entire team onsite better than the foreman?
Ultimately, if foremen and workers can’t be trusted to manage their timesheets honestly, that’s a hiring issue, not a technology issue.
Using STRUXI to Track Time
If it isn’t obvious yet, STRUXI does not use geofencing. STRUXI embraces the approach that has worked for over a hundred years (except in a modern, digital way):
- Workers can clock in and clock out on a tablet (optional)
- Foremen allocate time to the correct cost codes and enter production quantities
- Project managers review estimated labor hours vs. actual labor hours in real time
STRUXI is simple, yet effective, in improving work performance without invasively tracking workers or showing them you don’t trust their timesheets.
You can keep trusting your foreman and project leads, or they can use the easy-to-use time clock to give them more information.
