An organized and functional desk: If you do work from home then the couch is no place for you during business hours. To get you in the right frame of mind and increase productivity you need a desk.

What is a desk without a chair? The average workday is 8.5 hours long, and for business owners it is even longer. Your back needs full support and that can only come from an ergonomic office chair.

The focus of any office desk is the computer: Notebooks are the way of the future, particularly if you’re a business owner on the go. When attending a meeting or a presentation a notebook is your office on the move.

A Smart phone: how often do you get caught away from the office and cannot access your email? Never when you have a smart phone. It may not offer all of the functionality of a computer but it is a great tool when you are without your trusty notebook.

Multi-purpose devices save on space: Rather than cluttering your small space with chunky pieces of equipment and cables that could be a fire hazard, invest in multi functional equipment such as a printer/copier/scanner/fax. Not only will you save on space, but also save on money compared to buying each piece separately.

A safe place for all the important stuff: If you are running a small company and you do not have an IT department then the next best thing is to keep an online data back up. Up to 50% of small businesses that do experience a large loss of data will close within 2 years, so even with the IT department, online data back up space is still a great investment.

Invest in Time & Expense tracking: Running your own business can be overwhelming at the best of times and hours can slip through your fingers. Rather than wondering where the time went, log it. Using a web based tracking application you can easily keep t

rack of the real costs of a project and how much time you have invested. This is a great tool, which helps with analyzing costs and assists in billing and invoicing, particularly for a small business that does not have an accounting department.

If your organization utilizes tools such as web based time sheets and expense-tracking reports it can much easier to keep updated with each employees profitability and track where they spend their time. This information is so important; it needs to be tracked on a weekly or monthly basis, rather than annually at a performance review.

For most employers, the objective of a review is to find out what activities their employees are doing and with which clients they are spending their time. Employers also look to find which employees are maximizing their billings and who is profitable. If a company incorporates a web based tracking application, this information is easily found and analyzed on a more regular basis.

With this information at your fingertips, what purpose does a performance review serve? The objectives of a performance review is:

• Judge any gaps that may lie between actual and desired performance.
• Strengthen the relationship and communication between employee and employer.
• To diagnose the strengths and weaknesses of the individuals and identify where further training may be required.
• To provide feedback to your employee of their performance.
• To diagnose any voids in the organization that may prevent the employee from carrying out their role effectively.

The facts and figures are available to you in black and white with a tracking tool; a performance appraisal allows you to analyze this information with your biggest asset. Together you and your staff can build plans, and work to develop new strategies and goals to strengthen your business, build more effective working relationships, and develop knowledge and skills needed to grow your company.

So how can you tell if somebody is working or pretending to work? Keeping an eye on their productivity levels is key.  It is great when your team has reached their targets at the end of each month, no doubt working hard to achieve it, however, it is important to look at the individual contributions, not just the total figures. It can be easy, even in small companies, for someone to blend in with the crowd and appear to be giving your business 100% of their time and dedication, but measuring their productivity can tell a different story. Not only is it frustrating to employers when an employee has a laid back attitude towards their work, but it can be detrimental to the moral of other employees. If one employee works hard and receives no acknowledgment, they could adopt the laid back attitude of their co-worker.

Employee reporting is a great way to see what activities individual employees are spending their time on and where their hours are being inputted. Employee utilization analysis will also indicate if employees are maximizing their billings and track the profitability of individuals. Regular employee appraisals are also a great way to let your employees know that you are monitoring their productivity, while also giving the employee an opportunity to inform you of ways their productivity could be improved.

We found an entertaining piece from Sunday Morning, The Money Issue from 2009, guiding employees on how to look busy. WATCH THE VIDEO here and see if you recognise any of the signs from your employees.

There is some good news for orgnanisations with less than 50 employees as their absenteeism rates were lower, with an average of 2.17% compared to larger organisations with a rate of 3.58%.

Do you know what the percentage rate of absenteeism is in your business? A web based application such as 1Time Tracking allows you to establish patterns in absenteeism and track which employees are increasing your costs and loosing you potential business through absenteeism.

Of course there is no avoiding absenteeism, people get sick from time to time, but there are some ways which employers can reduce it.

Holding back to work interviews gives the employer an opportunity to:

• Welcome the employee back to work
• Ensure employee is fit to return to work
• Identify the reason for the absence
• Confirm length of absence
• Identify any work conditions that may have caused the absence
• Discuss workload that employee missed out on and prioritise tasks.

Other ways in which absenteeism can be reduced is through the implementation of health and well being support systems. Employers can also celebrate employees with low absence rates, and when employees return to work after an illness. Small rewards can be offered to employees who have a low rate, or an improving rate. Showing your employees that you appreciate them coming to work means they will be reluctant to take any time off work if it is not necessary.

Here are some effective tips we found to motivate staff and get those important time sheets filled in and submitted on time:

1. Don’t leave them waiting: you may be waiting for your staff to fill in their time sheets but are they waiting for you too? Ensure that you respond to any staff requests in a timely manner. If you do not keep them waiting, they wont keep you waiting either.
2. Thank them: Every staff member who completes and submits their time sheets should get a personal thank you. If you are unable to thank them face-to-face then consider a personalized email, or even better, a hand written note.
3. Timesheet lottery: You know what they say; you have got to be in it to win it. All members of staff who hand in their timesheets within a certain deadline will be automatically entered into the timesheet lottery. This means one big prize can be won monthly, but make sure the prize is a good one. Weekends away, an extra week of vacation time, a cash bonus, VIP tickets to an event, etc.
4. Give them what they really want. We found this great video from Brazilian digital firm J. Walter Thomas where they filled a fridge with beer and treats. The treats are for all of the staff, but will only unlock once all the timesheets are submitted.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

If free beer does not fit in with your company culture there are many other treats you can offer your employees, which get them exited about handing in timesheets at the end of the week:

• Cupcakes and pastries
• Free lunch on Fridays
• Getting off work an hour early for the weekend
• Casual dress day
• An extra break

If you do your timesheet we will give you free beer (and soda too)

No more paper time sheets

Paperless offices are the future. More and more companies are changing the way they operate their business. Web based applications bring organisations into 2012 and keep them up to date and even give an edge against their competitors.

A web based application will allow for instant access to information from anywhere in the world, unlike more traditional methods such as excel sheets locked to one specific computer, or files locked away in a cabinet.

Not only are online based tools more effective for accessing information, they also save a lot of time when inputting information. When dealing with more tradition computer applications or even a paperwork, one simple mistake can set you back hours, loosing time and money.

One of the most popular web based application in any organization are the time and expense tracking tools. Companies that trust their business to time and expense management systems enjoy a variety of benefits. Employees also share in a stress free environment where no one is bogged down in tedious payroll tasks. The advantages employers and their employees can share in is:

• Accurate and updated timesheets every time

• Automated email reminders

• Weekly summarized reports

• Mobile access

Each of these features are designed to make time and expense tracking manageable, available and reliable for the company on the go. Staff members can view their timesheets from a mobile platform, which is particularly important for businesses on the go.

Client access is allowed for viewing. Invoices are sent with real time information at the end of each project. Time sensitive projects are easily controlled and associated expenses are manageable and easy to manipulate.

Other benefits include employee reporting or Employee Utilization Analysis. Employers can see what activities workers are spending the most time working on and which clients are involved. This feature also allows employers to view, tracking, billing and profit sharing information.

Project Budget and Cost Analysis identifies and save companies millions of dollars in loss profits. Projects headed for trouble are easily spotted so appropriate action can be taken. Companies will know early which projects will yield a profitable return and which ones are liabilities.

Everything needed to make an office manageable, profitable and productive is within a time and expense tracking application. Companies that invest their time and resources in time management solutions are headed for success.

With summer fast approaching, now is the time to book off a week or two and plan some well-deserved rest and relaxation. Leave work at the office and spend some time with family and friends and enjoy yourself. At least that is what most people think of when looking forward to summer. But what happens when it is your business that you are taking time off from, can you really switch off for more than a couple of hours when you feel like you are taking time away from your livelihood, your blood, sweat and tears?

For many leaders, the idea of passing on vacation time appears like the right thing to do, as it is your business it would be irresponsible to abandon ship for an entire week. Who would keep the business running? Will task and projects be completed on time? Could employees take advantage of your absence?

Leaving the office can be hard, however, having the right tools in place makes this much easier. By implementing web based applications into your organization, such as a time and expense tracking tools, you can rest easier knowing the organization will run smoothly while you take a break. Time and expense tracking packages allow the employees to take respon

sibility of their own time and work and log their progress online.

There are several reasons why you should take time away and recharge. Stepping away from your business for a prolonged amount of time can help you gain a fresh prospective on your business. Time and expense tracking tools give you piece of mind when you are away from your business. All you need to focus on now is where to spend your well-deserved time off.

Lack of communication:

Without teams communicating together, or having dedicated places to log time sheets and track projects, failure to complete is a very real possibility. It is very easy to pass the book and blame incomplete projects on other members of the team.  By having one platform for communication, such as an online base, it is not possible for team members to miss messages and deadlines.

Large tasks can overwhelm:

Trying to tackle large tasks head on can be daunting. It is also very disheartening when hard work does not generate results. Breaking large tasks down to smaller, easy to manage tasks means a team will see great results in shorter spaces in time. Theses results will instill confidence in the team and have a positive effect on the remainder of the project. Having good momentum and a positive attitude to

wards a project aids completion within a certain budget and timeframe.

Overtime and working late:

Although overtime can be seen as dedication, it can also mean that you are not scheduling or managing your time effectively. Overtime can also take a huge toll on motivation and concentration levels, not to mention stress. All of these factors can slow down or even stop a project, incurring huge costs and time lost.

Being informed and watching out for these signs can help prevent a project from running over time and budget, however, the best way to track is project is through a time and expense tracking software system. With a tracking system the facts are in black and white and unavoidable. Understanding exactly where you stand with an incomplete task is essential when working towards time and financial deadlines.

“Be regular and orderly in your life so that you may be violent and original in your work.”

Gustave Flauber

When you think of routine, creativity is not the first thought that comes to mind, the same can be said with time management, and it usually does not make you think of originality. However, without schedules, routines and time management, there is little room for creativity.

For some people, time management means deadlines, dedicating time for tasks and many to do lists. Without this structure, distractions can creep in. Tackling your tasks as you get them means that emails and phone calls can lead us astray and leave many tasks incomplete. It also means that tasks can be rushed in order to meet deadlines.

We all get distracted by ‘urgent’ emails and phone calls. However urgent and important are two very different things. Setting time aside for responding to email, browsing the Internet and reading and researching means that you are less likely to get sucked into a cyclone of distraction.

It can be hard to know where to start when introducing time management to your life, tasks can build up and appear overwhelming. If you feel daunted just breath, nothing is impossible.  Break down large projects into smaller tasks and attach a realistic deadline to each. Assess what resources you need to complete a task and take the time to learn what you need to know to finish. Ignore distractions and do not procrastinate.

By having appropriate structure and allowing fair time for each of your tasks you can dedicate your thoughts and creativity to that job at hand and ensure the completed project is something to be proud of.

The fight between technology and traditional pen & paper is a continuous battle, but which side are you on?

Round 1: Storage & Organisation

Paper work means a need for great organizational skills, where as technology gives you the opportunity to fake it.

All you need to do is right click on your mouse and you have created a new folder on your computer where you can keep your time sheet files, if you was handling paper work you would need to order a new folder, to keep in your bulky, gray filing cabinet.

Then how do you organize your files in your folder? Alphabetize? On your desktop you can instantly arrange your files from a-z, by date, by size etc.  Reorganizing physical files in a filing cabinet can be extremely time consuming. Need to find a particular file, and fast? A quick search on your computer brings the file up on screen. A physical file can get misplaced, filed in the wrong drawer, or worse, get thrown away by accident.

Round 2: Human Error.

It is a rare occasion when a computer incorrectly adds, subtracts, multiplies and divides, so when it comes to calculations, particularly those related to costs and payments, most would rely on technology. Human error means that calculating figures with a pen and paper, even with the help of a calculator can generate incorrect figures through simple human error. When dealing with your costs, profits and revenue, you cannot afford to make mistakes.

Round 3: Time saving.

What would we do without spell check? Just one example of a computer application that saves time. Along with the thesaurus that makes us appear more eloquent, and again the calculator that handles math that would take us hours! Imagine communication without technology, sending letters instead of emails, leaving post its on people’s desks asking to come and see you when they are available. Technology saves time and of course, money.

Ok so it seems like an unfair fight but I do believe that there are some uses for paper that could never be replaced: written thank you notes and cards are always personal and well received, doing crosswords and Sudoku in the newspaper compared to on a screen, printing out pictures and framing them is more enjoyable then scrolling through a computer and most people would agree the feel and smell of a book compared to a tablet is much nicer. But when it comes to your business, your profits and your costs, the easier and safer bet is with technology.  Find out today how 1time can save you non-billable time, and help you keep track of real costs with ease.