Why Food Trucks & Small Restaurants Require Mobile Time Tracking

Looking to the Future

What began as a lonely food truck in a dingy alley has now blossomed into a 985 million business growing at a whopping rate of 20 percent. The statistics are not baffling due to the paradigm shift in technology and food trucks that have continued to emerge in sync with each other.

Small restaurants are especially cashing in on this wave, as they are socially savvy, use geolocation targeting and tags to attract not just the digital Millennials, but even the baby boomers as well.

Today, truck operators are leaving no stone unturned to reach their target audience. Setting up operations at food festivals, partnering with renowned brands, and catering at special events are popular ways of staying ahead of the game.

With so much at stake, food truck owners are making concentrated efforts to increase their profit margin by launching their mobile applications for the customers and using a time calculator app for managing their employees' time and attendance.

Gone are those days when paper or Excel timesheets were the one-stop attendance solution. Today, automating employee time and attendance can help in transforming the workforce management and bring about revolutionary changes.

Cloud-Based Automated Timekeeping What's the hype?

Before cloud computing was introduced to the world, time spent in office and attendance were stored on computers accessible only to the administrative department of the business. Though they were much better than the manual timesheets, the use was limited.

A cloud-based system offers universal access, just like Dropbox or Google Docs, which anyone can access from anywhere. Usually, a cloud-based time calculator app doesn't require a substantial initial investment.

A fee-per-employee payment structure makes cloud-based automated timekeeping affordable even for food truck owners.

Time and attendance software helps owners productively utilize their time, as well as their employees' time, thereby increasing the revenue of the business.

With 25 percent of Americans coming in late to work once a month, accurately reporting time worked becomes critical for small restaurant owners, as it will reduce under and overpayments to employees.

The Importance of Mobile Time Tracking

While cloud-based applications give you universal access, a time calculator app on a mobile device will impart flexibility and change the way employees record their attendance.

Using the mobile app, food truck employees can punch in/out at any time from any location.

A hamburger delivery driver can keep track of the schedule, while also mapping out the rest of the day. Similarly, a chef picking up ingredients from the market can clock in for the time that is spent commuting on the road.

Food truck owners no longer have to worry about fraudulent work hours that were recorded and employee theft time. With a time calculator app, employees have to punch in/out using their biometric data or fingerprints, which makes it practically impossible to falsify data.

Another area where dishonest employees try fraudulent entry into the timesheet is by skipping the break timing.

Intelligent time clocks are sensitive and present only the most logical punch option. For an employee who forgets to clock in/out before and after a meal break, the clock would send a reminder to the employee to do so.

The changes are automatically reflected on the online timesheet, which nullifies any opportunity for tampering.

Though employees are the biggest assets, managing them is a tough challenge. It's human nature to forget punching in/out for breaks.

But over time, adding even 2-3 minutes every day results in financial catastrophe. This time is the hard-earned money of the food truck owners should the owners let it go?

The Role of Geo-Monitoring

For those who own more than one food truck, the GPS feature is a blessing because the location of every food truck can be monitored throughout the day. Using the location signature on the mobile app, employees of the restaurant can confirm their work location. This helps in understanding when the employee comes to the workplace and commences their work.

The Skinny on Effective Shift Management & Scheduling

With features such as shift management and scheduling, the time calculator app is a one-stop destination for small restaurant owners to manage employees hassle-free.

Truck owners no longer have to panic when their top chef goes missing for the day because the app automatically sends alert when an employee misses their shift. Without wasting time, managers and owners can look for the perfect replacement.

These apps will enlist all the available employees based on the number of hours already worked in the week to avoid potential overtime. Usually, the app displays the following information, which helps in making an informed decision.

• Number of hours already worked in the week
• Hours left to overtime
• Labor laws violation in the week
• Contact number
• Current availability

Necessities When it Comes to Labor Law Compliance

Complying with the labor laws is essential to avoid the wrath of the law. Automated time and attendance simplifies the entire process and ensures the truck owners are in full compliance with the laws. This smart time calculator app sends a notification to the employees, reminding them to take a break.

With the help of the time tracking and attendance software, food truck owners can concentrate on growing their business instead of worrying about the potential labor law breaches.

Furthermore, time scheduling and attendance app reduce labor costs, assist in avoiding hefty fines and prevents potential lawsuits.

Takeaway

The mobile time calculator app allows to keep track of every employee, ensures compliance with the law, prevents buddy punching, eliminates time theft, and offers a quick replacement for an employee on holiday. Zip Clock integrates with other applications to automate time tracking, scheduling, and shift management requirements, which helps your business run more smoothly and increase profit margins.