Below, you’ll find the answers to the questions asked during the Essentials for Understanding the Flow of Time and Attendance Features I. This webinar covered:
How Time Flows in Time & Attendance
How the Schedules and Availability works
How to process time data into payroll data batches
Here’s the video if you’d like to watch the webinar again.
Don’t miss out on the insights shared in the presentation. Check out the slides from the webinar, which are attached at the bottom of this article.
Q: What’s the difference between Availability and Time Off Requests on ASSP?
A: Availability can show whether an employee is available to work on a specific day or portion of a day to help maintain coverage and productivity.
You can also have employees request time off in Availability by creating an Availability Type ID. You can tailor this time to flow into Schedules or Time Cards once approved.
Q: When you opt to create time cards from an Availability Type, does it also automatically create a Schedule?
A: No, a schedule’s shift isn’t created if the availability type is set to Create Time Card Entry when Approved.
You can see this time by selecting Show Availability in Schedules (By Group). However, since it’s not a schedule, you can’t see or adjust the time. If you’d like a schedule created to see the details, you can update the Availability Type to Create Schedule Entry when Approved on the Availability Type.
Q: What is the impact of changing the availability approval option from creating a schedule to creating a timecard if we don’t use the schedules?
A: You’ll see a smoother flow for your time. If you change the Availability Type’s Approval Option to Create Time Card Entry When Approved, that time flows into time cards as soon as a request is approved.
We recommend updating your availability type’s Approval option to create a timecard if you don’t use schedules; it prevents entries from being created in schedules.
Q: Can Schedule Templates be used in more than one position?
A: While each employee can only be assigned one template, Schedule Templates can meet your needs for employee positions by allowing you to set the position on each entry that’s being rolled forward:
If your employees work several positions throughout the day, you can create a template to match, with as many positions as your employees work. When the template is rolled forward, the employees’ shifts will have the position from the template.
If your employees’ positions vary on different days, you can set the position on the template as needed for the day. When rolled forward the position on the template populates the shift.
If your employees work their primary position and you’d like to use the same template for employees in different positions, you can leave the position on the template blank. When you roll forward, the employee’s shift won’t have a position, and their default position is assigned during payroll processing unless a position is added to the time.
Here’s an example of a template for employees working two positions on a day.
Q: Do I need to add a template to the Employee Profile?
A: While templates aren’t required for scheduling, we highly recommend them to streamline schedule creation. Templates assign recurring shifts to employees, creating employees’ schedules in mere moments by rolling them forward.
If you’re not using templates yet, check out Schedules: Templates for more info on creating templates and assigning them to employees.
Q: There is no rate on the 1 hour for orientation. Won’t that be unpaid?
A: Good eye! This Orientation Code is used to track hours, so it’s intentionally set as 0% of basic to make the rate $0.00. Another formula-driven code calculates the amount during payroll processing.
It’s good to keep in mind that the setup within these webinars is for demonstration purposes only.
Q: Why are you demoing from the Avanti Desktop? I thought we had to enter time in Time Cards in ASSP.
A: Avanti can generate time for employees in a number of ways, including:
Having employees check in and out on physical clocks, ASSP, or Avanti Go.
Created from a Schedule.
Imported from an external time tracking software.
Most of the features discussed on the Avanti Desktop are similar in ASSP. We chose to use the Avanti Desktop because time on ASSP can be set up to reflect your organization’s needs, making the experience vary from organization to organization.
Additional Resources
Check out our upcoming changes on the Avanti Horizons Hub.