But this is exactly where the problem lies: more isn’t always better. Customer reviews of enterprise solutions often paint a very different picture. At absence.io, we’ve been dealing with this topic for several years, admittedly, also out of self-interest. In this article, we summarize the most common criticisms voiced by users of all-in-one solutions. You can then decide for yourself what really makes sense for you.

Many choose large software providers because of their strong brand presence. They are well-established and therefore automatically seem like the right choice.

What often gets overlooked: there are also many smaller providers that offer exactly the features you actually need.

What is marketed as a “does-it-all” solution often turns out in practice to be unnecessarily complex software with high costs and little added value. Users frequently report a central issue: while the software can theoretically do everything, its practical benefit is often lost due to its complexity. Enterprise solutions try to offer as many features as possible, which often comes at the expense of the quality of individual functions. As a result, many companies end up using specialized software like absence.io for time tracking alongside their all-in-one solution, simply because it works.

Here’s a small example from our daily work:

At the end of last year, a now customer told us during a product demo that, with fewer than 10 employees, they were paying €7,000 per year for an all-in-one solution and the functions they needed didn’t even work properly. They now use the Pro package from absence.io for less than €50 per month and are very happy.

This experience is not an isolated case but is reflected in many customer reviews. We’ve summarized the typical problems for you below.

Software that is supposed to simplify processes often ends up making them more complicated:

• lengthy, complicated onboarding or even required training
• confusing interfaces
• lack of practical usability

HR teams spend more time implementing and understanding the tool than they ultimately save with it.

Another common issue: lack of flexibility.

• long minimum contract terms
• cancellations are delayed
• automatic renewals without clear communication

The result: companies continue to pay high prices even though the software is no longer really being used.

One of the biggest problems: when something doesn’t work or questions arise due to complexity, help is often slow or insufficient:

• response times of several days or weeks
• no direct contact person
• answers without concrete solutions

You would expect large HR software providers to offer strong support that helps customers at all times. In reality, however, this is often not the case, as many reviews show. Especially in HR, this is critical. If vacation requests, absences, or time tracking don’t work, things can quickly turn chaotic.

Many enterprise solutions appear affordable at first, until you actually start using them:

• additional costs for essential features
• expensive integrations and modules
• price increases after signing the contract

What was planned as an investment can quickly turn into an unexpected cost factor with no clear added value.

A lot is often promised during the sales process:

• “all-in-one” solutions for all HR processes
• seamless integrations
• full automation

In practice, however, things often look very different: many features are missing, don’t work properly, or are only available at an extra cost.

All-in-one solutions are not automatically a bad fit. For companies with complex HR processes, such a solution can work very well, especially if the features are actually used. The problem arises when they are not.

In short: you should only pay for what you really need.

absence.io focuses on what matters: absence and vacation management, time tracking, and digital personnel file, all without unnecessary complexity.

• clear, transparent pricing structure
• no hidden costs
• no expensive add-ons

At absence.io, there are no hidden fees or extra charges for individual features. Our packages clearly show everything included.

• cancel anytime on a monthly basis

Since we are fully confident in the quality of our software, we don’t lock you into long-term contracts.

• fast response times
• real people as contact partners
• solution-oriented support

At absence.io, you get fast and personal support without having to wait hours, days, or weeks. On average, we respond within just 42 minutes.

• intuitive usability
• processes that adapt to HR, not the other way around
• secure and reliable

absence.io is designed to make your daily work easier, so that HR processes are simple, clear, and reliable.

Choosing HR software should not depend on how many features it offers, but on how well it meets your actual needs.

With absence.io, you get a solution that is truly intuitive to use, fairly priced, and reliable in everyday use, without unnecessary complexity or hidden costs.

If you’d like to simply try it out, you can test absence.io free of charge and without obligation for 14 days. Our product experts are also available to you at any time. Just book an appointment, and we’ll take a look at our software together.

• Mobile Time Tracking: Flexible, Efficient, and GDPR-Compliant – What a Business Needs to Know
• Why Absence Management Doesn’t Have to Be Chaotic for Startups

The post Why enterprise HR software is often the wrong choice appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

Personnel management is becoming increasingly complex: today, it’s not just about absences, but also about staying legally up to date and managing data in compliance with GDPR, especially for companies across the EU.

The question is no longer whether you need a HR software, but how comprehensive it should be for your needs. In this article, we’ll show you the differences between the Pro and Complete packages from absence.io, so you know which one suits you best.

The Pro package is ideal for companies that:

• want to professionalize their HR processes
• are currently still working with Excel, paper, or individual solutions

Whether you have a small team of 3 people or a company with 3,000 employees, the Pro package from absence.io fits any company size.

Many companies are still juggling:

• Excel spreadsheets for vacations
• separate tools for working hours
• paper files for HR

Pro brings everything together:

• absences
• working hours
• personnel documents

Result: a centralized, clear HR system that makes your work noticeably easier.

Working hours must be systematically recorded, whether you like it or not. This is not just a best practice, time tracking is legally mandatory for companies across the European Union.

With Pro:

• you always automatically meet current legal requirements
• you create transparency for employees and managers
• you reduce legal risks

Check out our article on the benefits of digital time tracking. You’ll quickly realize that you probably wanted this feature all along.

Pro isn’t a “nice-to-have,” it’s essential. You only pay for active users, and there’s no minimum number of users required.

The Complete package is perfect for companies where employees frequently need to claim expenses, such as field teams. With the Complete package from absence.io, everything runs directly in one system, saving you tedious manual processes.

Submitting travel or expense claims usually involves:

• manual steps
• errors in accounting
• lots of time

With Complete, everything runs automatically in the system. You save time, stress, and reduce errors.

With Complete, you can:

• easily transfer HR data to other systems
• build automations

For all companies with regular expense claims, the Complete package from absence.io for only €7.99 per month per user is unbeatable.

Pro is perfect if you want to digitalize your HR processes, get rid of Excel & paper, and have everything around absences, working hours, and personnel documents under control in one place.

Complete is the right choice if you want to manage expenses, travel costs, and integrations.

No matter which package you choose: with absence.io, your HR processes finally become simpler, clearer, and less stressful.

If you’d like to try it out, you can test absence.io for 14 days for free and without obligation. Our product experts are also always available. Book a meeting and learn more about our software.

• Travel Expense Reporting via App: Why Digital Submission and Accounting are Essential
• Excel at expense management, just not with Excel.
• Manual vs. Digital Expense Management: Which Solution is Best for Your Startup?
• Efficient Time Tracking for Small Businesses: Simple, Secure, and GDPR-Compliant

The post Pro or Complete Package from absence.io? appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

FREE DOWNLOAD

Instructions: How to use the vacation planner Excel template from absence.io

Step 1: At the bottom of the vacation planner, you’ll find a tab for each month. Go to January and enter your employees’ names. They will then be automatically included for each month and in the overall overview.

Step 2: In the last tab “Summary,” enter the corresponding number of vacation days under “Vacation Entitlement.” This can be specified separately for each person, for example, if you have full-time and part-time employees.

Step 3: Let’s get started! Enter “V” for vacation, “S” for sick leave, or “HO” for home office on the respective days. In the right table, you’ll then see the sum of individual absence days.

Step 4: In the last tab “Overview,” the Excel template provides a comprehensive overview:

• Vacation days: The total number of vacation days taken so far in the year
• Sick leave: The total number of sick days
• Home Office: The total number of home office days
• Vacation Entitlement: The number of the corresponding vacation entitlement
• Remaining vacation: The number of unused vacation days

Our vacation planner Excel template is simple and effective. You can track all types of leave (and more) with it. With the corresponding overview page, you can simultaneously keep the necessary overview. Enjoy!

FREE DOWNLOAD

Additional Options

If you’d like to manage your vacation through a Google Drive spreadsheet, you’ll find a template here. To use it, simply click on “File –> Make a copy” in the top left corner.

Do you still need the 2025 template? You can download it directly here.

Do you want an even better solution for vacation planning?

Our Excel vacation planning template is great, no doubt. However, there’s a solution that’s even simpler, safer, and more organized: our software.

All employees get their own account. Everything is requested and approved through it.

It works like this, for example:
Antonia wants to take a week off in September. She selects the corresponding days in absence.io and requests the desired vacation with just one click.
Her supervisor, Mascha, receives a notification (e.g., via email, Teams, or Slack) and can approve or deny the requested vacation accordingly.

In the background, everything is recorded and monitored according to your statutes. Employees and supervisors always have a comprehensive overview of the vacation and absence situation. There are also many practical automations.
For example, if someone has no more vacation days left, they can’t request any more. And much more.

This is not only convenient for employees and supervisors but also significantly reduces your HR effort. At the same time, it makes things much safer. Excel is susceptible. At absence.io, everything is encrypted to the highest security standards and protected against unauthorized access with the appropriate permissions. Everyone sees only what they are allowed to see.

Ready?

If you’re ready to take your vacation management to the next level, you’re in the right place with us. Test our software for 14 days without obligation and for free or schedule a consultation with our product experts!

LET’S GO

The post Free Excel vacation planner template 2026 appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

Here’s why structured leave planning is crucial from day one, which common mistakes startups should avoid, and how a digital solution like absence.io helps keep everything under control.

Founders of fast-growing startups often underestimate the importance of essential HR tasks in the initial hustle and bustle. For too long, they assume they can handle the team’s leave planning themselves. But suddenly, two senior developers are on vacation at the same time, and everything comes to a standstill. That must not happen. If we take this thought further, incorrect or missing absence management in startups could even lead to the failure of the entire project.

• Avoiding bottlenecks: If multiple key people are on vacation simultaneously, company progress can slow down significantly.
• Transparency for all employees: Everyone should know when colleagues are absent to better plan projects.
• Trust and fairness: A standardized policy ensures that all employees have equal opportunities for vacation and time off.

1. Lack of a Centralized Overview

Many startups lack a central platform for leave management. Vacation requests are sent via email or chat messages and can easily get lost. Managers lose track, leading to duplicate approvals or conflicts.

➡ Solution: A digital platform like absence.io gathers all leave requests in one place, ensuring that requests don’t get lost. Employees and managers always have full visibility of approved and pending requests.

2. No Clear Policies

Many startups don’t have fixed policies for vacation requests, sick leave, or special leave. This leads to uncertainty, delays in processing, and even dissatisfaction within the team.

➡ Solution: A structured leave process with defined deadlines, responsibilities, and policies provides clarity. A digital solution integrates these policies directly into the system, ensuring employees are automatically informed when submitting a request.

3. Manual Errors

Many startups rely on Excel sheets or manual notes to track absences. This often leads to typos, outdated information, or forgotten entries, resulting in duplicate bookings or missing sick leave records.

➡ Solution: Automated systems like absence.io minimize errors by updating leave requests and sick leave in real time. Thanks to automatic synchronization with calendars and HR tools, planning always remains up to date.

Modern software solutions like absence.io make absence management easy and efficient for startups.

1. Automated Leave Requests & Approvals

With absence.io, employees can submit leave requests directly in the software. Managers receive automatic notifications and can approve or reject requests with a single click. This eliminates the need for back-and-forth emails or Slack messages.

2. Real-Time Overview

absence.io ensures that all team members can see at any time who is on vacation. This reduces misunderstandings and makes project planning easier. A visual overview helps identify bottlenecks early and take proactive measures.

3. Integration with Other Tools

Many startups already use calendar or HR systems. absence.io seamlessly integrates with existing tools, ensuring that absences are automatically synchronized. This reduces administrative workload and keeps all data up to date.

4. Legally Compliant Documentation

A complete, GDPR-compliant documentation is essential for growing companies. absence.io securely stores all absences, providing startups with a legally sound history at any time.

A well-organized absence management system saves time, reduces stress, and keeps the team productive. Startups that adopt digital solutions early ensure transparency and efficiency – allowing them to focus entirely on growth.

Beyond vacation and absence management, digital time tracking also plays a crucial role. Especially for startups, it’s essential to implement a legally compliant and transparent work time tracking system from the beginning to prevent overtime and ensure a healthy work-life balance.

With absence.io, both absences and working hours can be managed centrally – providing an efficient and GDPR-compliant solution right from the start.

In the next article of our Startup Content Hub, we’ll dive deeper into why digital time tracking is essential for startups and share best practices. Stay tuned!

➡ Start now with absence.io and bring structure to your absence management!

• AI in HR (Part 1): Potentials in Attendance and Absence Management?
• Travel Expense Reporting via App: Why Digital Submission and Accounting are Essential
• Efficient Time Tracking for Small Businesses: Simple, Secure, and GDPR-Compliant

The post Why Absence Management Doesn’t Have to Be Chaotic for Startups appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

This can be set up globally for all employees in just 30 seconds.

To activate the documentation requirement, simply go to “Settings” in your admin account (top right). Then click on “Leave Types” in the left sidebar and select the type you want to edit. In our account, this would be “Krankheit / Sickness” (though you might have named it differently).

Next, you can activate the “Requires documentation (e.g. doctors note)” by toggling it on. Here, you can configure several options:

• After how many consecutive sick days should the documentation requirement be activated?
• Should scheduled employee workdays or calendar days (the latter only makes sense in a few exceptional cases) be counted?
• When should the documentation requirement take effect?

All changes you make are automatically saved. There’s no need to click a separate save button.

When the specified number of consecutive sick days is reached, both the user and the admin receive a notification. This reduces the risk of forgetting to submit the required documentation to nearly zero.

In case you didn’t know: certificates and medical notes can be uploaded directly to the relevant absence record, keeping everything organized.

In the first few days, we received valuable user feedback: What happens with different, consecutive illnesses?

Example:
Joseph’s employment contract states that he must submit a medical certificate starting from the second day of illness. Suppose he has a severe headache on Monday and gets food poisoning on Tuesday.

In this case, Joseph would log two consecutive sick days but with two different illnesses.

To prevent Joseph from receiving a notification on Tuesday that he needs to submit a certificate, we built an additional function. You can activate or deactivate the “Disable creating absences of this leave type next to each other” toggle to specify whether the same absence type – in this case, “Sickness” – can be recorded on consecutive days without them being considered a single absence.

A heartfelt thank you to our users who continuously provide us with helpful feedback, helping us improve our software every day. ❤️

If you have any questions about the new feature, we are always available to help.

• AI in HR (Part 1): Potentials in Attendance and Absence Management?
• Travel Expense Reporting via App: Why Digital Submission and Accounting are Essential
• Time Tracking for Small Businesses: The Challenges and How to Overcome Them
• Digital Travel Expense Reimbursement: How It Streamlines Processes, Overcomes Obstacles, and Boosts Employee Satisfaction

The post New Feature: Automated Documentation Requirement for Sick Days appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

What’s the purpose of this?
Let me explain with a few use cases.

If you have company cars that your employees can use, you can create a leave type “Company Car” in absence.io, which allows an employee to book a car. Suppose you have five cars, you give the leave type “Company Car” a quota of five.

Once all cars are reserved on a particular day, this leave type cannot be used any further.

This function can also be used for specific tools, rooms, software licenses, etc.

Another use case is limited office workstations. In times of remote work and home office, many companies reduce their office capacities or even completely do without their own spaces, using, for example, coworking spaces like “WeWork.”

In this case, our new feature is extremely helpful. You create, for example, a leave type “Office Munich.” If you have 10 workstations there, you give it a quota of 10.

Now, the principle of “first come, first served” applies. If “Office Munich” is already booked 10 times on a particular day, all workstations are booked, and this leave type cannot be booked further.

This prevents the extremely annoying situation where people are left standing in the office without a place to work. This pleases both employers and employees.

“Not everyone can take vacation at the same time.” A classic issue in vacation planning. With our new quota function, you can optimize this situation a bit.

Suppose you have a business where someone must always be present to ensure business operations, for example, in logistics.

You have, for instance, 10 logistics staff members, and two must always be present. You give the leave type “Vacation” or “Vacation Logistics” a quota of eight. Again, the principle of “the early bird catches the worm” applies.

If this leave type has already been booked eight times within a certain period, it cannot be booked any further. The employee will receive a notification and can directly choose an alternative period.
Through the team calendar in absence.io, they can see exactly when someone is on vacation, making the search a bit easier.

This small but fine function prevents unnecessary overbooking and unpleasant discussions. If you use the function wisely, you can save a lot of time, nerves, and money.

You can find the function directly in the settings of your leave types. If you have any questions, we are always available.

• AI in HR (Part 1): Potentials in Attendance and Absence Management?
• Travel Expense Reporting via App: Why Digital Submission and Accounting are Essential
• Time Tracking for Small Businesses: The Challenges and How to Overcome Them
• Digital Travel Expense Reimbursement: How It Streamlines Processes, Overcomes Obstacles, and Boosts Employee Satisfaction

The post New Feature: Quotas for Leave Types appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

Our form includes the most important and common information:

• Employee Information
• Request Details
• Substitute
• Feedback
• Approval

If you’re using an internal server or a cloud for your document management, we recommend centrally storing the vacation request form so it can be quickly and easily found by anyone who needs it.

Employees should be able to easily print the form. This includes not only finding the form quickly but also ensuring it’s well-formatted for printing. If you use our PDF form, you won’t have any difficulties with this. Also, make sure the printing process is hassle-free. Paper, ink, connection, etc., should not be a concern for employees.

For an analog process, always ensure that employees can submit the request easily and receive quick feedback. Prompt certainty and planning security are crucial in vacation planning.

If you want to eliminate all the difficulties and hassles of vacation management, forget the vacation request form and get a digital solution.

With vacation planner software and an app, no one needs to search for forms anymore. This saves time and nerves.

Your employees no longer need to print vacation request forms. This not only avoids the hassle with printing devices but also saves paper, ink, and ideally, the entire printer. This benefits both the environment and the company’s budget.

Especially for companies where not all employees are always on-site, a software solution is optimal. Vacation requests can be easily submitted, reviewed, and approved digitally.

With a digital solution, requests are submitted much faster than with a paper form. The supervisor receives a notification via email, Teams, or Slack and can quickly process the request. With one click, it’s approved, making both supervisors and employees happy.

Manual entry always carries a high risk of errors. Digital solutions significantly reduce potential mistakes through appropriate functions and notifications.

A digital vacation management system simplifies your processes with practical features that a form doesn’t have. For example, supervisors and team members always have a precise overview of who is on vacation via the team calendar.

Software solutions like absence.io offer many practical additional functions:

• Various absence types: absence.io tracks not only vacation but also sick days, business trips, relocations, home office, and more.
• Digital time tracking: Absence and presence go hand in hand. Therefore, digital time tracking is often included or can be added.
• Easy integration: To avoid constantly switching between different applications, absence.io can be optimally integrated with Microsoft, Google, Slack, and more.

In software, all sensitive and personal data is securely stored. Everyone sees only what they are allowed to see. This is not the case with paper forms, keyword: “lying around.” Additionally, the requirement for digital time tracking is already in effect. It’s only a matter of time before digital vacation management becomes mandatory. So, start now!

When comparing the classic vacation request form to a digital solution, there can only be one winner. A software solution is:

• Faster
• Simpler
• Safer
• More flexible
• More useful
• More organized

A software solution is even cheaper. Digital vacation management from absence.io costs only €2 per user per month. If you compare the cost of paper, printer, ink, extra time, staff, etc., you’ll find that a software solution is more economical than dusty paperwork.

So, say goodbye to the chaos of paper vacation request forms and switch to absence.io!

You can test our software for free for 14 days or directly schedule a free consultation with our experts. We answer all your questions and address your company’s specific situation to find the optimal solution for you.

• Download Free Time Tracking Excel Template
• Download Free Timesheet Template
• Travel Expense Reimbursement Template: in PDF and DOCX
• Free Excel Vacation Planner Template 2024

The post Download your Free Vacation Request Form appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

Especially in the area of process optimization, we see great potential, but also in service. We would like to give you a brief insight into our thoughts so far.

After signing up, many users want to handle the setup themselves. Although our user guide is a powerful and successful supporter, an AI assistant can save a lot of time and prevent errors.

Based on its knowledge about our software, the respective legal requirements (of the country) and the company information provided, it could alert users to missing information, errors, or legal irregularities.

Based on historical data, AI could identify periods with high personnel capacities, for example.

“Since many developers were available in April in the past years, we could have made room for Project X.”

At the same time, personnel bottlenecks could be identified. Linked with a project management tool, for example, the product owner could be warned that many developers have been on vacation or sick during the planned period in recent years.

Linked with appropriate tools and software, AI could automatically record working hours for certain tasks. Although it sounds a bit like George Orwell, it’s practical. Without having to enter everything manually, AI could automatically track how much time a developer spends, for example, programming, researching, or in meetings.

Through AI time tracking, the workload of employees could be determined. For those with low workloads, certain open tasks could be suggested or directly assigned. In the case of overload, tasks could be redistributed accordingly.

In conjunction with time tracking and a link to project management tools, based on experience with similar projects in the past, the time efforts for projects could be reliably estimated.

With well-maintained types of absence, AI could calculate necessary office capacities. Based on recorded business trips, home office, vacations, or sicknesses, AI could reliably analyze how many workstations a company actually needs. This could prevent unused office space and save rental costs.

AI, linked with all the data and information captured in the account, could prove to be a valuable analyst. Important information could be obtained via voice or text input:
“How many sales staff are available to us in the 2nd week of July?”
or
“How many sick days did X have this year?”
etc.

At the center of every idea is the benefit for our users. We try every day to make our software even better, and AI is a lever that enables us to provide great features for you.

At the same time, during development, we will always ensure that everyone feels comfortable with the respective features, whether they’re an admin or a user. It’s particularly important to us that users do not feel monitored or lose control. Every AI feature is designed to help you, not cause uncertainty.
Stay tuned!

In the second part, we will take a look at use cases of AI in the areas of personnel administration and expense and travel cost accounting.
Coming soon!

If you haven’t used our software yet, you can now try it free for 14 days. Manage absences and vacations, track working hours, create digital personnel records, and discover the benefits of digital expense and travel cost accounting. Let’s get started!

Hero image by Cash Macanaya

The post AI in HR (Part 1): Potentials in Attendance and Absence Management? appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

In the early 20th century, workers would “punch in” at the beginning and end of their shift. This method carried on through the rest of the century, with little change. Only when the knowledge economy began burgeoning did the outlook on how to manage knowledge workers change. The onset of a little invention called the “Internet” finally has executives managing their workforce differently.

Famed management guru, Peter Drucker, created the term “knowledge economy” to describe how members of the workforce now relied on their cognitive function and intellectual edge to solve problems. This differs from the centuries-past worker, who often was given a rote job with specific responsibilities (think steel worker or an office secretary). These kinds of workers were given little autonomy compared to today’s workers. Often work could be performed between the daily card punches. Positions like these are still in existence; over 23,000 workers in Los Angeles still punch in daily.

However the knowledge economy does not operate in a vacuum. Social changes, like that of equal career opportunities for women, the need for maternity and paternity leave, and much-earned vacation days have created a more equitable and livable life for the average worker.

But the modern day challenge: employers have found little solution in tracking the diverse needs of every employee.

Combining how knowledge workers dole out higher amounts of energy and cognitive skill and the industrial demand for more autonomous decision makers within a company creates a special need: how to successfully manage the absences of these skilled workers.

Here’s how too many companies manage employee absences:

Excel

Ugh. Even the sight of the word makes you want to pull out your hair. Excel proves useful for business modeling, budget tracking, and other business means. As an absence management tool, well, it wasn’t built to manage people. How does one tell Excel that an employee will be absent an afternoon every month for a doctor’s appointment?

Usually, employees have to:

• Find Excel Sheet
• Check remaining days
• Enter vacation days
• Print and sign
• Send to manager

Companies need to move at a notched-up, 21st Century speed. This isn’t cutting it. Manual entry is time-consuming and fails to give a fast experience for employees and managers on-the-go.

Sickness absence tools

There are useful tools that give employees to log and monitor sick absences. They’re great to get a bird’s eye view on sickness absence, but the tool is limited. Additionally, a manager could be juggling up to 5 different tools on tracking employee performance, absence, sickness, or holidays. Productivity is lost, not to mention employee frustration may be amped.

While creating a “tick” in logging absences, these tools fail to show what’s behind the absences (a sickness, a doctor’s appointment) nor does the tool use easy-to-access information. Only a few companies take account of all the employee data at their disposal—mostly because it’s too poorly organized to make interesting amends to policies. These single-use tools were helpful, but in Web 2.0, tools should be multipurpose and accessible.

The 7-Point System

This system comes in handy when managing employees and their absences. But like the single-use management tools, this process can already be done through a software, like absence.io. For those unaware of what the 7-Point System:

1.  Reviewing existing policy and checking that everyone is aware of what the policies are.
2. Hold manager meetings to clear up any confusion about policies or to sift through a difficult situation.
3. Make contact people, so managers and employees know who to defer to.
4. Teach clear reporting on the myriad of types of employee absences, from unpaid absences to paternal leave.
5. Make the report, which includes counting team members and tallying up absences.
6. Set up an appointment to welcome employees back after a prolonged absence, if applicable.
7. Create a system of accountability.

No doubt this system is helpful in carving out the conceptual goals of managing people. But operationally…

How does a company create a system of accountability?

Digital absence management is the antidote to this modern day challenge.

Customizable absence management

Company executives and human resources take extra pains in creating company culture, curating employee-company fit, why is managing team absence often a one-size fit solution?
You can tailor your absence management to your company. If employees work in the part of the world that observes Ramadan or celebrates the World Cup, managers can customize the system to fit the social fabric employees are naturally a part of.

Accessible Request Process

Managers and employees save time when digitally requesting time off. No more trying to catch the boss between meetings to request a week off in a 3 months. No more awkward conversations of “I don’t remember us discussing your leave…” An employee sends a request to their manager, an email is sent along with the requested time slot pending in the dashboard. Employees can see whether their manager has approved it or not; if no response, then an employee can easily follow up.

No more leave inquiries lost in the Internet ether.

Quick Approval Process

As requesting time off becomes streamlined, so does approving employee requests. Old methods include using time-sucking Excel sheets, email, and shared files. With a smart dashboard, approving an employee request is as simple as one click.

Smart Calendar Integration

Dashboards are cool, but have you ever thought how convenient life could be if it were integrated into your calendar? With absence.io, you can easily check your calendar and see who’s in the office. Our tool works for the world’s favorite calendars, Google and Outlook.

Dream Team Calendar

Planning takes preparation. What’s the fastest way to prepare and plan? Having an overview of when team members are in and out of the office. For all-hands-on-deck meeting, you can easily block out times on a calendar that will restrict team members from requesting out-of-office time. Add structure to how you manage your team. With structure, people feel confident to make more autonomous decisions. Energy is focused on the project, rather than trying to tie up the loose ends of planning. No more accidental overlaps or other scheduling mishaps.

Instant reporting

Collecting and filing documents usually ranks last in terms of job enjoyment. Why do what office managers and filing cabinets did in the 1970s, when you can click a button and instantly receive a report? Absence.io records absences, like sick and vacation days. It also has a time tracker for instant feedback. Employees and managers can both check on how many vacation days they have left, or whether they’ve used all their sick days. Hiring mangers can quickly create a report as our reporting function exports all data. Say goodbye to Excel sheets and juggling different employee files or management tools.

Here’s the Best Part

We’ve nailed how to manage a team’s planned (and unplanned) absences. Companies and even governments trust us to modernize how they manage people.
Check out exactly how they use absence.io.

At absence.io, we’re doing something different when it comes to absence management. Governments, companies–like MyTheresa and Check24–trust our digital method to help them navigate planned (and unplanned) employee absence.

Try absence.io for free!

Popular posts like this:

• This is the Truest Super Human Power: How Managers Can Optimize Decision Making
• Is Hell Millennials in the Workplace? Millennial Whisperer Gives Managers 5 Strategies to Survive 
• Next Hiring Competitive Advantage: How to Find the Originals
• A More Efficient Staff Annual Leave Planner
• PTO Tracker: Staff Absences Made Easier

The post Absence Management – How to Survive the 21st Century appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

If you’re a business owner or work within a tech company, you know the highs and lows involved within the company. Certain traits within the tech industry exist that may not exist, or appear at a lesser degree in other industries. High turnover rates, the high demand for hard-to-find, technical talent, and intense feelings abide.

VitalSmarts explored how the DNA of a tech company differs from other companies and institutions. Their research spanned 3,600 participants, equally between managers and employees; individuals came from both the tech and non-tech sectors. As interviews progressed, four categories emerged what makes tech uniquely challenging. According to the research team, these 4 categories are foretell the organization’s innovation structure.

1. If the company or project is not the “coolest”—even by a narrow margin—handling top-tier talent is a challenge. Employees will move to another company or project if they feel they aren’t working on the most revered initiatives.

2. Relentless pressure fosters a “hero” culture, which is problematic when it comes to creating a sustainable work life.

3. Tech employees must navigate murky waters when projects are unclear; often the goals of a project, or an entire company, may pivot unexpectedly.

4. The “one big network” effect creates system where personal rapport is given higher priority to fixing problems or keeping colleagues accountable.

VitalSmart found that even experienced managers from other companies did not receive training to address these differences.
If you manage people within a tech company, what can you do to address these points?

1. Initiate a culture of dialogue

Culture makes the difference between a good company and a great company. Having great company culture does not mean free lunches and office bikes; its means creating a transparent culture. Take a page from Ray Dalio, the founder and manager of Bridgewater Associates.

“Imagine if you had baseball cards that showed all the performance stats for your people: battling averages, home runs, errors, ERAs, win/loss records. You could see what they did well and poorly and call on the right people to play the right positions in a very transparent way”.

Build a culture that creates dialogue, where people can talk about the status quo within your company. Where they can openly discuss how they feel their job descriptions are murky or that a project is pointless. Employees should feel comfortable to engage in volatile topics. Working in tech demands openness, or else…

2. Build a culture of accountability

Ray Dalio would be proud. Even as a head of an organization that counts Microsoft and world governments as clients, Dalio receives emails from lower-level employees criticizing his performance in a meeting. Build a place where leaders are held accountable and want to open the floor to clear communication. The cultures that clearly address their internal problems are better situated to face the external pressures a tech company often faces.

Transparent absence management

At absence.io, we aim to support companies keep their culture on point. Our absence management system is trusted by MyTheresa, Check24, and even governments.

Try absence.io for free

Popular posts like this:

• Global HR Trends: Terrified of AI, Companies Stop Talking and Start Doing 
• Can You Pay Your Employees in Crytocurrency? 
• Employees Like the Tech, But Aren’t Convinced: The Adoption Problem 
• Why a Healthy Company Demands Smart Sick Day Management

The post What Makes Working in Tech Different? These 4 Spheres of Angst appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

University College London Professor of Learner-Centred Design Rose Luckin says “There are no AI systems that have emotional intelligence; there are AI systems that can fake emotional intelligence, but they aren’t actually emotionally intelligent”.

Okay, so no touchy-feely robots…yet.  The operational system of how things are done is already changing, but that also includes how people will relate to each other on a social and emotional level.

Computers already check hundreds of standardized tests for schools, universities, and dozens of different organizations. It then stands to reason that a teacher’s position will become obsolete with smarter computing systems.  However it only highlights the definition of what a teacher does is changing. Computers will be able to give useful feedback, grade papers, and perhaps give tailored learning to students. Where does that leave teachers?

There will be a different nature of interaction between students and teachers, just as in other fields. Teachers will be able to focus more on facilitating the learning experience, rather than spending time on grading homework. Students possess a wealth of information at their fingertips. They need a teacher, a guide, to frame an approach and ask critical questions. Likewise, the nature of how business relationships are made, cultivated, and navigated will shift. Those who possess a knack for relationship-building or excel in emotional intelligence may be those facilitating systemic change in an AI-driven workplace.

Cue the women.

Research conducted by the Hay Group division of Korn Ferry (NYSE: KFY) reveals women outperform men on nearly all emotional intelligence measures.

The study did not lack size or diversity: it utilized data from 55,000 professionals from 90 countries. In 11 out of 12 categories, women did better than men. The one exception was “emotional control”, where no difference between genders was detected.

A few of the categories may sound familiar to those looking for performance indicators: adaptability (where women scored in the 54th percentile, while men in the 48th), coaching and mentoring (women: 57, men: 46), and organizational awareness (women: 56, men: 46).

The Hay Group concluded “Regardless of gender, our data shows that the most effective leaders within organizations are those who are able to demonstrate emotional and social intelligence.”

Women may have an advantage in the era of automation.

Practically speaking, boards and organizations should be seriously considering how they plan to leverage women’s innate emotional intelligence to remain competitive.

More women in leadership means an organization usually has higher levels of profitability. It’s crucial for businesses to redefine what the future demands of in a leader. Qualities such as active listening, empathy, and agility are at the top of list. These are qualities an AI simply cannot deliver. AI’s current strength is in automating tasks and optimizing decision making. But leaders who have deep understanding of how people work will be the ones shaping the direction in the world of work.

Does that mean women are better equipped to manage?

The workplace demands intuition and emotional intelligence, which may mean some women possess a competitive advantage. Though like any other skill, emotional intelligence can be developed to deliver high-performance management. Organizations need to invest in traditional “soft skills” training. Individuals can also take it upon themselves to hone the art of communicating, managing, and collaborating. Junior investigators at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research in Manhasset, New York facilitate their own soft skills training. Using the online tool, “Lean In“, these investigators impart their career development. From individual researchers to multinationals, the rising of one system is shifting the focus onto another set of skills. Those who can leverage their human-human aptitude will become the linchpin interlacing the old, the new, and the future world of work.

Change your game

At absence.io, we’re changing the game of how companies oversee their absence management systems. Companies like MyTheresa and Check24 use our tech to easily manage planned (and unplanned) team absences. We may be a (near) perfect example of leveraging tech to focus on the important things: doing business.

Try absence.io for free

Popular posts like this:

• Neuroscientist Says These Are the 4 Most Important Decisions To Make at Work
• What Other People Think You Do: #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob
• “Emotions Managed”: The Anti-Harry Potter Approach to Processing Employees’ Emotions
• How Managers Should(n’t) Work with Freelancers

The post In the Age of AI, Is Business More Suited to Female Leaders? appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

After all, misunderstandings are bound to occur. It’s the defining physics of living life. Some misconceptions cause greater confusion than others. Some misinterpretations are well, just that. Misinterpretations.

Case in point: when stock photo photographers interpret what they think people’s jobs involve.

Via a viral Twitter hashtag, #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob, users shared stock photo photographers’ interpretations of their own professions. Apparently, a photographer’s perception can be a little off sometimes…if not all the time.

Has anyone ever completely misunderstood what you did for a living?

This is what we found:

Your ears will be happy to know that our absence management system does not involve megaphones.

Little known fact: Yogis make excellent corporate spies

Or when you recycle, but Trump breaks from the Paris Climate Agreement.

This could be a promotional shot of Spike Lee’s 21st century interpretation of “Gulliver’s Travels”

“I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.” – Every Lawyer

 Scientists hate efficiency.

The calculator means he likes to count too.

No one does “Artisanal Drafting” anymore

The new Sea by Dr. Shell.  They’re wireless too.

Wasn’t this from a Yellow Cab music video in 2007?

If you’re not in stock photos, you’re not fulfilling your career potential.

The fine print always gets you.

Notice the stethoscope is not actually in his ears either.

Everyone working with IT knows this.

Popular posts like this:

• The Funny Out of Office Message: “Out-spiration” to Craft Your Own
• Workplace Horror: Have You Said These 5 Deadly Phrases?
• Lies From Your Childhood, or “Absence of Fact” Management

The post What Other People Think You Do: #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

We’re living in a knowledge economy, where our brains produce capital. To accelerate technical and economical growth, we engage in long periods of brain-intensive work. Though, like professional athletes or scientists, we need a break, a sabbatical, or maybe therapy. When we don’t offer employees time to rest, mental health disorders and symptoms begin affecting the workplace.

Managers may wish to help, but how?
Doctors understand their patients’ difficulties, but how do they consult on what their patients should navigate the workplace?

Sadly, the dichotomy leaves sufferers without adequate recognition by an employer or doctor. The problem, compounded, continues in deteriorating health and career. For companies, the consequence is obvious: lost productivity. In the US, lost productivity due to mental illness and substance abuse (a common byproduct of a mental disorder) costs companies $225.8 billion each year.

What about small to medium businesses?

They don’t typically have the deep pockets of larger corporations. Large companies can “afford” to implement an employee mental health program. It would simply be too expensive for small business owners, right? Remember, for every amount of “downtime” an employee needs or takes, that’s lost revenue and growth for a company—that’s any company, billions of dollars in revenue or not.

Losing employees are especially important as margins are smaller. Lost employees cost SME owners over $42,000 per year. The cost is calculated from recruitment and lost productive from employees leaving their companies. Business owners in the UK are taking action in focusing on employee well-being. Two areas owners are prioritizing: flexible work practices and better work/life balance—both sectors fundamentally impact mental health.

Director of Psychological Services at Axa PPP Healthcare, Dr. Mark Winwood states “Organisations are increasingly focusing on mental wellbeing and appreciate that there is a moral and financial advantage of doing this.” Struggles with mental health disorders remain one of the leading causes of absenteeism in the workplace.

“But our company already has an employee mental health program in place already”.

Great! You’re creating strategies in retaining top talent and stabilizing the company’s productivity. Here are a few questions to consider ascertain the effectiveness of your program.

• Have you or do you regularly organize awareness sessions for managers and staff?
• Do these sessions include how the program operates and clearly communicate how the program benefits employees, especially on the topic of mental health?
• Do these sessions communicate how employee dependents can benefit from the program?

Often employees will not seek help for their own sake; if they understand how being mentally healthy can positively impact their loved ones, these employees may consider utilizing company resources.

If you’re an owner of a SME or human resources manager, here are a few key points in a supportive employee mental health program:

1. Consider group risk financial protection for staff

What is group risk insurance?
“Group life, critical illness, and income protection fall under what ‘Group risk’ insurance offers. It offers insurance protection in case employees fall ill or pass away unexpectedly. Larger corporations typically possess this insurance as part of their employees benefits package. Many SMEs fail to recognize this kind of insurance as they set up mental health programs. It supports sick or injured employees, offering vocational rehabilitation as they work. It’s a true value-add in giving peace of mind to both employees and employers. Concerned it will be too expensive? SMEs tend to overestimate the cost, says Lee Lovett, CEO of Ellipse, a group risk insurer. It will cost less than you think.

2. Communicate employee benefits

It seems like a no-brainer, but research shows that mental health programs are not utilized because employees are unaware how the program can help them. That, or they feel their workplace is not accommodating nor accepting of mental health disorders. Start spreading the news.

3. Create a culture and/or atmosphere of acceptance

Work gets stressful. Emails zooming into your inbox at lightening speed. Annoying colleagues. What makes the difference in keeping employees healthy: feeling supported. According to a report by Deloitte on mental health in the workplace, “86% would think twice before offering to help a colleague whose mental health they were concerned about”. Once the benefits of program have been communicated, make it acceptable for employees to focus on their mental health, by attending therapy or encouraging mediation practice. Build a place where a healthy mind is a company value.

Healthy employees need easy absence management

Company mental health initiatives should become a fundamental way to support employees. As you develop your own program, consider absence.io in helping you coordinate planned (and unplanned) team absences. Employees and managers can easily coordinate mental health days. Companies like MyTheresa and Check24 use us to take care of their talent.

Test absence.io for free!

Popular posts like this:

• Learn From Coachella: Why Your Hiring Needs to Be Branded
• Why a Healthy Company Needs Smart Sick Day Management
• Beyond Cookies and “Sorry”: How Do You Apologize at Work?”

The post Can Small Business Owners Afford an Employee Mental Health Program? It’s Cheaper Than You Think appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

Reliability is exactly what the world needs more of today—especially when it comes to facts. After all, wasn’t 2017’s Phrase of the Year, “fake news”?

To add a bit of clarification (or disruption—you may need to sit down after reading this), we’ve put together a list of “facts” given to kids—but, well, turned out to be lies. Sound familiar? Like when you found that clouds aren’t really marshmallow farms, or that your older brother does not turn into a gorilla on full moons…

All childhood lies.

It turns out “childhood fact management” may or may not be completely perfected yet.

Courtesy of the World Wide Web (and Reddit), we’ve tracked down things you were told as a kid that aren’t true. We excel at absence management, but we’re also ready to spit some truth.

1. It’s totally legal to drive with that little light on in the car.

How many times did you want to finish that book chapter or see your action figures in the dark? But oh, no one wanted Mom to be pulled over by a police officer. No one can fault us for wanting to respect the law.

2. Speaking of cars, you can drive barefoot in all of 50 states in the US.

Even police officers’ parents duped them. One person that was pulled over was found barefoot by the officer. The officer wanted to ticket him, but the person demanded they first find the law. Thirty minutes later, the officer comes back. No law exists. Ironically, it is illegal to carry an ice cream cone in a back pocket in Tennessee though. Facts.

3. Sitting too close to the TV won’t ruin your eyes.

Okay. In general, probably decent advice. Though given everyone stares down their smartphone screen these days, why aren’t more concerned adults telling kids to keep our phones at a distance?

4. Writing your crush’s name on your skin with a pen will not give you lead poisoning.

Turns out one would have to chug a whole lot of ink from a bottle to produce a bit of internal irritation. No poisoning of any kind has been reported. Doodle in peace.

5. Santa wasn’t shot down over Algeria.

He wasn’t. Santa is still alive and kicking, currently hanging pool side in Las Vegas. Probably.

6. “Try it, you’ll like it”

No doubt a flurry of memories resurface. The flashes of fermented cow tongue. Corn beef. Jellied moose nose, or whatever strange, revolting things Mom and Dad force-fed you.
You definitely did. not. like. it.

7. The plural word for foot is not fetus.

Thanks for the misinformation, pun-making parent. Though there isn’t anything “o-foot-cially” wrong with that…

8. Your parents won’t actually leave without you.

This is an example of those familiar parental threats that never came true.

9. If someone presses your belly button, you will not explode in 10 years.

No scientific proof has corroborated this claim. Though it does make you wonder, why do they say, “Don’t press my buttons”…tick tick…

10. Your taste buds do not have distinct taste bud profiles.

Elementary school science was a lie. Scientists at Columbia University took down a childhood “fact” by revealing our brains–not our tongues–decide on taste.

This isn’t all too different when teachers taught Pluto was a planet…

Popular posts like this:

• The Funny Out of Office Message: “Out-spiration” to Craft Your Own
• Workplace Horror: Have You Said These 5 Deadly Phrases?
• Neuroscience Says These are the 4 Most Important Decisions to Make at Work

The post “Absence of Fact Management” Spotlights: Lies From Your Childhood appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.

The latest book on time management might be jam packed with insight; your career mentor could be encouraging you to step up and take the lead. Human resource managers tend to dole out spreadsheets, as if they were cups of non-alcoholic punch at the office Christmas party…as if Excel is everyone’s first choice…

But how do you integrate new ideas into your company? How do you apply those new things to the most challenging part of work: people and teams?

Set Failing Metrics

This may sound a little odd, but in addition to measuring the success of the project it’s important to create indicators that something is veering off. Have you ever worked on a client project only to realize the budget has been significantly surpassed? Or that you won’t be able to deliver a project on-time due to poor management? These things pass unnoticed as you work—but quickly rear its ugly head when it’s too late. According to Harvard Business Review, creating metrics before the launch gives “foresight into what’s going wrong as it’s happening. The key thing here is to focus on goals that really matter”. Break down your goal into steps and place “failing metrics”. This gives you sufficient time to get back on track before the deadline.

Delineate Clear Roles and Tasks

Before the start of every phase, a manager must set out the expectations of each team member. The team member must have a deliverable at the end of each phase. To accomplish the deliverable, certain tasks must be done. Make it clear what people are doing. Give milestones. Host meetings that give team members action items. This must be a priority, says Cindy Calvin, a marketing project manager for Veterans United Home Loans.

Identify and share status updates in real-time

Team members must have a system that provides rapid input and any changing status on tasks they’re working on. For the efficiency of the project, this gives managers the ability in future planning. It also prevents the economic sucker-punch, the Cost of Delay.

What is the Cost of Delay?

It’s the calculation that compares the cost of doing something now versus doing it later. It measures the impact of time on a company’s goal. When a task or project phase is delayed or not completed, it costs the company every day that it is not there.
Therefore, knowing how to effectively manage the team giving the results is imperative.

When it comes to a time off tracker or arranging paid time off (PTO) for team members, managers have got to get it right. The process must be stream-lined, fast and easy to use.
The opposite of time-consuming spreadsheets.

A fully-automated, cloud-based system like absence.io supports project managers in delivering high-impact deliverables—without missing a beat. Simple economics: the best time off tracker means more money in a company’s pocket.

Go ahead, politely decline the spreadsheet punch.
It’s not really getting the job done…

Get your free trial!

Popular posts like this:

• Staff Absences Made Easier with a PTO Tracker
• Plan Your Absences With Our Excel Vacation Tracker
• The Funny Out of Office Message: “Out-spiration” to Help You Craft Your Own
• “Emotions Managed”: The Anti-Harry Potter Approach to Processing Employees’ Emotions
• Why Your Company Needs Digital Absence Management to Survive the 21st Century

The post Fail Metrics and a Time Off Tracker: Weirdly Efficient Ways To Get Things Done appeared first on Happy Employees, Happy Employers - Our Blog!.