The Friday Tip - page 3
Once a week we highlight some unique and useful feature provided by the People Inc. system in our 'Friday Tip'. These tips are often based on a support call that we took during the week. Our aim is to help customers get more from using their People Inc. system. If you do not receive these tips but would like to, please contact the People Inc. help desk and ask to be added to the mailing list.
Wishing you a Happy New Year
30th December 2022
We would like to wish you all a very happy New Year.
We have had yet another fulfilling year here at People Inc, with a good mix of new projects, system updates and upgrades. Our clients come from very diverse sectors and almost every week we are asked to find new ways to manage HR-related information and processes using People Inc. It is this challenge that keeps us on our toes.
As the year draws to a close, we would also like to thank you for working with our team throughout 2022. We look forward to speaking to you again next during the coming months.
Time to switch your computer off
23rd December 2022
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.
The children were nestled all snug in their beds, while visions of sugar plums danced in their heads.
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas.
Support over the festive break
16th December 2022
People Inc helpdesk support availability over the festive break.
- Our office will close at lunchtime on December 23rd
- The 26th and 27th December are bank holidays; the office will be closed
- From 28th to 30th December, our help-desk will be available via e-mail
- The 2nd January is a bank holiday and the office will be closed
Throughout this period, support will be available via e-mail only. A full help-desk support service will resume on Tuesday 3rd January.
Please contact us if you need to make any special arrangements for support during this period.
A Christmas Theme
9th December 2022
Did you know that you can change the look and feel of the People Inc. screens? Included with your system are around 25 different styles for you to choose from.
You can access these styles via a mini-button on the title-bar (the row of 6 small buttons in the top left-hand corner of the screen).
Some of the themes relate to a specific time of year (for example, Spring, Summer, and Halloween). Loading the Christmas theme adds snowflakes to the screen background and snowmen and ribbons to items on the screen.
Staffing Levels During the Holiday Period
2nd December 2022
There are several ways to see who is working over the Christmas period.
There are two absence calendars available within the system. These tools make holiday and absence information available to HR system-users, and to line managers and employees (via the ESS).
The Roster Planning screen provides People Inc. time users with a clear view of staffing levels. Employees and managers can also see this information using their ESS login (in the individual roster view, and in the ESS calendar tool).
Day-to-day, staff can see who is available (and who is not) using the Employee Directory tool. More detail here.
Bank Holiday - The King's Coronation
25th November 2022
Monday 8th May 2023 will be a bank holiday in honour of the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III. This will affect the way you set the People Inc. system up to manage holidays next year.
If you get the system to automatically adjust holiday bookings for bank holidays, the additional bank holiday needs to be registered within the system against all UK-based companies.
If bank holidays are included within employee's annual holiday allowances (enabling them to take the time whenever they need to) this extra day should then needs to be added to employee allowances (using the Additional Leave screen). More detail here.
Rosters and Attendance in 2023
18th November 2022
If you use People Inc. time to manage attendance, a couple of things need to be set up within the system at around this time of year:
- Pay Periods are used for reporting purposes (and to extract payroll information); these are likely to need adding for 2023
- Shift Patterns enable the system to manage attendance records and calculate adjustments; now is a good time to review Jan-Mar 2023.
Tools are provided to help users update both of these things in bulk (across a number of months, or for the whole year). Note that this is in addition to the registration of Bank holidays (which is required for all People Inc. systems).
Managing Carry Over (and closing allowances)
11th November 2022
As the end of the absence year approaches, you should make sure the 2021 absence allowances within People Inc. are reconciled and closed. When you close allowance records the system will finalise the carry over figures (unused holiday carried over from 2021 to 2022). This will, in turn, ensure that the carry over figures for 2022-2023 are correct. More detail here.
Where manual adjustments were made to carry over figures during the Coronavirus pandemic, this information can be reconciled using reports. A standard Absence Allowances report is provided with the system.
For those who have not yet done so, it may be a good time to look at the optional absence features (absence by category, allowance rounding, sickness registration, return to work, TOIL registration, holiday buy/sell).
Absence Reporting
4th November 2022
Continuing with the theme of absence management, People Inc provides users with an extensive library of absence-related reports. To complement these, as new reports are requested by clients, they are made available for download (free of charge, to all system users).
Reports detailing the Bradford factor, sickness percentages, the reason for absence, the cost of absence, and the time lost as a result of staff absence can be generated very easily using the People Inc.
To see some examples of absence reports that can be generated using the system, please click here.
Avoiding the End-of-Year Rush
28th October 2022
If your holiday year runs from January to December, now is a good time to review holiday records and identify staff who have a significant number of holiday days left to take. Reminding employees now that they have unused leave will help to avoid a flood of requests to book time off during the Christmas holiday period.
Avoiding a last-minute rush to use up holiday allowances will also help to ensure that there are adequate staffing levels over Christmas. It will also help to minimise requests to carry-over unused days (or requests for payment in lieu of holiday).
Getting ready for 2023 holidays
21st October 2022
Employees will soon start to think about booking holidays in 2023. It is therefore worth checking that you have:
- Given employees holiday allowances for 2023. This is done using the Recreate Absence Allowances wizard
- Added Bank Holidays into your system for next year (if you have employees registered within a number of companies, you will need to update all of these).
- Enabled the holiday calendars for 2023 (if you use the ESS); employees cannot start to make bookings via the calendars until you do this.
More information on the absence year end activities can be found here.
Festive Period Shutdown
14th October 2022
Organisations are often closed between Christmas and New Year. The block booking wizard can be used to record this break within the system (booking the days off for all staff). The wizard will highlight clashes (where staff have already booked this time off). This is something that could also be done for 2023 (as soon as the holiday allowance are created for next year).
Some employers will also award an additional day’s leave to use for 'Christmas shopping' in the run up to the festive break. This day can usually be booked by the employee and should therefore either be awarded as additional leave, or assigned as a separate category of leave.
More information on the absence year end activities can be found here.
Absence Management tools
7th October 2022
The People Inc. system provides extensive functionality designed to record and manage employee absence records. Entries can of course be added one-by-one, but where for example, all employees are given a holiday allowance, or where records need to reflect a site shutdown period, Wizards enable users to manage absence information in bulk.
In addition, calendar tools are provided with the system to display employee absence details, either for an individual or for a group of employees.
Click here for more information about the Absence Management Tools included in Wizard Pack 4.
Attendance Management tools
30th September 2022
People Inc. time is our dedicated time and attendance module, designed to help roster staff and manage attendance and provide access control.
A range of powerful wizards and plug-ins are included with the People Inc. time module. This includes tools to manage pay-periods in bulk, tools to help transfer employees and their shift-patterns when they change role, and a plug-in to manage staffing levels hour-to-hour where it is critical that cover is provided during busy or service-critical periods.
Click here for more information about the Attendance Management Tools included in Wizard Pack 4.
Bank Holiday - Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral
23rd September 2022
Monday 19th September will be a bank holiday for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral. This additional time off work needs to be registered within People Inc. This can be done in two different ways.
If in your copy of People Inc, holiday-bookings are automatically adjusted for bank holidays, then the additional day should be added via the Bank Holidays screen (found under Companies in your system).
If, as is often done for part-time staff, you include bank holidays as part of annual holiday allowances (so that employees can choose when they take them), you will need to add an Additional Leave entry for this bank holiday.
Employment Management tools
16th September 2022
A set of Wizards designed to manage employment details are included with the People Inc. system. These assist in the registration of employees, but also simplify other process as well.
For example, wizard can be used to update the system when an employee is given a new role or when they leave. The wizards provide the opportunity to update related information (for example when an employee changes job, the users can update the employee’s salary information at the same time).
These tools are all included in wizard pack 4. Click here for more information about the Employment Tools.
System Updates
9th September 2022
Optional People Inc. upgrades are available via two tools included with Wizard Pack 4. The Report Browser allows users to review and download report templates. Users can choose from hundreds of example reports.
When People Inc. upgrades are made available, core features are distributed to all users as part of the upgrade, but optional functionality is added to an online library of features. The Features Browser is used to access this library.
These tools are all included in wizard pack 4. Click here for more information about the System Update Tools.
Data Management Tools
2nd September 2022
There are many ways in which wizards can assist users with the management of data held within the People Inc. system. For example, actions can be created, monitored, and updated, and records that need to be deleted (to comply with GDPR) can be identified and removed very easily.
Data management tools can also automatically identify possible errors and omissions. This provides users with an overview of the information held within their system and highlights any areas that should be reviewed or updated.
Click here for information on the People Inc. Data Management tools.
Recruitment Management tools
26th August 2022
People Inc. includes several tools designed to help manage recruitment. Applications for vacancy can be made online, or taken from the existing workforce. In both cases, applicant records are generated by the system.
Groups of applicants can be moved through the recruitment process simultaneously and appropriate correspondence generated at each stage. Once a candidate is recruited, the system then generates an employee record.
These recruitment tools are included in wizard pack 4. Click here for more on the Recruitment Tools.
Tools to Manage Employee Training
19th August 2022
People Inc. includes a range of tools to help manage employee training records. It is possible to assign training needs and add details of training employees have completed (for an individual, or a selection of employees).
The Training Matrix tool provides an overview of training needs, planned training and completed courses in a grid/matrix view. Entries are colour-coded to indicate where training has expired or where target dates have been missed. An ESS version of the Training Matrix is available to make training information available to line-managers.
Click here for information on the People Inc. Training Management tools.
System Health Check
12th August 2022
With capacity to manage extensive HR records for employees, it is possible that some information may require a little housekeeping from time-to-time. The System Health Check plugin has been created with this in mind.
This tool is designed to help monitor and manage system data. It can be used to validate all the records and identify any possible omissions. It can provide users with an overview of all the records in the system and can also highlight any areas that may need to be reviewed or updated.
This plugin is part of the newly released wizard pack 4. Click here for more on the System Health Check plugin.
Managing Salary Information
5th August 2022
Updating employee salary details during a pay-review can be a time-consuming activity. People Inc. includes several wizards and plug-ins designed to help with this process (all installed with Wizard Pack 4). There is also a plug-in designed to make electronic pay slips available to employees (accessed securely via the People Inc. ESS).
While tools are available to manage simpler updates, the Salary Review Manager tool enables users to apply a global pay adjustment, and at the same time, specify exceptional adjustments for individuals. This helps to ensure salary updates are made quickly and accurately.
Click here for more on Salary Management Tools provided with People Inc.
Wizard Pack 4
29th July 2022
We have recently released Wizard Pack 4. This provides updates to existing wizards (and plugins), and includes a number of new tools for your system. Wizard Pack 4 includes:
- The Action List Manager tool (see last week's Friday Tip)
- The Salary Review Manager tool
- The System Health Check tool
- The Organisation Charting tool (standard version)
If you do not have access to these features, please get in touch with our helpdesk team (on 01908 265111). Click here for more on the Wizard Pack 4.
The Action List Manager tool
22nd July 2022
Entries in the Action List can be managed via the Action List Manager plug-in. This tool presents Action List entries in both a list, and in a calendar.
Users can change the selection of actions displayed using the filter feature (from the Action List screen). They can also select different date-ranges (day, week, month, etc.), or simply highlight a range of dates in the calendar to change the view.
It is possible to update actions from the list-view, create follow-up actions, and export Actions to Outlook. More information: Action List Manager.
Tips for working in the hot weather next week
15th July 2022
Open windows to circulate cooler early morning air and close windows (and blinds) during the day; allow staff to work earlier or later when temperatures are lower; move workplaces away from direct sunlight where possible (use cooler shaded areas); minimise the user of equipment that generates heat and switch unused equipment off; provide desk fans to improve air circulation; allow informal clothing (relax formal dress codes); provide hats and sunblock to protect staff working in the sun; provide drinks and other refreshment, and schedule additional breaks; monitor staff who may be more susceptible to heat (for medical reasons).
Line managers and the ESS
8th July 2022
Line-managers use the ESS to review and approve holiday requests (and perhaps approve expense claims and timesheets), but there are quite a number of additional ESS features designed to help line managers.
The system will provide reminders for end of probation meetings, and annual appraisals. Managers can then add details of staff appraisals (and one-to-one meetings) using the ESS. They can also review staff training using the training matrix, and add training needs for their team as required.
Managers can see attendance and absence statistics for their team, and where recruitment information is recorded in the system, managers can help shortlist applicants.
