Any organization that uses personnel scheduling software will be able to increase productivity and profitability. Even little changes in your personnel can have a big impact, especially for small organizations. However, not all software for scheduling employees is created equal.
In fact, you'll get the complete opposite result if your staff is unable to utilize the scheduling software you select.
Your efforts will ultimately result in a loss of revenue for your company because they will annoy, obstruct, and distract your staff. When deciding which scheduling software to integrate into their processes, business owners must be discriminating.
The ideal employee scheduling software should have the following features:
- Straightforward clock-ins and -outs
The use of a scheduling system by team members should be as frictionless as feasible. The less your team needs to think about technology in general, the better. Not everyone is adept at using it.
- Features for advanced tracking
A good scheduling tool will offer managers and administrators a number of ways to monitor staff members. Businesses with team members who work remotely or from home can benefit greatly from features like GPS tracking and Job Locations, for instance.
- An intuitive design motif
The best employee scheduling software should have an intuitive design that keeps all of its features from being too complicated to understand. When trying to examine the gathered data, the vast majority of business owners will only wish to delve into deeper functions.
- Detailed insights
Regarding data, a good time & attendance software solution need to be able to offer you data and insights that assist you in determining the areas in which your company is deficient. You're going to want quantifications that can help you simplify operations, whether it's through spotting scheduling errors that could be streamlined to improve worker relations or through correct interaction with payroll software that makes monitoring billable time easier.
Related: 4 Ways Workers Steal Time (And 6 Ways To Prevent It)
In keeping with this, we'll provide our top 9 choices for employee scheduling software made specifically for small enterprises. These will be straightforward tools with scheduling capabilities that boost accountability and communication for smaller teams. Hopefully, one of these resources will be ideal for your schedule requirements.
The 10 Best Small Business Employee Scheduling Software
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #1: TripLog Time
All factors considered - price, features, etc. - the single best employee scheduling tool for small businesses is TripLog Time.
Timesheet Submission & Approval
Your team can submit their timesheets and managers can easily review and approve them from TripLog Time’s web dashboard. Admins can see in-depth summaries and detailed reports with a single click.
Manage Attendance & Leave
You can easily track and see time for every single task, project, and customer. That way, you always know how many hours are tracked and the estimated time use on each project.
Related: 4 Steps to Easily Track Your Employee's Time Off
Employees can also see their PTO balance and request time off within the TripLog Time app. Admins can also create custom time-off types (maternity, religious days, etc.).
GPS Location Tracking
TripLog Time allows companies to monitor their team’s locations, as well as their stay time. See heat maps, track progress at a glance, and add a layer of accountability to your company.
To explore more of TripLog Time’s powerful SMB GPS time tracking features, schedule a complimentary demo with our sales team!
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #2: Connecteam
If you don't mind having a few restrictions and fewer than 50 users, you can utilize Connecteam, a software program for scheduling employees, for free. Its complete functionalities consist of:
- Employee Communication
- Checklists and Forms
- Employee Training
- Worker Time Clock
- Employee Task Control
- Templates for Employee Scheduling Schedules
It's easy to add employees to Connecteam by adding them from your contacts. They'll receive an SMS with instructions on how to activate their account and download this company scheduling software for free.
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #3: Sage HR
Sage HR is a small business HR software that also allows for employee scheduling. It offers a range of features and capabilities, some of which are as follows:
- Core HR
- Shift planning
- Timesheets
- Expenses
- Performance monitoring
- Leave management
One benefit for small business owners is that the pricing for Sage HR's recruitment services vary depending on the size of your staff. Additionally, it has features for tracking applicants and switching shifts.
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #4: Shiftboard
Shiftboard is best known for being easy to use and its vertical-specific modules (healthcare, energy, etc.). Some of its top features include:
- Flexible schedules for workers
- Geofencing
- Employee time clock
- Dynamic and flexible scheduling
- Management of agile schedule changes
- Real-time communication
Related: How to Track Employee Hours - 3 Easy Ways for 2023
Shiftboard's ScheduleFlex edition already includes these features, but if your small firm is in a production-focused sector, SchedulePro is another add-on you might find more useful.
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #5: When I Work
When I Work has a number of features and capabilities, some of which are as follows:
- Time counter
- Worker scheduling
- Timesheets
- Team messaging
When I Work features a Shift template upload function for faster onboarding that enables you to import bulk data, and it is important to note that it works across all mobile devices (Apple, Android, smartphones).
Additionally, there are many ways to communicate with your team, including one-on-one messaging, group messaging, and broadcast messaging for critical announcements. The calendar's ability to sync with other apps like Google Calendar is its best feature.
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #6: 7Shifts
7Shifts is best known for being used in restaurants. If you run a small business restaurant, you will appreciate many of its features dedicated to your specific needs.
- A task manager
- Manager log book
- Tip pooling
- Shift scheduling
- Clock in/clock out
- In-app employee communication
Related: Is Time Theft a Crime? | What Businesses Need To Know for 2023
The free edition of this program is fairly generous in that it makes the most of its functionality available to companies with up to 30 employees. It is useful for assisting you in managing open shifts in your company and integrates with POS and payroll applications.
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #7: OnTheClock
OnTheClock charges for various workforce management capabilities based on the size of the team, such as:
- Time clock for phone desktop apps
- Paid holidays (PTO)
- Surveys
- Employee messaging
- GPS tracking
Using OnTheClock to quickly distribute messages to team members to indicate schedule changes or staffing concerns is one feature that business owners appear to really like.
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #8: Hubstaff
Many believe Hubstaff to be among the best scheduling programs due to the sheer number of functions it has, which includes:
- Time reporting online
- Automated Invoicing & Payroll
- GPS Location Monitoring
- Monitoring employee productivity
- Integrations of employee scheduling with providers of payroll services
It works with mobile and tablet devices, and it can be a powerful clock in and clock out program for small businesses using any sort of device.
Related: Employee GPS Tracking Laws Explained For 2023
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #9: Buddy Punch
Buddy Punch is another top employee time tracking and scheduling tool, though their Pro plan will cost you more than TripLog Time. Some of Buddy Punch’s top features include:
- OT calculations
- PTO management
- IP Address Blocking
- GPS monitoring
- Job divisions
- Shift management through drag and drop
- Trades & covers for shifts
Best SMB Employee Scheduling Software #10: QuickBooks Time
One of the bigger players on this list (and thus among the most expensive by far), QuickBooks Time gives you a broad feature set as well as the comfort of being part of a major ecosystem. Some of QuickBooks Time’s top features include:
- Time monitoring
- Scheduling and messaging for staff
- Time card statistics
- Integration of payroll and human resources
Which employee scheduling app is the best for small businesses?
It should now be obvious that it can be challenging to identify the "best" scheduling software. Although there are many great features available, the program you choose will rely on your objectives, finances, and workforce.
If you're looking to use staff scheduling software that has a free plan, Connecteam might provide a good selection of features. We believe it would be a good idea for restaurant managers to explore 7Shifts.
TripLog Time, on the other hand, is most likely going to be the program for you if you're looking for versatile solution that you can change at will to meet the expanding (or changing) needs of your staff and one that can provide you with an overview of productivity, profitability, and scheduling.
To learn more about TripLog Time, schedule a complimentary live web demo with our sales team. Thanks for reading!