Keen-eyed blog enthusiasts may recall a piece a few weeks back that looked at the beneficial traits of having an EAM solution over working without one. The general point was that the hidden costs uncovered, reduced, or removed made investing in an EAM well worth it. One often-overlooked cost that was not included in it: staff turnover.
Assuming it’s not time to retire, this will be due to some kind of dissatisfaction. It might be pay, or it might be conditions. Sometimes it is an accumulation of small things. Small things that Shepherd can alleviate. That particular challenge was featured in another blog piece looking at the benefits of standardisation through Shepherd, and it also serves as an intro to this blog’s own subject: replacing 3rd party time-keeping applications.
It’s about time!
A while back, Shepherd added to its functionality. It was a relatively small aspect, but it has proved extremely popular, adding proof to the notion that it’s the small things that can make the biggest differences. The company that requested it complained of staff being frustrated by having to double-enter timekeeping data.
They didn’t want to do the same task twice. They put it off, especially when the time entries that covered their paycheck were done. With that in the bag, the motivation to repeat the process purely for admin reasons dropped like a lead balloon.
So Shepherd engineered a function that meant the time entries the technician entered in the mobile app went on to populate the databases and records everywhere else they were needed. This removed the need for multiple entries of the same data, with all the risks for inconsistency that carried. Field technicians record labor and travel time in operational tools, while office or payroll staff re-enter that same data into payroll platforms.
One workflow, one information source
Then you have non-productive time: there might be training days, leave, or health and safety activities. Perhaps travel is not logged as billable under a certain distance. All of this is often tracked separately again, and fragmentation makes for isolated pockets of relevant data in the system that someone, somewhere, needs to collate. And if that is how the system was set up, then staff had to simply tolerate it. All of this probably sheds light on why a Shepherd customer wondered, one day, if Shepherd could help.
So fix it, Shepherd did. To the point that this relatively small improvement has, as mentioned, become one of the most appreciated day-to-day changes adopting Shepherd brings to bear. So let’s look at some of the real-world changes beyond technicians having less admin.
Eliminating gaps, improving data access
Consolidation only works if the data can flow seamlessly into NetSuite’s financial systems, populating native timesheets. Payroll providers can then access this data. The key difference is that payroll no longer relies on a separate dataset, drawing from the same information used for operational tracking instead. In the same way that Shepherd’s BI tool[Link to BI tool blog] draws straight from the General Ledger, this creates a single source of truth, eliminating the need for reconciliation between systems.
We’ve already touched on technicians completing timesheets for the servicing department, say, and then payroll sheets too, often requiring gaps to be accounted for, or manually adding non-productive time. By contrast, with Shepherd’s consolidated system, all time, whether productive or non-productive, is captured in one workflow. Payroll reflects the same data that was recorded during daily operations, and reconciliation steps are removed entirely. Unexplained gaps, begone!
Improving data quality and insight
So already you see a reduction in administrative workload, with no further need to re-enter or validate duplicate data. That accelerates payroll preparation and reduces manual effort. And where tasks take less time, you either have more time to address other issues, have employees feeling less strung out, or both. Any of those is a win. Workflows between field and office teams become more streamlined, as both operate from the same system. Onboarding new team members is also far less painful for both trainer and trainee alike.
It doesn’t take a process consultant to see that this consolidation also improves data quality. Your time entries are directly linked to jobs, assets, and activities, providing context that standalone payroll systems typically lack. You see which people use what time, on which projects or equipment, whether it is to ascertain profitability or costliness, and all of it as accurately as possible. Everyone relies on the same dataset, making reporting more consistent. The result is a financial analysis based on complete, reliable information.
Reducing system complexity and costs
So there are benefits to your staff and the systems they work on. But two more departments may be glad of the change, too: I.T. and Accounting. Shepherd customers can often shed third-party, non-Netsuite native providers that have licensing costs and require constant NetSuite realignment with each update. In this case, they enjoy the ability to retire standalone timekeeping systems. And again, your organisation can have a lower training burden and a minimised risk of data inconsistencies between systems.
Having proved effective, what began as a response to a specific customer requirement has been adopted more broadly and is now commonly requested during new implementations. This seems like another pretty good example of Shepherd developing a practical, problem-driven solution that then evolves into core functionality, offered to address a widespread need.
The broader lesson is straightforward: routine inefficiencies are often just unexamined assumptions. Addressing them can deliver disproportionate value. Maybe you have inefficiencies you want ironed out. Perhaps you want your time-keeping to be as tidy as possible. Whichever it is, a demo would be a splendid start to finding out.
