HotSchedules is a cloud-based scheduling, labor and communication management software solution serving the restaurant and hospitality industry. According to the vendor, key benefits include: Build & Communicate Schedules The scheduling and labor management software reduces the time it takes managers to create and communicate schedules. All scheduling and employee information is stored in one central location, so managers have access to time-off requests,…
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QuickBooks Time
Score 6.8 out of 10
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QuickBooks Time (formerly TSheets) is a cloud-based time tracking and scheduling app that allows employees to clock in and out from the job site with the devices they’ve already got in their pockets. The vendor aims to help companies replace paper timesheets with accurate, electronic time data as well as make payroll and invoicing faster and less costly. QuickBooks Time also accurately tracks time and GPS points (even without cell or internet service) then automatically syncs when back…
$0
1 user, unlimited projects
Pricing
HotSchedules
QuickBooks Time
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Free
$0
1 user, unlimited projects
Premium
$8
per user/month + $20 base fee/month (paid annually)
Elite
$10
per user/month + $40 base fee/month (paid annually)
For small to medium-sized companies HotSchedules works great when business is very static. If you are simply using HotSchedules for a schedule writing tool, it is phenomenal. However, it does miss the mark as a labor control software. Needs more controls to keep managers aware of spending versus historical sales data.
It would be very useful for certain remote jobs that require a high level of presence, as in the case of web development, or remote maintenance sessions, so that when reviewing the work data it is possible to ensure that there will be no failures. By being able to include files in the management, from the equipment tab, it is possible to fully control the hours in which each change in these files were made.
Communication is so simple on HotSchedules. Whether it is communicating a new schedule release, or a quick note about tonight's shift we as managers are able to easily communicate and know that it will reach our team through text notifications, or email notifications.
The Meal Break planning tool is very useful in being able to help our floor leaders clearly understand and plan for what breaks are needed throughout the shift. This allows them to come up with a strategic game plan quickly and spend more time with our guests.
Shift Swaps and Releases are so seamless. This is our favorite tool as it makes helping our team cover shifts extremely easy and painless. On the flip side it also makes staff who want more hours be able to find what is available in real time.
Support (their help desk team is incredibly helpful and always quick to respond).
Ease of access and use (the app is user-friendly an intuitive, and the desktop version is equally as approachable).
Manager functionality (it's useful to be able to clock employees in and out at multiple events on the same day by sorting them into different groups by manager/event).
Clocking In and out can be a little slow. It takes longer to clock in then our previous method. Before we just had a card you swiped and it would clock you in. Took 2 seconds. Now with the Hotschdules method we use it take 30 seconds or so. Not a huge issue but it can add up if you have one computer and a line of employees waiting to clock in.
Time Cards. It does not allow you to view someones current time until the "punch" has ended. If the manager would like to check what time the employee clocked in/out from lunch they have to wait until the employee has clocked out for the day before the record is generated. As a shift lead you may send and employee to lunch but forget to note what time you sent them. Awhile passes and you feel like they should be back by now, so you want to go in and see what time they left for lunch but it does not show you that punch record because the employee is still "clocked in" they are just on their "Meal Break"
The ability to customize the restrictions for Clocking in and out. You can set it up so that employees can only clock in from a specific location, however if you have a manager who is allowed to work from home they would not be able to clock in without being at the same location as set in the software. It would be nice to see it able to be customized per user.
The desktop version of the TSheets schedule does not have a search feature. This makes it challenging to find things you are looking for without extra work
The app can be a bit buggy. Though it is a great app, there are many reasons that the app will stop syncing and can cause problems with staff scheduling
TSheets tech support people, like Shawn Sommer, from Tsheets. She has been instrumental, after terminating the person in charge of TSheets I was left with a learning curve too high to climb but after 10 mins of her instructions I was able to make payroll in no time. She cleared all errors that nobody had fixed before. TSheets is not a vendor for me, TSheets is my partner in business. Thank you TSheets.
6 Years of Experience provides me the insight on the upgrades and changes that HotSchedules has done to improve the experience of its users. There are so many features that we still have not started or used to the fullest, but we believe that we are currently getting a strong value out of the money that is paid for this product.
Our employees find TSheets easy to use and spend minimal time at reporting hours using it. As an administrator and user of the TSheets "data and information" I am extremely positive on the functionality and reporting that it has provided me. From its ease of set-up to training to reporting, TSheets has made us so much more efficient from an administration standpoint
On rare occasions a phone call has been required to find the solution to a problem, the HotSchedules response staff have been helpful, courteous, and genuinely seem to care for their clients and take pride in what they do. The consistent development and fine tuning of the platform, interface, and mobile environment shows that this is not a program full of people who rest on their laurels.
I have never failed to have an issue resolved within minutes of contacting Support. Jen D recently assisted my with an export issue and I was back on track in less the 10 minutes. She was knowledgable and thought about the current and future contexts of the issue and assured there would be no recurrence next payroll.
I have not used any other Scheduling software for employees. As a campground manager in the summer season, we are using campground master for reservations. it is very similar in process to employee scheduling. the ability to the user of that program to set up their own parameters for time and reservations is something that would benefit the employee scheduling software.
Besides Intuit Payroll (Sage), the only program I've used is WorkBrain through Menards, and it's more as a scheduling guideline for management, employees don't use it to punch in or out or record hours. However, WorkBrain does show scheduling and it matches with a punch clock to record those hours. Every other place I've used has used either punch clocks or handwritten time cards. I think the TSheets is modern, user-friendly, convenient, accessible, and cost-effective for the owners. It also streamlines payroll for the Accountant instead of manually entering all hours for multiple employees by hand into a software program like Sage.
Saving time on scheduling means our managers can focus more on guest experience, managing the floor and other areas that contribute to the success of our business.
