The hidden costs of decentralised absence management

Decentralised absence management is more than just paper and spreadsheets. In the case of international organisations, it means every country of operations using its own method of tracking absences.

Many organisations rely on these fragmented methods of tracking absence simply because it’s the way they’ve always done things. But a decentralized means of managing employee absence comes with many hidden costs that can be detrimental to your organisation. Let’s explore a few of them in detail…

1. A fragmented culture driving stress and burnout

Decentralised processes make it so much harder for employees to book time off. And when it’s too hard to book time off, many employees simply won’t bother. All work and no play can lead to stress and burnout, which can cost your organisation significantly in the long-run. Stress is one of the biggest causes of unplanned absence in the workplace.

A decentralised approach can also make employees’ return to work more difficult. This will make it harder for you to address the root causes of unplanned absences in your workplace. The secret is to target the common sources of stress – and to this end, centralising your processes can make a huge difference.

2. A negative employee experience damages your reputation as an employer

Clunky and outdated processes, and an organisational culture defined by stress and burnout, will lead to an overall unpleasant employee experience.

If you don’t work to create a positive employee experience, word will get out. You’ll develop a reputation for not taking good care of your employees. Worse yet, people might start talking about your “toxic” working environment.

All of this will make it harder for you to attract and retain the talent your company needs to grow. A poor reputation will also make it harder for you to stand out from your competitors. Given the choice, would you rather work with a business that mistreats its employees, or one that treats its employees with respect?

3. Falling into the darkness of international compliance

If you’re an international organisation, you’ll have to comply with different rules and regulations in every country you work in. And when it comes to holiday entitlement, carryover, maternity leave, and much more, the rules can differ considerably from country to country.

With decentralised systems, it’s very difficult to ensure that you’re satisfying all those different international rules. Are your employees getting all the leave they’re entitled to? Are your systems compliant when it comes to issues such as holiday carryover, sick leave, and sick pay?

Centralising your absence puts everyone on the same page, making it easy for any organisation of any size to successfully manage local and international leave compliance.

What’s more, a centralised solution gives you centralized reporting on absence. You can access detailed absence data through running any number of comprehensive reports, and you can leverage this data to make more informed business decisions that’ll significantly help you deliver those objectives. On an international scale, this level of transparency can lead to lasting business growth.

So, what’s the solution?

Cloud-based absence management software that any employee can access from anywhere in the world. It’s fast, efficient, and it allows for total transparency across your entire organisation.

Do you want to fight stress and burnout in your business by creating a positive company culture and an excellent employee experience? And do you want to manage compliance on a global scale while accessing key insights for better business decisions? It all starts with a centralised absence management system that connects your existing HR and payroll platforms.