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Takeaway
Time-off requests are a normal part of working life for virtually every U.S. worker. The traditional process, however, leaves much to be desired. Time-off decisions are a hassle for everyone. They make employees wait, turn managers into bad guys, require HR to mediate disputes and just one bad experience can break trust with employees. But it doesn’t have to be this way. GONE® is the revolutionary enhancement to Paycom’s Time-Off Requests tool. Read how this tool boosts operations, protects compliance and empowers managers to focus on strategy and performance — not tedious tasks.
Automation moves the HR tech industry forward, and Paycom’s latest award proves it. Our automated time-off request feature, GONE, was named a 2024 Top HR Product by Human Resource Executive magazine. Each year, the publication recognizes the best tech introduced to the market over a 12-month period.
The time-off decision process can be frustrating for anyone. Take managers, for example. When they get a time-off request — or several of them closer to a holiday — most HR software requires the leader to approve or deny it. If the supervisor manually calculates coverage while overloaded with other tasks, the employee has to wait for a decision. Whether the manager approves or denies the request, the days (or weeks) it took them to respond — if at all — can spur their team members to:
- cancel plans because of a delayed approval
- blame their leaders for an unclear scheduling policy
- miss a slim window to book affordable travel
- abandon the trust their employer painstakingly built with them
Not to mention the ever-changing regulatory landscape. Legislation like predictive scheduling laws require employers to carefully balance time and attendance — or potentially face fines and other costly penalties for lack of transparency or perceived time-off favoritism. These frustrations seem like the name of the game when it comes to managing time off. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
What are automated time-off requests?
Automated time-off requests allow you to set a variety of time-off decision-making criteria for timely resolutions that abide by company policies and meet departmental needs. When an employee submits a time-off request, software automates the decision, removing the manager from the process and providing an immediate approval or denial based on the employer’s set policies. Approved decisions flow to payroll, scheduling, the employee’s timecard, accruals and the manager’s time-off calendar of choice.
In practice, automated time-off requests give managers more control over their team’s PTO. Once rules are set, employers can trust the software to ensure appropriate coverage and enhance the employee experience by providing faster responses.
Why should organizations automate time-off requests?
Reviewing time-off requests is another tedious yet necessary aspect of a supervisor’s role. Even when it’s a seemingly routine process, every decision takes time and conscious effort. With enough volume, the practice results in:
- delays
- errors
- employee frustration
- time lost for managers to lead
Outdated processes around time-off decisions can cause staffing shortages and costly errors. They can also create unnecessary work for managers, HR administrators and finance staff responsible for chasing down supervisors to approve requests or provide updated accruals for their employees. Manual processes can be the driver of a negative employee experience because workers are forced to wait days or even weeks for a decision, if they receive one at all.
But just because reviewing time-off requests involves choice doesn’t mean it can’t be automated. GONE is a revolutionary feature of Paycom’s Time-Off Requests tool. Employers can set a variety of customized time-off decision-making criteria to ensure operations keep moving. This makes it easy to provide prompt responses to time-off requests without compromising schedule coverage. It also offers the potential for significant bottom-line benefits. According to a Forrester Consulting study, a composite organization had a projected ROI of up to 821% over three years with GONE. Once GONE is set up, Paycom takes care of the rest, with automated decisions flowing seamlessly and accurately into payroll.
How do automated time-off requests work?
GONE doesn’t just calculate allowances or notify employees. It automates the decisions around time-off requests and:
- gives employees immediate approval or denial
- frees supervisors from time-consuming schedule analysis
- saves HR pros from being constant mediators
- protects executive leadership from understaffing and production impact
When setting up GONE, HR pros, admins or leaders can establish rules for time-off requests. This opens the door to fair and consistent approvals without the need for managers to:
- log in to Paycom
- reference leave policies
- manually approve or deny requests
GONE also standardizes the approval process to ensure both fairness and timeliness. For instance, if a company has a policy that gives senior members priority for time off, HR can set GONE to automatically check employee tenure and accordingly resolve conflicting requests — without manager intervention.
GONE doesn’t completely remove supervisors from the process, either. They always have the option to override an automated decision with reasoning — like if a leader knows staffing needs will be met despite a lower head count. Leaders can also update decisions on PTO requests if their staffing or business needs change. Whatever the rationale, GONE immediately conveys it to an affected employee.
By automating time-off requests, employers ensure standardization across their organizations. The result? Agile leadership, more equitable workplaces and a proactive approach to complying with time and labor laws.
7 benefits of automated time-off requests and leave management
Processing time-off requests raises bigger obstacles than you might think. With the chance for regulatory issues, frustrated employees and a mountain of administrative labor, automation through GONE gives enterprises a multifaceted edge. Here are just seven of its biggest benefits.
1. Decrease errors
We all make mistakes. That’s what makes us human. Unfortunately, this truth doesn’t help address double-booking employees or an empty schedule during a retailer’s busiest sale. And if employees submit a time-off request after their leave, it could cause:
- payroll inaccuracy
- delayed approvals
- late payouts
- widespread frustration with the process
GONE shields your organization from blunders like this by verifying a time-off request can be approved before it has a chance to hurt operations. It also helps protect employees from the frustration of lost requests. Employees also have visibility into whether their request is likely to be approved during the request process.
Prevent overpayment of leave benefits
With a manual time-off process, decisions are often approved late, after the fact or not at all, yielding additional cost liabilities. GONE’s customizable rules help avoid lulls in business spurred by too many absences or inaccurate recording. You can limit the total approved requests for a specific day or even set blackout periods for busier times, preventing overpayment of leave benefits and ensuring staffing needs are met.
Avoid missed paid time-off payments
Even better, GONE automatically ensures approved time-off requests reflect in payroll and schedules, so HR and your managers don’t have to and your business avoids missed paid time-off payments.
Maintain accurate time-off accruals
A disconnected set of payroll, HR, and time and attendance tools obscure time-off accruals from the people who need to see them. GONE is just one example of how Paycom’s single software simplifies tasks through automation and provides accurate, real-time visibility into employees’ time-off information.
2. Eliminate time-consuming tasks
The more time HR and managers spend in the weeds, the less time they have to drive business performance forward. By automating the choices involved with approving and denying time-off requests, HR and managers secure a new lease on their roles. Instead of reconciling schedules, they can:
- focus on strategic initiatives
- support executive vision and goals
- engage and retain more employees
And it’s not just possible. It’s proven. A Forrester Consulting study found companies using GONE annually saved:
- nearly one workweek* of unproductive hours for each manager
- nearly 200 hours for HR, finance and admin staff
- up to 240 hours in avoidable overtime
3. Reduce bias and discrimination
No one wants to be treated unfairly. But human error and snap judgment unintentionally can create a sense of favoritism and a toxic workplace. After all, how would you feel if your early request to take Black Friday off was denied for the fifth year in a row, while your co-workers seem to consistently get it off despite submitting their requests only a few weeks in advance? GONE removes the bias by ensuring time-off policies are applied uniformly to everyone. Consider it your foundation for a more equitable environment.
4. Help ensure compliance
With GONE, HR easily can set rules to grant time-off requests while helping avoid noncompliant approvals in a quick, appropriate fashion. For example, GONE helps ensure the consistency of a first-come, first-served requirement if your policy calls for it. Or you could give priority to employees who have requested the least amount of time off during a certain time period.
5. Improved employee experience
The longer an employee has to wait for an answer, the more likely they’ll question if their organization cares about their needs. Even a delay of three days is enough to fracture someone’s trust in their employer.
GONE instantly approves or denies employees’ time-off requests based on company policies and departmental needs, eliminating uncertainty and ensuring consistent and transparent decisions. GONE builds trust in employees by helping them better plan their lives, not linger in limbo without a clear timeline.
6. Real-time information and updates
When a decision is automated by GONE, the employee is immediately notified. This eliminates uncertainty for employees about time-off rules and expectations and helps provide quick resolutions to requests without managers or HR being caught in time-off denial disputes.
7. Streamlined workforce management
Manually managing time-off requests drains your time and your bottom line. But when you automate decisions with GONE, you turn those losses into gains and streamline workforce management. The customization and ease of use eliminate tedious reviews, give employees the transparency and autonomy they deserve and ensure your operations keep moving.
A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Paycom (October 2024). Results are for a composite organization based on interviewed clients with a three-year projected ROI of 102%-821% and savings of up to 192 hours for HR, finance and admin teams.
*Refers to a traditional 40-hour workweek.
