Increasing importance of cloud-based employee monitoring software

The demand for employees monitoring system is on the rise as the work-from-anywhere and work-from-home culture is in vogue now. Key sectors including labour-intensive IT segment are still in work-from-home mode even as the restrictions on Covid pandemic are being eased out. "There is a major growth in the use of cloud control and management solutions as more and more companies understand the possible advantages of transferring their infrastructure to the cloud," says Dr Deepa Kotwani Ghosh, CEO, EmpMonitor in an exclusive interview with Bizz Buzz

One of the main issues that employers face in letting their teams work remotely is the lack of physical surveillance and vigilance. But using monitoring software means getting complete visibility across all your staff's computers. This way, you can stay updated with the current tasks

We have got more than 700 clients who are using our solutions at present. We have provided them with timesheets, productivity tracking, work time analysis, screenshots recording, detailed productivity reports, attendance reports. We offer users- Bronze at $5 per month, Silver $4 per month, and Gold $3 per month

What is the increase in the use of cloud control and management solutions?

There is a major growth in the use of cloud control and management solutions as more and more companies understand the possible advantages of transferring their infrastructure to the cloud. These tools help organisations seamlessly handle cloud operations and deliver end users with uninterrupted cloud services. In order to protect the company network, confidential information from cyber-attacks via cybersecurity, cloud monitoring tools play an important role. If implemented at an early stage, the cloud-based employee monitoring software can detect attacks and bugs, protecting the network from potential threats. By checking the infrastructure and network at regular intervals, companies can easily detect errors. It also allows them to use their websites and apps to refine them.

What are the advantages for a company to transfer its infrastructure to the cloud?

Let's discuss the importance of cloud-based employee monitoring software in detail.

Data Security: When you keep a close eye on your staff's activities, it lets you get strict control over the data that they handle. Meaning, you can be aware of all the shared files, take action against any data that leaves a network, and avoid information breach. Also, you can track and analyze the sources of malware and unauthorized apps that might be lurking in your staff's systems. In the end, a cloud-based employee monitoring software lets you manage your company's data better.

Easy Maintenance: Monitoring a cloud-based server comes without any additional; maintenance issues. You don't save anything on your system, so you don't have to worry about the people who might get access to it. There is no need for an additional operating system or hardware to manage the data in the cloud. You can implement the new updates immediately, and there remain no dependencies or conflicts in the company's management.

Remote Management: One of the main issues that employers face in letting their teams work remotely is the lack of physical surveillance and vigilance. But using monitoring software means getting complete visibility across all your staff's computers. This way, you can stay updated with the current tasks, train individuals in the work that they are stuck in and manage the overall workflow of your company.

How can it help a company on other parameters like increasing productivity, fair assessment, transparency and above all, insider threat detection?

Employees work more sincerely when they are aware of 24X7 surveillance. However, remember that they are not intimidated by your vigilance- instead, they feel more responsible towards their assigned work. The chances of goldbricking decrease and you can clearly witness a hike in the overall productivity and customer satisfaction when using a monitoring tool for your staff.

Employee monitoring is not something that is beneficial only for the employers- it is a boon for the employees as well. Believe it or not, but a majority of people working in the corporate prefer letting their organizations know their activities during the working hours. This way, their management can know what they are up to during their working hours and can assess their work fairly at the end of the month. A transparent work environment is a prerequisite to having a healthy work culture. When working with monitoring software, you not only get an honest analysis of your staff's whereabouts- you also let them know that you trust them. It is only possible when you track their devices with their consent- but once you have their permission, they know that their bosses are aware of the efforts that they put in their work.

There might be malicious employees working under your nose, and you might not even have a clue. Now, what's a better way to catch hold of them other than tracking their screens all the time? Also, there are accidental insider threats. For instance, some employees might work in public Wi-Fi, may share their work devices with their siblings, etc. By using employee monitoring software, you can always spot the ones that might be dangerous to your organization and take necessary actions before it's too late.

Don't you think that monitoring an employee's computer using any tool is a crime?

Monitoring an employee's computer using any tool is not a crime, but it does come with legal barriers. But you don't have to worry about it if you never cross the line. You can take the help of any cloud-based monitoring software to enhance your staff's focus, productivity, boost ROI, improve your interpersonal relations, and improve overall customer satisfaction, and avoid any mishap.

According to you, how much savings a company may have if it goes for an effective employee management and productivity measurement tool?

The market sector has entered the dry season, as we all know, because of the pandemic. In order to continue to succeed in any market situation, it is time for business executives to think about pivots that need to arise in the sector. In order to make the organization work efficiently, businesses need to decide where to spend and save their money. Whether your business delivers services and products or develops software, managing workflow is an integral part. With the help of effective employee management and productivity measurement tool, by keeping detailed records of employee work, monitoring productivity, and improving employee morale, you will notice an increase in company savings.

Please throw some light on your company's plans.

Our major focus is to become a one-stop solution for a broad range of users from freelancers running an operation of one person to people working at large corporations such as Apple.

How many clients you have as of now and which kinds of solutions you have provided to them?

We have got more than 700 clients who are using our solutions at present. We have provided them with timesheets, productivity tracking, work time analysis, screenshots recording, detailed productivity reports, attendance reports, and a lot more.

What are your future plans?

Taking the concept of employee productivity and employee management one step further, we are focusing on moving beyond just time tracking, productivity measurement tools. We are having a lot of features in our roadmap such as personal online coaching to set up remote teams, offline time tracking, project management feature, payroll, and more which we are going to implement in the near future.

What is the range of price for the solutions?

We offer three plans to our users- Bronze at $5 per month, Silver at $4 per month, and Gold at $3 per month. Also, we offer 15 days free trial for all the users. If any user wants to customize the plan, they can contact the team and discuss accordingly.

Who are the other players that are active in the space?

Other players active in the space include Timedoctor, Teramind, Desktime, WorkPlus and Veriato.

Which kind of companies are you looking for to have your solutions and how many have already subscribed to the solution?

Our product is ideal for all small to large companies, from healthcare to software development. We have onboarded 680 companies with total of 68,000 licences sold so far.