Workforce Central Shapes Up Workforce Productivity at YMCA of the Triangle

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YMCA of the Triangle, a nonprofit organization in Raleigh, NC, serves over 87,000 members at 12 branch locations, including fitness facilities, program centers, and three summer resident camps. With 390 full-time and 2,000 part-time employees, the YMCA offers members a wide range of youth and adult programs and fitness options throughout the region.

Using paper timecards and multiple databases to manage workforce information for this many employees and locations was extremely challenging. Compounding this challenge, the YMCA's employees share jobs and often work at a number of branches in close proximity. A group fitness instructor, for example, might include up to ten positions at different facilities, each with a different pay scale. Positions and wages were manually tracked at individual locations before this information was sent to the payroll department, where secondary time was added, if needed, and manually processed, a time-consuming task prone to errors.

To update its workforce management system, YMCA of the Triangle implemented the Kronos^® Workforce Central^® suite — including Workforce Timekeeper™, Workforce HR™,and Workforce Payroll™. The organization has realized a plethora of benefits: faster and more accurate workforce data collection and wage calculations, detailed job position and staff certification tracking that enforce regulatory compliance, customized reporting capabilities, and improved productivity that frees staff for strategic and program activities.

User-friendly solution delivers accurate data

After considering workforce management solutions from five vendors, YMCA of the Triangle found Kronos to be the clear favorite. The YMCA implemented the Workforce Central suite at all facilities, and at its larger locations installed biometric time clocks, which Karla Jessup, YMCA of the Triangle vice president of human resources, calls "a great security feature" that helps ensure the collection of accurate workforce information. At smaller program centers, a staff member enters timecard information directly into Workforce Central, which maintains all of the organization’s workforce management information in a single database.

Learning to use the Kronos solution was easy, notes Jessup. After participating in the Kronos Train-the-Trainer Program, YMCA of the Triangle directors and HR staff trained other employees on the system. "We've found that after using our Kronos system for a little while, we’re easily able to train others on it," says Jessup.

Reporting functionality gets rave reviews

Staff members say that one of the biggest benefits of the YMCA's Kronos solution has been using high-quality workforce information to create numerous custom reports. YMCA staff can track and report on employee time and attendance information, benefit time, and certifications. They also create performance reviews and flag due dates, track workers' compensation in a single database, and create equal opportunity reports and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) logs.

Certification tracking is another favorite feature. The YMCA must make sure staff members maintain their certifications, such as CPR, water safety, group fitness, Pilates, cycling, yoga, and driver’s licenses. The certification tracking functionality is simple to use, says Jessup, and provides reports that alert supervisors to each employee’s certification renewal dates.

Other benefits include easily tracking job positions, calculating varying pay scales by position and location, and adding detailed employee information. "We were doing a lot of double entries prior to Kronos," she explains. "Even running reports on first days and anniversaries, things that seem so simple now, we couldn't do before. Kronos has just been a lifesaver for us."

Improved workforce productivity in multiple areas

The YMCA has seen significant productivity improvements with its Kronos solution, from reduced supervisory oversight and fewer calls to HR to faster payroll processing. "Now, we're able to get more strategic and put our time toward other activities," says Jessup. With these tools, supervisors can spend less time being administrators and more time involved with programs.

HR staff can also download workforce information directly into the YMCA's retirement system, something that was previously done manually, and create detailed reports. HR professionals are also fielding fewer calls from employees with questions about wage calculations for different positions because the solution produces "a user-friendly check stub."

General employees have enjoyed greater productivity, too, with no more trips to the bank needed to deposit paychecks. Jessup reports that the YMCA's Kronos solution allows the organization to finally implement direct deposit, which has been a huge hit with employees.

"We can't say enough good things about Kronos," she adds. 'Sometimes when we print out reports or do different things we'll write each other notes: 'We love Kronos!'"

Solution adapts to organization’s needs

In the future, YMCA of the Triangle is considering using Kronos' scheduling solution with Workforce Timekeeper for added deck management, to more precisely enforce staff-to-child ratio requirements for each program, including staffing impacts on the budget. "Kronos provides valuable reports that show us where people are working, and deck management allows us to enforce compliance with different laws and regulations," notes Jessup about maintaining a program's required ratios. "And if those laws and regulations change, our Kronos solution can change to fit those needs."

As an organization that naturally experiences frequent turnover in seasonal and younger staff, YMCA of the Triangle also would like to explore using applicant kiosks at the branches to streamline the hiring and rehiring process. Concludes Jessup, "We are continuing to grow and add employees, and the great thing about our Kronos solution is it can grow with us."

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