What to Look for In A GPS Time Clock System

Would you drive across town to save 10 cents a gallon on gas? Not me, but I recently paid 33 cents more a gallon than my wife, who bought gas across town. For someone who ignores gas prices, I got emotional.  And no one pumped my gas, washed my windows, or thanked me for paying too much. So, if you're looking for a GPS time clock system for your remote, hourly employees, please pay close attention to the value you're getting.

The True Value of an Employee GPS Time Clock System

The critical factor in the price of a service or product is that you fully understand what you're getting, and the same is true when searching for GPS time clock systems. Or will you be like me, paying more for gas with nothing more to show for it? 

A reliable, accurate GPS time clock app can save your company time and money with accurate time cards. We heard it from our clients.  A 30-employee company pays just $194 per month. And no setup fees. Simple and straightforward.

But what exactly do you receive for this investment? How does it compare to the other options you'll find down Internet Boulevard? And most importantly, will it solve your specific challenges managing a mobile cleaning workforce?

Do you want to ensure that your employees are always at the job site when clocking in?

8 Ways Chronotek Pro Solves your Remote Employee Problems

The cost of Chronotek Pro includes solutions to eight of your biggest remote employee issues:

1 - Ensures Comprehensive Job Coverage

Ensure all cleaning jobs are covered with intelligent scheduling and instant no-show alerts. When a team member doesn't arrive at a client's bank, office building, or medical facility by the scheduled start time, you'll know immediately – not when an angry client calls the next morning about trashcans overflowing or restrooms that weren't cleaned. In the cleaning business, missed appointments can quickly lead to lost contracts, making reliable coverage your top priority.

2. Prevents Time Theft

Stop the time-theft practice of buddy-punching with voice verification and 2-factor authentication. According to the American Payroll Association, time theft costs U.S. employers up to 7% of their gross annual payroll. For cleaning companies with distributed teams working overnight or early morning shifts when supervision is minimal, preventing time theft is particularly crucial. When employees know their time is accurately tracked, they're more likely to maintain honest work practices.

3. Automates Travel Time Compliance

Maintain governmental compliance with automated travel time integrated with Google Maps™. When your cleaning teams travel between multiple locations—from a corporate headquarters to a satellite office, then to a retail location—the system accurately tracks and calculates travel time, ensuring proper compensation. This helps you avoid potential labor violations while keeping your payroll costs predictable and fair.

4.  Offers Flexible Pay Rates

Pay employees different rates based on the work done with pay profiles. This way, when your team performs specialized services like carpet extraction, window cleaning, or floor stripping versus regular maintenance cleaning, they'll automatically get paid the appropriate rate without you having to manually adjust anything. This feature is invaluable when bidding on contracts with varied service requirements.

5. Enhances Team Communication

Chronotek Pro's Communication Hub centralizes all team communications, preventing the $1.2 trillion annual loss U.S. businesses experience due to ineffective communication. Options include required-read company announcements, private messaging, team boards for group discussions, and job boards for location-specific updates. The system even auto-translates messages into each user's preferred language, eliminating language barriers without third-party tools.

Store and securely share job site alarm codes and entry information, reducing after-hours calls and keeping sensitive information accessible only to authorized team members.

Plus, the Job Instruction feature allows you to create, manage, and share detailed cleaning protocols with your teams. Create job-specific or company-wide instructions with tasks, images, and links that employees can access directly from the mobile app. Share standardized cleaning procedures across multiple locations while maintaining the flexibility to customize instruction order for each site. Supervisors can even create supervisor-only instructions that remain hidden from regular employees.

6. Accesses Advanced Financial Forecasting

Know months in advance if you will make money and see unplanned future overtime and travel pay. For cleaning contracts with seasonal variations or changing requirements, this visibility helps you identify potential profit drains before they impact your bottom line. When you're preparing a bid for a new commercial property, you can confidently estimate costs based on historical data from similar properties in your portfolio.

7. Monitors Clock-in Locations in Real-Time 

Get notified when employees aren't GPS-located at the job site when clocking in/out and if they leave the site while on the clock. For commercial cleaning managers responsible for multiple locations across town, this remote visibility ensures accountability without requiring constant physical presence. When a client questions whether your team completed a full shift at their location, you have the timestamp and location data to verify service delivery.

8. Utilizes Exclusive Clock-In Technology

Have confidence that employees are at the job site when clocking in with our exclusive clock-in technology. This clock-in method eliminates the common problem of employees claiming to be on-site while actually being blocks away or even at home. For cleaning companies whose reputation depends on reliability and trustworthiness, this technology safeguards your company's integrity and client relationships.

Compare Apples to Apples When Shopping for A GPS Time Clock System

Are you just starting your search for an GPS timekeeping system?  Beware of companies charging more for similar features we offer.  Look closely and ask questions. Are you paying a flat fee per employee plus add-on charges for features? Some systems charge an additional dollar per employee for using their scheduling system and no-show alerts.  Or you may pay extra for job cost reporting. Suddenly, you're up to $8-10 or more per employee to access all the tools your growing business needs.

6 Essential Questions to Ask Before Choosing a GPS Time Clock System

• Does the company have a solution for automatic drive time?

• Can it handle complex overtime rules, including California's regulations?

• Does it have a way to prevent buddy-punching and other forms of time theft?

• What kind of customer support is available when your team needs assistance?

• What about the mobile app - is it easy for my cleaning crew to use even if they're not tech-savvy?

These are all valid questions when searching for a GPS time clock system.

Making the Right Investment in a GPS Time Clock App

If you pay more for an online time clock system, ensure you get more in return. Do a little better than I do when paying attention to gas prices. The right system should not only pay for itself through improved accuracy and efficiency but should also provide the specific features your mobile workforce needs.

Give us a shot for free for 14 days. Take Chronotek Pro for a free 14-day test drive and see for yourself how it handles the real-world challenges of managing cleaning teams across multiple sites. You'll quickly discover why so many cleaning companies trust us to help them run smoother operations and boost their bottom line.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1 - How accurate is the GPS location tracking?

GPS accuracy depends on many factors including phone model, settings, and environmental conditions. Most modern smartphones provide accuracy within several meters, letting you verify that employees are at the correct location when clocking in and out. The system also monitors if employees leave the job site while on the clock.

2 - What if my employees don't have smartphones?

While the mobile app provides the best experience, Chronotek Pro also offers telephone clock-in options for employees without smartphones.

3 - How long does it take to implement the system?

Most cleaning companies are up and running within 24-48 hours. Our streamlined setup process lets you import employee information, set up job sites, and configure preferences quickly—no technical expertise required.

4 - How does the system prevent time theft?

Pro combines our exclusive feature called TimeTiles™ to ensure employees are in the building when clocking in with proprietary GPS tracking to alert you when employees leave the job site while still on the clock.  

5 - Does the app track employees when they're off the clock?

No. The Chronotek app only tracks employee locations while they're clocked in for work. Even though the app may request "Always allow" location permissions for optimal performance, it never tracks employees during their personal time.

6 - What features do employees appreciate most about the app?

Employees particularly value the accurate time tracking, ability to view their own hours, access to their work schedule, and the built-in messaging system that keeps work communications separate from personal messages.

7 - How do employees know if their hours are being recorded correctly?

The mobile app automatically syncs clock-in/out times with the administrator's web dashboard in real-time. Employees can view their daily totals directly in the app, providing a clear record of when they worked and for how long.