The Scientific Method tells us to ask difficult questions, analyse empirical data, and apply rigorous scepticism so we can improve on what came before. It’s taken astronauts to the Moon, and detected gravitational waves in a black hole.
But what can it tell you about which rota software is best for your business?
The answer is, quite a lot – as long as you’ve got real data about the solutions you’re comparing.
The thing to measure is return on investment (ROI). That’s a simple calculation where you:
- Add the value created by the investment
- Subtract the amount you spent on it
Sometimes, surprising things bring the biggest ROI. For example, a cheap investment that adds no value will have a negative ROI. But an investment that adds value year after year often means a positive ROI – even if it costs more up-front.
So, how can you get scientific with your rota software and make the right investment? Let’s take a look.
1. Calculate labour misalignment savings
Labour-to-demand alignment is about having the right number of staff, with the right skills, at the right time. Schedule too many staff, and you’ll overspend on wages. Schedule too few and you’ll have unhappy customers (which has its own financial implications). Both are examples of labour misalignment.
Smart rota software aims to improve labour-to-demand alignment, so you always have the right number of staff. For example, Rotageek uses machine learning to analyse demand patterns at your business, and provides automated scheduling to fit demand.
The ROI can come in the form of labour savings, time savings, and even boosted revenue – because you always have the right resources to satisfy all of your customers.
With Rotageek, you can save up to 8% of labour spend.
2. Measure employee absence savings
Managing absence – whether it is authorised, sickness-related, or unauthorised – isn’t easy. You need to measure lost time, implement a fair policy, and try to reduce problematic absence while being understanding about the root cause.
Smart rota software can add value to your absence management systems in a number of ways.
For example, Rotageek can provide all your staff with a mobile app they can use to request leave and check their schedules any time. And if a member of staff is sick or doesn't show up for work, you can find cover for their shift with a click.
You can improve attendance and spend less time on absence management. And that’s a return on investment every business can benefit from.
3. See your environmental impact
There are a lot of reasons to set environmental goals today. Going green might be a core value of your business. But it also pays: 65% of consumers prefer to buy from companies that advocate sustainability, according to survey results reported by Harvard Business Review.
When your staff scheduling process is proven to reduce your environmental impact, it can help you can reach environmental goals – and deliver ROI.
With Rotageek, you’ll get an estimate of how much paper and how many trees you’ll save per year by switching to our rota software.
4. Count hours saved on scheduling
This is arguably the biggest value-add of all.
Time you currently spend creating staff rotas is time you could be spending on important, strategic work. Whether you do it manually at the moment, or your existing rota software tools just aren’t cutting it, you could save many hours per week across the business.
With Rotageek, you can reduce schedule-related admin by up to 80%. How valuable could that be to your business?
Get an ROI estimate now with our calculator
In an ideal world, you would have an ROI estimate from all the rota software companies you’re considering, and then compare them. Unfortunately, not every company is happy to share that information.
But here at Rotageek, we are – and we’ve designed an easy ROI calculator, which gives you near-instant estimates for all of the above metrics.
You don’t need to be a real scientist to use it either. You just need 6 basic numbers about your business, and a few seconds to spare.
If you’re ready to try it, just click below!
See your savings... Try Rotageek’s ROI calculator!
