{"id":219,"date":"2010-10-19T16:33:20","date_gmt":"2010-10-19T20:33:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.m2sys.com\/blog\/?p=219"},"modified":"2022-11-16T03:24:57","modified_gmt":"2022-11-16T08:24:57","slug":"what-does-buying-a-lightbulb-and-choosing-a-biometric-time-and-attendance-system-have-in-common","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.m2sys.com\/blog\/workforce-management\/what-does-buying-a-lightbulb-and-choosing-a-biometric-time-and-attendance-system-have-in-common\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does Buying A Lightbulb And Choosing A Biometric Time And Attendance System Have In Common?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Choices Are All Around Us<\/strong><\/p>\n

In everyday life, we are constantly faced with choices.\u00a0 Often times, it\u2019s a choice to purchase a product or service over another and we find ourselves evaluating the pros, cons, similarities, differences and other possible repercussions of our purchasing decision.\u00a0 After carefully weighing the options based on our research and analysis, we always end up making the purchasing decision that seems logically correct.\u00a0 Right?\u00a0 Wrong.\u00a0 Consumer behavior is fickle, always hard to pinpoint and never easy to predict.\u00a0 We do know that there is one factor that usually supersedes all others when it comes down to choosing between products or services.\u00a0 Price.<\/p>\n

Buying A Lightbulb Isn\u2019t What It Used To Be<\/strong><\/p>\n

Think about the last time you went out to buy a light bulb.\u00a0 It used to be in the old days that the toughest choice to make was what wattage to buy.\u00a0 In modern times, it\u2019s different isn\u2019t it?\u00a0 With a choice of whether to invest in the old-fashioned incandescent bulb that lasts 9 months (with normal use) vs the technologically advanced fluorescent bulb that lasts 9 years consumers are now faced with a more complex decision.\u00a0 Do I pay a smaller price in the short term and forgo a larger amount of energy savings or pay a larger price now and reap the benefits of energy savings by reducing my consumption?\u00a0 If you are like most Americans, you are on a budget and this becomes a harder decision than you may think.\u00a0 Consider the purchase of a hybrid vs. a standard automobile for a moment.\u00a0 There are essentially four factors to consider when deciding over the long term which is a more economical (and environmentally friendly) purchasing decision: fuel efficiency, service and maintenance costs, purchase price and tax breaks.\u00a0 When you crunch the numbers, it is a proven fact<\/strong><\/a> that purchasing a hybrid vehicle is more economical and a much smaller carbon footprint on the environment.<\/p>\n

What Does This Have To Do With Purchasing A Biometric System?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A University Dining Services vendor is considering implementing an automated time and attendance system for their employees to replace the old fashioned sign-in sheets they currently use.\u00a0 Let\u2019s assume that the vendor has 3 locations on campus with 100 total employees and the average hourly wage is $12 per hour.\u00a0 When faced with a choice of whether to implement RFID, barcode scanning or a biometric system<\/a><\/strong>, it can be tempting to choose the lowest price option without factoring in the long term return on investment (ROI).\u00a0 Let\u2019s look at it from the perspective of tracking employee time and attendance:<\/p>\n

Here are their estimated hardware and software expenses:<\/p>\n

Option #1 \u2013 Punch Clock<\/em><\/p>\n

Hardware Expense: $500 for the clock x 3 clocks<\/p>\n

Total: $1,500<\/strong><\/p>\n

Option #2 \u2013 Barcode scanning cards<\/em><\/p>\n

Hardware Expense: $400 for the barcode readers x 3 readers
\nSoftware Expense: $150 per PC x 3 PC\u2019s<\/p>\n

Total: $1,650<\/strong><\/p>\n

Option #3 \u2013 Biometric \u00a0technology<\/em><\/p>\n

Hardware Expense: $2,000
\nSoftware Expense: $500
\nMaintenance and Support: $100<\/p>\n

Total: $2,600<\/strong><\/p>\n