5 Reasons to Choose Cloud-Based Employee Monitoring Tools
Interest in Employee Productivity Monitoring (EPM) has surged in recent years as more workplaces pivot to remote or hybrid office environments. With a dispersed workforce to manage, leaders need an extra degree of confidence that their teams are performing as they should, and that no employees are being left behind, so they’re turning to EPM tools to gain more visibility into their operations.
Providing transparent monitoring that doesn’t disrupt workflows, EPM remains one of the best ways to ensure your team is performing efficiently and that every member is empowered to fulfill their responsibilities. But with so many productivity software solutions on the market, it can be difficult to know which delivers the best results.
Agent vs Cloud (API) Employee Productivity Monitoring
If you’ve been researching EPM tools, you may be familiar with cloud-based (aka API) and Agent-based options.
Agent-based EPM refers to out of the box software installed on employees’ computers to monitor their activity throughout their workday. These solutions typically track keystrokes, browser usage, emails, and many have the capability to record what’s on the employee’s screen at any given moment.
By comparison, API-based monitoring is more discreet and noninvasive, operating from a central platform that connects through APIs with business applications to monitor how workers interact with those tools throughout the day. You can see at a glance what tasks are being performed within a CRM platform or other business application, for example.
5 reasons to choose API
1. It’s non-invasive
Agent-driven EPM can give rise to serious ethical implications thanks to its heavy-handed approach. These tools have the ability to track everything an employee does so their managers know when they’re offline, when they take breaks, what websites they visit, when they send an email, and even what they type. This level of intrusion erodes employee trust, creating an unproductive atmosphere and making conflicts within a team much more likely.
An API solution like Prodoscore, provides a more subtle option. By narrowing the focus to specific business applications and tools an employee uses, managers can see their professional activity without intruding on the personal. From the central Prodoscore dashboard, team leaders have a 360 degree view of everything they need to know, and nothing they don’t. Each employee receives a productivity score, and these can be integrated into a team score and an overall score for the organization as a whole. This data is then compiled to give managers insight into how each individual/team performs over time, noting trends and suggesting areas of improvement.
2. It’s easy to use
Prodoscore’s API monitoring software seamlessly integrates into your organization’s existing tech stack and is extremely easy to use.
Unlike agent monitoring, which has to be distributed over a network and rolled out to separate operating systems, API solutions are administered from a central hub and can be deployed almost instantly.
And, there’s minimal training involved. Prodoscore is so instinctive that even the most tech-averse managers can learn it in minutes. The easy-to-navigate interface makes every feature accessible in just a few clicks while clear graphs and other visuals deliver data in an easily-digestible format.
3. It’s ultra-secure
Agent-based monitoring software is installed directly onto a user’s laptop, giving rise to security concerns. If your employee lends that laptop to a family member or a friend, the employer is now monitoring someone outside of their organization which isn’t just unethical, it’s also illegal.
API monitoring means the employer retains complete control over the software and how it’s running. It’s distributed from the company’s core operations so you can manage your risk effectively and ensure stringent data privacy.
4. It offers complete visibility across all devices
Agent-based EPMs only operate via a user’s desktop but API-based solutions capture applicable activity, across all devices.
So if your employee is responding to emails and messages on the go with their SmartPhone, or pushing through a project on their iPad, you know about it. This gives a more rounded, comprehensive, overview of company activity while providing the heightened degree of flexibility and accountability managers need in remote/hybrid workspaces. So, when you get a last minute MS Teams message before leaving the office, and reply from the elevator, and make a call from your car, you get credit for it.
5. It protects employee privacy
Don’t risk running into emails you shouldn’t see or documents with sensitive personal information. API-based productivity monitoring only collects data directly related to your business so there’s no chance of stumbling across your employee’s personal files and violating their privacy.
Prodoscore’s market-leading EPM platform relies on cutting-edge API technology to offer exceptional visibility and accountability among teams, while still respecting employee privacy. Unobtrusive yet comprehensive, it’s a game changer for workplaces across all industries, ensuring they maximize their resources and achieve their potential. Contact us today to book a demonstration.
