What is Homebase?
Homebase is a cloud-based time-tracking plus scheduling application that assists human resource professionals in organizing and managing employee schedules, timesheets, and payments. It serves companies in various industries, including food service, retail, healthcare, software, and more.
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A drag-and-drop interface allows users to create employee schedules. Employees can receive plans by text message either email. The solution additionally enables users to get visibility into labour costs by tracking employee hours and overtime.
Homebase additionally includes features like automatic error reporting and data export. Clover, Poynt, Talech, Square, Breadcrumb, Lightspeed, plus Revel Systems are among the point-of-sale systems that have been integrated. Remote access is also possible via mobile applications for iOS and Android devices.
The services are available on a month-to-month subscription basis. The plan covers phone, email, chat, and webinar assistance.
Homebase Pricing.
Employee scheduling software has a fairly straightforward price. Almost every software program is based on a subscription model, which allows the service to cover various regions and users. Homebase is no exception. Businesses can join up for a monthly or yearly subscription with Homebase. While the former offers some flexibility (you can back out of the agreement if necessary), the latter can save you money in the long run.
Homebase offers three different service tiers, each with differing levels of capability and prices. Which package you choose is entirely dependent on your requirements. The service's pricing depends on the number of areas it covers, but it allows limitless users. Here's a rundown of Homebase's tiers, as well as some of the features accessible at each:
- Homebase offers a free Basic tier for businesses that wish to try out the service or only need to cover one site. Users gain access to a basic online scheduler, as well as time tracking and payroll preparation features, streamlined hiring processes, and the opportunity for employees to check their schedule, hours, compensation, and time off.
- The Essentials tier, which costs $19.95 per month per location or $192 per year per location, gives businesses access to basic plan features and advanced communication tools. Plus, schedule optimization tools, better support when adding team managers, and ways to measure employee engagement and performance.
- If your company need a lot of functionality, the Plus tier is probably the best option. This tier includes every function in the two preceding levels as well as a set of labour cost controls, labour law compliance support, and the ability to remotely offer oversight over your firm for $49.95 per month, per location, or $480 per year, per location. This tier also includes defining custom permissions, allowing you to adapt Homebase to your specific needs. Plus is Homebase's most popular subscription package, according to the company.
- The Enterprise tier, which is aimed at much larger businesses, includes everything Homebase offers, including custom reports, an assigned account manager, moreover API access. However, because enterprise-level staff scheduling has so many moving pieces, Homebase doesn't publish pricing for this tier; you'll have to contact the company's sales department to learn more.
A 14-day all-access trial of Homebase's Plus package is available to businesses. To take advantage of the free trial, the company does not demand a credit card. Homebase does not charge a fee to use its employee and management apps, nor does it set customer support. Employee schedules can be planned well in advance with Homebase's plans, which feature unlimited SMS text messages and no scheduling constraints.
Features.
The performance of an employee scheduling software program is the most crucial factor to consider. Your company would be better off searching elsewhere if it didn't have the right features and tools.
The truth that Homebase's timeclock app is free is first and foremost. Users can turn their web browser or mobile device into a GPS-enabled timeclock with the software, allowing employees to clock in for shifts and managers to track things like paid and unpaid breaks and labour expenditures in real-time. Additionally, organizations can use the app to enforce timeclock restrictions to prevent early clock-ins and unapproved overtime.
Homebase offers free iOS and Android scheduling and timesheet apps. Managers may use the apps to control labour costs in both cases. For example, managers can quickly manage a team's daily, weekly, and monthly schedules with the scheduling app's drag-and-drop feature. Hours are calculated instantly, and plans can be seen by role, period, or employee. Managers can quickly duplicate the previous week's setup or utilize automatic scheduling, which builds programs based on employee availability and position, if schedules are fixed, i.e. established. Any scheduling issues are alerted to users by the app.
Managers constantly have the last say in scheduling. Still, employees may use the app to set their availability, seek time off, and trade shifts with coworkers when an employee submits a request – whether for a shift swap, time off, or any other reason. The software carries an email to the manager with a link to the submission so the supervisor can approve or deny it.
Users can set up mobile notifications that send text messages to employees' phones. Homebase also has an in-program messaging feature that allows managers to send messages to staff, which they will see when they check-in.
If you require your employee scheduling software to work with other programs, you'll be pleased to learn that Homebase connects with various them. For example, Homebase supports restaurant business tools like Bevspot and Ctuit and POS software like Square, Clover, Toast, and payroll systems like ADP and Intuit QuickBooks.
Additional Points to Consider.
Homebase outperforms the other employee scheduling software we tested in terms of functionality and flexibility, but that's not all it has to offer. For example, Homebase can potentially be used as a recruitment tool. According to firm officials, companies can post job opportunities to the most extensive online job boards for free in "less than 60 seconds." Managers may select, filter, and arrange interviews with potential workers once applications begin to arrive.
When it comes to reports, Homebase provides a variety of options. On the other hand, the lesser service tiers only offer four pieces, whereas the higher ones offer nine. Attendance data are accessible to discover who is missing shifts or arriving late regularly. Labour cost reports are also available, illustrating how much your employees' schedules cost your firm, depending on their hours worked and paid rates. A sales versus labour summary and a feedback score from your staff are among the other data available. Employees can rate their schedules and work experiences for a shift in Homebase, allowing you to track employee happiness.
Restrictions.
It's no secret that we think Homebase is the most incredible staff scheduling software for small businesses, but one thing to keep in mind while using it is that it takes a little longer to set up (longer than we would have liked). Of course, we aren't claiming that the setup time was much longer than that of other suppliers, but it was apparent enough to warrant a remark.
