At TalentCulture, we’re looking ahead to the day we can get back to work. And we’re looking for innovative solutions that will make that transition, and the facing of our post-pandemic realities, as safe as possible. We are sure you’re thinking along the same lines, so we’re proud to introduce you to this innovative, confidence-inducing platform: NoahFace from PayCat.
We could go on and on about how much we appreciate the approach the Pay Cat team has taken to safely monitors all incoming employees, guests, and even customers as they enter our office and workspaces. We’d be remiss if we didn’t tell you how practical – necessary, even – the cloud-based contact tracing solution built into NoahFace is for today’s businesses. Instead, here is Garth Belic from Pay Cat to tell you their origin story and how the journey to create a technology-based return-to-work strategy was born…
TC: Tell us a little bit about Pay Cat. How do you get started? And what are your primary products now?
Garth: Pay Cat was born out of frustration shared by many business owners I first noticed while working for a large cloud payroll software company. Many of those owners were paying big dollars on a cloud payroll solution. But they weren’t necessarily getting the expertise or support needed to maximize the full potential of the payroll solutions.
As the COVID-19 pandemic caused our world to go sideways, we, like so many businesses, made a pivot into new products and technologies. Out of sheer demand, we introduced NoahFace to our business – a product that incorporates temperature reading and facial recognition into the staff and visitor clocking-in process.
We now offer a suite of time and attendance solutions with a full end-to-end service from implementation to training to go-live to support. This approach means our clients have someone with the expertise and support they need to customize our entry solution, to include digital door and gate control where desired, every step of the way.
TC: We at TalentCulture have seen a demo of the entry solution, NoahFace, but our readers haven’t. How would you describe that entry solution to them?
Garth: Ours is an all-in-one solution for automating time and attendance and workplace safety – particularly critical given that many of us remain stuck in the middle of a pandemic.
After completing the facial recognition process, NoahFace measures body temperatures before allowing entry and enables contact tracing of staff and visitors. On a practical note, the solution can be set up to control access points such as doors and gates while providing paperless attendance records of employees and contractors. This is all done with a thermal reader and biometric technology with little to no human intervention!
The most significant benefit of all this is that you can ensure that your business is pandemic-resistant. This means your business has the best chance of remaining open during this crisis that never seems to end.
TC: You deliberately designed your entry solution on readily available consumer products, like an iPad? Why did you choose to go that route? And what does it mean to your customers?
Garth: Any entry solution needs to be robust, given the high level of traffic it’ll experience. So while we can go with cheaper options, I find the security, reliability, and durability of iPads are best. Besides, most people are familiar with using Apple products! So, even though the technology is state-of-the-art, the learning curve is minimal.
TC: The benefits of Pay Cat’s entry solution are apparent. But employees feel the system provides them with much-needed confidence. Tell us more about how end-users have reacted once they began using the system?
Garth: The majority of employees love NoahFace. They no longer have to use fingerprint scanning or log paper timesheets. More importantly, it assures that all their colleagues and visitors are temperature checked appropriately. This technology delivers the peace of mind that employees look for now. And the solution they will want to see in place when asked to come back to work on-site.
Plus, having a no-touch solution that dramatically limits the risk of virus transmission is a big all-around win with employees!
TC: How does the NoahFace solution help with any necessary contact tracing efforts?
Garth: A lot of businesses still manually record visitors using a sign-in sheet. Or they have a receptionist maintain a paper log. In some cases, HR staff keeps paper timesheets or activity logs. Our solution eliminates all of this by keeping an event log from a web-based dashboard. This means accurate and automated logging of entry and exit times throughout the workplace, held securely in the cloud that can be accessed any time from anywhere.
TC: What inspired you to create a solution for the problems so many companies will face as they consider how best to return employees to the workplace?
Garth: We went through lockdown in March and saw firsthand the difficulties of keeping the workplace open. We knew other businesses had the same experience – and many more will. Given we were already in the industry, we knew the technological capabilities that could help provide a comprehensive solution for this on-going problem.
The bones of the solution is a time and attendance platform. We were able to adapt and innovate that solution to include contact tracing and temperature screening with the existing technology. So really, we were scratching our own itch first.
TC: Please tell us: What was the best thing a customer ever said about the PayCat solution? What are you most proud of?
One of our early adopters said, “You helped keep our doors open.”
Yes, COVID-19 is still a grave issue in many parts of our country and world. But we’re beginning to overcome the initial lockdown period here in Australia. And yet, this is priceless customer feedback. That’s why we’re here!
TC: In many parts of the world, companies are already facing post-pandemic realities. They have already begun reintegrating employees in the workplace. For those leaders in the US still designing that process, what is your number one piece of advice?
Garth: As you start to deal with the post-pandemic realities we’ll all eventually face, focus on what you can control. And start with how you can automate and adapt to contactless screening. Don’t install a dedicated team of COVID-19 marshals manually doing temperature checks and reporting. Don’t add staff for the additional positions required for a manual process – before and especially after infection. From a business standpoint, that makes no sense. Plus, the additional staff members running around only add to the anxiety we already feel about going back to work.
Instead, proactively and efficiently reduce the spread of COVID-19 in your workplace by leveraging technology. You’ll protect your employees while giving them a high level of confidence as they go back to work. They are safe, so their families are safe. And you’ll show local health officials that you as a business are doing everything possible to ensure a safe working environment.
All because you executed an affordable return-to-work strategy that leverages thermal imaging, facial recognition, and contact tracing.
Get a head start on post-pandemic realities… and re-open your offices, right.
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