Efficiency makes people successful, competitive. An excellent tool for researching how effectively you use working time is a photo of working time, in other words it is also called timekeeping. What is this tool, how to use it and what results it brings - read in the article.

What is a working time photo?

This is a research method in which a whole working day or a certain period of time is subjected to continuous measurement. Thanks to this observation, you can get information about what an employee, a group of employees or a team is doing during the working day. Supervision is carried out by a specialist, and such a study can also be carried out independently. Fixations are totally subjected to all actions, both related to work, and distractions, smoke breaks, and so on.

Among employees who are fond of time management and realize the importance of rational use of time, this is a popular tool. Moreover, if you are interested in the question of how to optimize working time, the photo of working time will be the first step. You can only manage what is measured. Often, just observing, even without making changes to the working day, already leads to an increase in efficiency.

Goals

This method has a number of goals. One of the most important is the identification of time losses during the working day. The next one is to determine the reasons for the loss of time and develop a system of measures that will allow you to work more efficiently. Working time photography allows you to develop time standards for work processes, learn from the organizational experience of the most successful employees and teach it to other people to achieve high results.

This kind of research becomes especially valuable when the issue of expanding or reducing staff, redistributing responsibilities is being decided.

Whether you want to discuss with your manager a raise in your pay or the search for an assistant, a self-composed individual photo of working hours will be an excellent evidence base. You will have weighty arguments, the manager will take your proposals more seriously if you prepare in this way.

Taking pictures of working time

Despite the fact that the name of the procedure contains the word "photography", none of the photographic equipment is required. All you need is paper and a pen. To simplify the task, ready-made forms with filling samples have been developed. They can be found in legal systems like "Consultant". You can develop the form yourself or get by with an ordinary table.

One day is not always enough, so the observation can be carried out for several days.

The whole process can be conditionally divided into three stages: preparatory, observation process, processing of results. At the preparatory stage, forms are compiled and filled out, at the stage of observation, a record is kept, at the stage of processing the results, it is calculated how long this or that type of work takes, efficiency is analyzed, and conclusions are drawn.

Scoring

• Preparation and completion work (starting up the equipment, preparing the necessary tools, turning off the equipment, cleaning the workplace).
• Organizational matters.
• Time spent on the direct performance of duties.
• Breaks for rest and lunch.

Smaller groups can be distinguished if this is appropriate for a particular study. Then a coefficient is calculated showing the efficiency or inefficiency of the employee's working day.

Form for timing

The form must have a “header” where information about the full name and specialty of the employee, the enterprise where the study is being conducted, the date and time of the analysis is entered.

Then there should be a table. The first column is a serial number, then a column for the name of the work performed. The third column indicates the period of time from when and how long the work was performed. The fourth column calculates the amount of time spent on work. You can add a comment column.

Main types of research

They can observe one employee, then it will be an individual photo. They can observe a group or a brigade, then it will be a group or brigade photo.

If the observation is carried out throughout the working day, then such a photograph is called classical. You can not fix the whole day, but only its individual moments.

Another division has already been mentioned above. A specialist can observe, or you can take pictures of the working day yourself. When using an outside observer, you may encounter a negative reaction from employees. They may refuse to work under supervision or, on the contrary, start working faster and more than usual, which will lead to incorrect data on time costs.

Research can also be carried out with the help of video equipment. On the one hand, this allows you to obtain objective information, on the other hand, not every action can be clearly distinguished by observing it only from the side, without comments from the person performing the work.

Psychological preparation

A study of how employees use working time - a photograph of working time, a technically simple but psychologically difficult way. Employees perceive such studies as an attempt to monitor them, worsen working conditions, identify shortcomings and punish them.

Therefore, it is important to pay attention to preliminary explanations of the importance of such a study. Makes a big impact If people work in an atmosphere of trust and goodwill, they will be willing to do anything that will help make the organization more efficient and competitive. If, on the contrary, the team is characterized by distrust, constant punishment, then it will be extremely difficult to obtain reliable information that will really give results.

It is important to build a motivation system in which it would be beneficial for employees to work most efficiently.

Parsing an example

It is not possible for every employee to make an accurate timing of the working day. The most difficult thing to do is to conduct it with employees in managerial positions, the photograph of an accountant's working time is especially difficult. It is easier with those specialists whose operations have clear boundaries and distinctive features. As a rule, these are working specialties.

Let's look at an example. An employee is a manager in a corporate department. Here is a photo of the working time (sample):

• The beginning of the working day - 9-00.
• Preparation (booting the computer, preparing documents) - 9-10.
• Planning meeting - 9-15.
• Telephone conversation with a key client - 9-30.
• Checking email - 9-42.
• Preparing a contract for a client - 9-53.
• Smoke break - 10-37.
• Preparing a presentation of a new product for a client - 10-57.
• Lunch - 14-05.
• Internship of a new employee - 14-58.
• Smoke break - 16-15.
• Calling customers - 16-30.
• End of the day (cleaning the desktop, turning off the computer) - 17-55.
• Departure home - 18-00.

Who needs such information?

First of all, the stakeholders are the managers and owners of the company who want to understand how optimally the staff is loaded, whether the company's labor resources are used efficiently.

Employees of the personnel department, personnel departments also need such studies in order to draw up feasible job descriptions, select exactly the number of employees that the organization needs, and conduct research work.

Responsible employees themselves are interested in the fact that the working day is used efficiently, without downtime and emergency work, there are no situations with overtime or work taken at home.

Now you are familiar with a technique that allows you to assess whether working time is being used effectively (photo of working time). Try to put the method into practice, you will find a large number of reserves, you will see how to work optimally. Thanks to this approach, you can turn into one of the most productive employees of the company, and this will definitely be seen and appreciated.

Description

The purpose of the work: to determine the actual workload of the working day of a specialist in personnel work.
The work schedule of a HR specialist is discontinuous one-shift with two days off. The duration of the work shift is 8 hours. 1 hour meal break. Since the time for eating is not regulated during the shift, we will consider the period from 10:00 to 19:00 (8 hours or 480 minutes) as the total duration of the shift.

The work consists of 1 file

Photo of the working hours of a HR specialist.

On October 17, 2013, in the department of labor and wages of the HR department, photochronometric observations were made of the work of the leading specialist in personnel work.

The purpose of the work: to determine the actual workload of the working day of a specialist in personnel work.

The work schedule of a HR specialist is discontinuous one-shift with two days off. The duration of the work shift is 8 hours. 1 hour meal break. Since the time for eating is not regulated during the shift, we will consider the period from 10:00 to 19:00 (8 hours or 480 minutes) as the total duration of the shift.

Working hours (table 1).

Where, A-work (main time), PZ- preparatory and final work, HP- unproductive work, O- rest.

Summary of similar costs of working time (Table 2).

Balance of working hours (table 3)

observation conclusion.

1. The workload of the working day of a HR specialist in the observation shift amounted to 87.4% of the shift time and exceeds the normal workload by 4.4% of the shift time.

2. Involving another employee of the department for a short period of time to enter the personal data of employees into the information base will also free up additional time for HR specialists.

3. Introduce an additional 10-minute break for rest and personal needs into the structure of the working day of the personnel service. A break can be set at the personal request of the employee: two hours after the start of the shift, or two hours after the lunch break. It is advisable to do the bulk of the work before the lunch break, and after the break, advise workers and do work that requires less mental effort.

The specialists of a commercial firm are assigned tasks, for the implementation of which a certain time is given. However, employees often do not have time to cope with them in the time provided to them. The reasons may be different: insufficient qualifications, excessive workload, outdated equipment. An employee can also waste time on things that are not necessary. Research is needed to identify the real causes. One of the research tools is weekend photography.

What is working time photography

Work time photography is a tool for tracking employee productivity. It allows you to track exactly what the specialist spends his time on. This is a tool for determining the time spent on a particular task.

ATTENTION! This is not a photograph in the literal sense of the word, but a document of the same name. It is called photography because it allows you to capture the performance of work in all details. The task and the beginning / end of work on it are indicated. Explanations can also be added to the document. This is a versatile tool. It provides tracking of not only production capacity, time, but also intellectual resources.

Differences between photography and timing

Timekeeping is a tool that is usually used by the employee himself. The employee himself decides how and where to record the information received.

A photo of working time is a formal event appointed by the manager. All the information obtained as a result fits into the form of the established form. This form can be approved by the company itself. The formation of the photograph is carried out in accordance with the documents signed by the heads of the company.

Goals and objectives

A photograph of working time is needed to solve these problems:

• Making the right decisions when forming the staff of employees, creating job descriptions and a work plan.
• Analysis of the required amount of work for each individual employee.
• Creating an actual balance of time by grouping its consumption into different categories.
• Precise establishment of the structure of working time.
• Timely detection of the reasons for which there is a loss of time.
• Identification of the reasons for the untimely implementation of the work plan.
• Performing a comparative analysis of the work of specialists with a similar profile.
• Establishing working methods to improve efficiency.
• Evaluation of workplace conditions and the impact of these conditions on productivity.
• Analysis of the waste of time in production leaders.

Working time photography is used to achieve these goals:

• Identification of "leaks" of time during the day.
• Establishing problems associated with the "leakage" of time.
• Organization of events to help solve these problems.
• Creation of temporary standards.
• Learning from the experiences of more productive firms.
• Carrying out training activities to increase labor efficiency.

NOTE! Working time photography is a complex tool that allows you to solve a number of tasks. It allows you to increase productivity with a minimum investment.

Who can use the information from the RV photo

Work time photo is used by these employees:

• Leaders and managers. With the help of photography, they can determine the degree of workload of their employees, their productivity.
• Human Resources Managers and Human Resources Representatives. A photo of working time will allow them to form job descriptions, determine the optimal number of employees in the state. The information will also allow for various studies.
• The employees themselves. They will be able to increase their productivity, optimize their time.

The information obtained as a result of the study can be used by all interested persons.

Varieties of photos

Photos of working time are divided into different types, each of which has its own characteristics.

Individual

A photo is taken only for one employee to track his performance. His labor process is monitored by a commission that enters all the data received into the observation sheet.

group

Group photography involves the observation of a whole group of specialists. The control process itself is similar to the first option. That is, a commission is assembled that oversees labor activity. The method allows you to simultaneously obtain data on the effectiveness of each specialist in the group.

If the group includes more than three employees, the analysis is performed by instantaneous observations. In their course, the actions of employees are recorded. Consider the main characteristics of the procedure:

• The observer selects certain work tasks for analysis, since the observation of the entire labor process is a time-consuming task.
• The analyzed time is divided into intervals.
• The intervals when they are entered in a special form are indicated briefly: by a letter or a number.

Group photography is a rather complicated procedure. That is why it is very important to organize it correctly.

brigade

The brigade method is used in production. It practically does not differ from the group method.

Methods for taking photographs of working time

Who exactly should supervise the work of the employee? This is determined by the head of the company. The committee members may include:

• Ordinary engineers and chief engineer.
• Managers, HR representatives.
• Representatives of the accounting department.
• Employees responsible for labor protection.

If the method of individual photography is used, the commission may consist of only one person.

How is working time photography done?

If the company has several jobs, the commission may combine the information in one card. For example, two representatives of the company perform almost identical work. In this case, the first half of the day is monitored by one employee, and the second half by another. As a result, one photo for two is formed.

To clarify the photograph of working time, certification should be carried out several times. Average values ​​are entered into the form.

Stages

To obtain accurate results, it is important to properly organize the observation. The procedure is divided into three stages.

Training

Observers must understand the specifics of the employee's work. Without this, it will be impossible to correctly record the work activity. Observers get acquainted with the technical features, prepare observation sheets. In the latter, the basic parameters that will be studied are entered.

Observation

There is a measurement of the duration of all processes. For example, an employee needs to complete three tasks. These tasks are included in sheet options. Next to them, the start time and end time of the execution are entered. In this case, all interruptions must be taken into account, even if they are unauthorized. Monitoring is carried out throughout the day.

Results processing

This is one of the main steps. Includes the following actions:

• Calculation of the total amount of time spent on work. At the same time, time is determined for the implementation of specific tasks, for breaks.
• Evaluation of the results of the study. If an employee works in hazardous conditions, this must be taken into account. Such conditions may make long-term operation impossible.
• Comparison of the obtained results with exemplary standards.

During the analysis, “problem areas” are identified. For example, a manager spends a lot of time on routine tasks, ignoring the main ones. This reduces its efficiency. In this case, it makes sense to delegate routine tasks to employees of another level so that the manager can focus on the main tasks. The analysis reveals time that is wasted senselessly. For example, it can be conversations with other employees. In this case, it makes sense to tighten up the corporate culture.

How to present the results of observation

All information is entered into a special form. It contains this information:

• Document's name.
• The name of the company or its structural subdivision.
• The initials of the worker being monitored.
• Education of the employee, the degree of his training.
• Position held.
• The name of the work to be performed.
• Tasks assigned to employees.

The form can be presented in the form of this table:

What to include in notes? The second column contains the short name of the task. For example, it can be work with incoming information. In the explanations, you can indicate that the employee was engaged in parsing emails and preparing responses to them. You can also mention other additional information in this column. The name of the work can be supplemented with its code, if available.

The table should contain this information:

• Time spent preparing for work and completing it.
• Time spent on maintenance of the workplace (for example, turning on the computer, tidying the workspace).
• Time spent on the operational execution of tasks.
• Break time between problem solving.

As is obvious, all the actions of the employee are registered in the form, even 10-15 minutes spent cleaning the workspace.

After all the information is entered into the document, you need to give it under the signature of the head of the structural unit in which the observation was carried out. Then the signature of the head of the company must be put.

Determining the severity of labor based on a photograph of RV

As already mentioned, working time photography is a complex tool. It allows you to evaluate not only the performance of an employee, but also working conditions. What is it for? The degree of productivity is influenced not only by the efforts of the employee, but also by the place of work itself, the features of the functioning of the equipment. Identification of additional problems allows them to be corrected in a timely manner.

An analysis of the severity of the activity is carried out. In this case, it is desirable to include representatives of the commission on labor protection in the composition of the commission, since they have all the necessary knowledge. How to perform analysis? It is necessary to analyze the time spent, for example, to start the equipment. Outdated technology can greatly slow down the work.

What to do after all tests

Based on the information received, the manager, depending on the problems identified, can make these decisions:

• Increase or decrease in salary. For example, the group method of photography was used. As a result, it became clear that one employee is highly productive, and the second is constantly distracted. The first is assigned a bonus, and the second is reduced salary. This system allows you to properly motivate employees.
• Increase in staff. In the process of analysis, it may be found that the efforts of all employees are not enough to complete the assigned scope of tasks. In this case, additional employees may be hired.
• Changing responsibilities. Time can be spent irrationally due to the fact that the employee does not correspond to his position. For example, he may not have enough experience. In this case, it makes sense to remove him from his post. An alternative measure is to conduct training events.
• Correct load distribution. Too much workload may fall on one unit, and very little on the other. In this case, tasks are redistributed.

A photograph of working time can lead to an upgrade of equipment, an improvement in the workplace. This simple method, which takes one day to implement, provides a lot of crucial information about the state of production.

NOTE! A photograph of working time can be analyzed not only by the commission, but also by the manager. The second, based on the data received, can make larger decisions.

Those who are attentive to improving the efficiency of production processes will not be surprised by the phrase “photo of a working day”. But even those familiar with the term have many questions. How to do the right research? Is preparation necessary? How to organize observations and make an analysis? Our article will help you understand everything.

From this article you will learn:

What is working time photography

At first glance, the term “work time photography” sounds almost fantastic. This is the same time, it cannot be touched, seen, captured. But it can be used for anything.

A photo of a working day is a tool that helps to evaluate the efficiency of time use. It is advisable to apply the method in order to understand the reasons for the untimely completion of the tasks. This may be too much workload, lack of qualifications for the employee, or simply the wrong allocation of resources.

Technically, a photograph of working time is not a photograph, but a voluminous document where data is entered on how the day is used. It contains a description of the work task, marks on the beginning and end of its implementation, records of all the actions of the employee. The more detailed the data is entered, the higher the efficiency of the method.

There is no legally approved research regulation. The employer himself establishes and coordinates the procedure for taking photographs of working time.

Objectives of the

Photo of a working day (FRD) is a powerful management tool that allows you to solve a voluminous set of business tasks. Among the main objectives of the study:

• Identify and measure time losses.
• Understand how you can optimize the use of work resources.
• Determine the reasons for non-compliance with standards and "leakage" of minutes.
• Collect data to develop optimal labor standards and successfully reorganize work processes.
• Assess the adequacy of the tasks facing employees, their complexity, volumes.
• Conduct a deep analysis of labor efficiency at the enterprise: identify the most labor-intensive processes and types of employment, identify successful and unsuccessful employees.
• To study the experience of the best employees and implement it into work standards.

As you can see, working time photography is more than just a way to supervise employees. This is an effective tool that is needed at different levels of the production hierarchy:

Employees in the field can optimize their working day.

HR and HR staff receive data for compiling or adjusting job descriptions, planning staffing and working hours.

Leaders and managers see the real state of affairs in business processes and can optimize them.

Theme of the issue

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Processing and analysis of results

Before drawing conclusions from photographs of working time, the results of observations should be processed.

FRD processing

The first processing step is to count the minutes spent on each operation. The difference between the moments in the first and second columns is entered in column 3.

• Total time - the total duration of the shift (ST), most often this figure is 540 (9 * 60 minutes).
• Preparation for the task - preparation of equipment and workplace (PZ).
• Operation time - the time spent on the action (TO).
• Rest and personal needs - planned breaks (SOL).
• Violations of labor discipline - lateness, unauthorized breaks (NTD).

On the basis of the completed photographic forms, it is possible to compile analytical tables of the balance sheet of the RV or a map of the photograph of the working day. Key indicators for these tables are calculated as follows:

• the time for each type of operation is summarized;
• the share of time for the operation in the shift is calculated (K1 = VO / 540 * 100%).

Here's what the completed map looks like:

The issue of determining labor discipline is extremely important when photographing a taxiway. It is worth remembering that employees are people, each with its own strength and perseverance. Often, smoke breaks, breaks for “talk” or coffee are simply necessary to maintain a healthy working atmosphere and team spirit in the team. Therefore, before starting processing, it is necessary to determine exactly what is considered a violation and what is not.

The data obtained is the basis for analysis and management conclusions.

FRD analysis

The analysis of the FRD allows you to understand the production processes in the complex, evaluating:

• performance of individual employees;
• their working conditions;
• compliance with the complexity of the tasks of personnel qualification;
• load adequacy;
• compliance of the equipment with the tasks performed.

Here are some examples of the conclusions that the FRD allows to draw:

Bonus Or, conversely, pay cuts. For example, according to the results of group photography, it turned out that with an equal workload, some employees show high productivity, while others do not. Rewarding the first and punishing the second will help increase motivation in the team.

Increase in the number of performers. Sometimes the team's poor performance is not the result of a lack of work discipline, but the result of a banal lack of hands. The FRD helps to identify the need to attract additional workers. It happens and vice versa - the team copes with the work quickly and there is a lot of free time. In this case, it is advisable to transfer people to other tasks.

Personnel changes. Often, after photographing, it turns out that a person is simply working in the wrong place - spending too much effort on work that others do quickly. As a measure, you can offer him another position or provide training.

Reorganization of processes. Some complex FRDs reveal that some departments of the company are overloaded while others are "cooling off". Perhaps you should redistribute tasks.

Hardware upgrade. The workplace and tools are an important part of productivity. Often, workers are idle only because they have to work on outdated equipment. At the same time, they get tired, nervous, which further reduces productivity.

Thus, although taxiway photography is voluntary, this tool is extremely important for business development. Quite simple in execution, it provides a lot of important management information.

The productive functioning of an organization is impossible without improving the efficiency of the workforce of an individual employee or department. Improvement is achieved through analysis, which allows you to take a picture of the working day. It reflects absolutely all operations performed by employees. The result is analyzed, after which it is determined whether time resources are used effectively.

Features, types and purpose of photography

Observation of the implementation of normal work activities in the organization, the duration of which is a full shift, is called "working day photography". The procedure is aimed at identifying the time spent on each operation, analyzing them, determining the reasons for not completing the task, and optimizing the labor process. It can be divided into several types: individual (they control one employee), group (supervision of several employees located next to each other), brigade, self-photography (the specialist independently measures the time of his activity).

How a working day photo is taken

The study consists of three stages: preparatory, observation and analysis. At the first step, inform employees about intentions, determine the purpose of supervision, get acquainted with the peculiarities of labor operations and the place of work. The start of photography must be approved by order, after which the staff proceeds with their normal duties. At the second stage, all actions performed, their start time, as well as their duration, are recorded in the observation sheet. At the third stage, the received information is processed, the required calculations are performed.

Secretary's working day photo

Let's consider an example of photographing one working day of secretary Biryukova L.I., working in a private organization from 11.00-18.00, lunch from 13.00-14.00. Study period: September 17, 2013, observation began at 11:00 and ended at 18:00. The working conditions are normal, the place is an office. Job responsibilities: documentation, receiving visitors and interacting with equipment. Work experience: 1 year.

Observation sheet

Secretary time balance

The picture taken of the working day provides data on the basis of which the balance of working hours is compiled.

results

The resulting photograph of the working day contains the data on which the balance of the duration of labor activity is created. After that, the coefficient of effective use of time resources is determined, which is equal to the ratio of the sum of the duration of work to the duration of the shift. The closer this indicator is to 100%, the more productive the work of the staff. In our example, K isp \u003d (20 + 295 + 65) / 420 \u003d 90.4%. By the same principle, a photograph of the working day of a manager, programmer, accountant or any other specialist of interest is taken.