small
business
Making every
minute count
FOR ANY company with employees
who punch in and out on a time
clock, the saying “Time is money” has
more than one meaning.
Manually computing timecards
is time consuming—and not completely accurate. According to the
American Payroll Association, managers spend an average of 2. 5 minutes manually computing each
timecard in a business. And the
error rate for manual payroll
calculations is 1. 5 percent.
ICON TIME SYSTEMS
The bottom line: Mismanagement of employee hours
worked can cost companies thousands of dollars a year.
A smart solution is to move from
a paper- and mechanical-based time
clock system to an electronic one.
With the latest time clocks, employees
check in to work on a keypad or by
swiping a badge. This timekeeping
data can be exported directly to popular software programs such as
QuickBooks and Microsoft Excel,
where it can be used for payroll
processing or viewed in reports.
For business managers,
electronic time clocks offer a
more efficient use of time, a way
to better manage payroll and a system for archiving payroll reports.
For employees, they offer the peace
of mind that they’re getting paid for
the hours worked.—Tim Talevich
The Costco
Connection
Icon Time
Systems
Costco offers employee
time clocks from Icon Time
Systems at costco.com
and in select Business
Delivery locations. Costco
also features the Fellowes
Powershred DM-15C for
the small business or
home office with heavy
document shredding
needs. This model crosscuts paper, credit cards,
CDs and DVDs.
Protecting confidential information
IDENTITY THEFT CONTINUES to be a major certain business documents will protect them from
problem, with millions of victims last year. falling into the hands of competitors. And it’ s
Shredding any documents containing personal important to also shred your employees’ and
information is still the best way to protect yourself. clients’ private records.
Experts say the top 10 most important documents Confidential information isn’t limited to paper
to shred are: documents. CDs, DVDs and credit cards also contain
• Documents with Social Security numbers information that should be destroyed. Today’s high-
• Documents containing your name quality shredders can destroy these media.
• Tax preparation documents “A shredder's true capacity is indicated by the
• Bank statements number of sheets that can be fed into the machine
• Credit-card applications at once, how quickly the paper is shredded and the
• Confidential personal records length of time the motor can run continuously
• Cancelled checks before having to stop to cool down,” says Mark
• Receipts and invoices Woodrich, the Costco buyer who oversees the pro-
• Insurance papers gram. “Motors that allow for longer run times per
• Legal documents shredding session can help a small business save
Besides personal information, shredding of employee time.”—Bill Urlevich Fellowes Powershred DM-15C
FELLO WES. INC.
Legal-Size 21-Pocket File • Heavy-duty and portable
Legal/letter-size • Includes A–Z and Jan. – Dec. tabs • 15" x 10" x 5"
Touch on-switch
Convenience
outlet
Fluorex
technology
Saves
energy
Sharpie
Highlighter
20-Pack
Smear-guard ink
12 tank-style
highlighters
8 pen-style
highlighters
