This week we spoke with Lainy Cox of Ultima Displays, to find out how things had been since their recent installation of a Tensor system. Ultima Displays have over 25 years of experience delivering a range of display products including portable display stands to customised modular exhibition systems. While they are based in Corby near Northamptonshire, they are the largest trade-only manufacturer and supplier of portable marketing display products across Europe, selling products from facilities in the UK, France, Italy, Poland, Spain, and Portugal.
From Mitrefinch to Tensor: Ultima Displays’ Upgrade to Smarter Time and Access Control
When the Tensor system went live in November, Ultima Displays onboarded around 70 workers, ranging from full time employees to hybrid, remote, and part-timers. They required clock-in stations, access-controlled doors, and wanted to give employees the ability to clock-in remotely. They wanted door control so they could ensure that there was only authorised access to the site, but they also wanted to be able to use a single card for clocking-in and access control, which Tensor was able to provide.
Lainy handles payroll and HR, and she was pleasantly surprised with many of the Tensor features. Initially, she had concerns as they needed to move from Mitrefinch due to cost increases and had quite a quick turnaround switching over. They had researched BriteHR, HiBob, and Sage Timesheets but none met their requirements. Lainy's manager had used Tensor at a previous company and passed on our details. It turned out that Tensor was a great match!
The training process started during the installation. Lainy was onsite to be hands-on with the system as it was put in, helping other staff members needing guidance and ensuring the changeover went smoothly. "With the previous system, there was no screen or anything. Just a channel they could put their card- it went green and they carried on walking." However, with the Tensor system, the screen shows if they had clocked in or out immediately, and so they would know if there was an issue. If colleagues were on the road, Lainy could tell when they clocked back onsite, so she knew they were available.
The trainer helped to setup custom and automated reports, including one that was specific to their payroll system requirements. "These were quite straightforward." Managers now get automated reports generated at 8 A.M. on Monday. After 7 years of using a Mitrefinch system, there were plenty of differences to learn during training. Lainy said the training was well led and had many instances of her and her colleagues asking "Mitrefinch could do this, can Tensor?" and the instructor would explain exactly how it could be done. Lainy also setup sessions for herself and the trainer to work with the managers who would be using the system differently than she would be. She was impressed that the instructor explained the processes and systems well, and if he didn't immediately know the answer to something, he made sure to get back to them with an answer quickly.
He has since remained attentive if any teething issues or questions have arisen since concluding the training. The helpdesk support team were also praised by Lainy; "they have been great, very responsive, very quick to jump on whatever issue I've had." Overall "The training and the aftercare have been great!"
Comparing Tensor with their previous system, Mitrefinch, Lainy was glad to have switched over. "I can find things a lot easier, especially when I'm doing my month end reports as well. I have to double check everybody's hours for the month or the period, to be able to click on the name, enter the start date, end date, I've got totals already there. Normally I'd have to export those into Excel and SUM the columns. Having each employee with the date criteria, I can just go down the columns and approve".
Lainy was also pleased with the payroll date locking function. Lainy explained that she had set the system to lock out amendments for the previous weeks hours by Monday lunch time. Managers would need to clear any clock-in exceptions assigned to them before then. She used to find she could run her report on one day, and the next day she could see differences and would be forced to run it again. Lainy has a database she uses to track when there are payroll errors, just to keep tabs on any recurring issues. Because of the Tensor system, she hasn't had to use it at all!
As we neared the end of our discussion, we asked about how Tensor could improve. Lainy offered feedback about some of the new user experience which we both agreed to follow up on. There were still features and processes that Lainy was unsure about, but she was confident that if these couldn't be attributed to her unfamiliarity with the new system then Tensor would be able to remedy the issue. Overall, Lainy and the Ultima Display manager's candid feedback was much appreciated as it gave us the perspective that most companies can find it difficult to see from.
Finally, I asked her if she could describe some of her experiences with the Tensor system compared to their previous one. She said she found the system easier to use after the initial setup, data was clearer and more functional when reviewing it, and this data was accessible and easy to cross check. She would recommend Tensor to other companies.
It was very enlightening to hear from one of our newer customers, allowing us to discuss more of the installation, training, and initial challenges. Thank you very much to Lainy and Ultima Displays for the valuable insights and praise of their Tensor system.