Environment Control Empowers Its Cleaning Workforce, Manages COVID-19 Operations with Kronos Workforce Ready

Environment Control, one of the largest commercial building cleaning organizations in the U.S. and a provider of essential services during the COVID-19 pandemic, transformed its employee experience while successfully managing unexpected workforce processes and COVID-19-specific regulations with Kronos Workforce Ready, the unified human capital management (HCM) cloud suite from Kronos Incorporated ? which will become UKG (Ultimate Kronos Group) on October 1 following its merger with Ultimate Software.

News Facts

• Environment Control employs more than 4,300 workers at 50 franchises in 20 states. Kronos Workforce Ready provides visibility into real-time data, enabling its family of companies to manage a dispersed workforce and accurately track costs and daily activity, including those specific to COVID-19 service response.
  • Through the fully responsive mobile experience of Workforce Ready, employees can receive essential company communications and view critical information ? such as shift assignments and information pertaining to COVID-19 ? as well as remotely clock in and out of shifts from any job location, right from their smartphones. This enables managers to ensure customers get the level of service needed by rapidly responding to unplanned absences and deploying fill-in staff to specific locations using the information from their mobile devices.
  • Continuous cloud payroll automates, streamlines, and reduces payroll processing time for Environment Control while payroll managers can process multiple pay rates ? including applying special pay increases and hazard shift premiums to employees responding to COVID-19-related service calls ? to deliver fair and accurate paychecks to each employee. Self-service capabilities also give employees the ability to view pay statements and submit direct deposit information from anywhere, at any time.
  • Environment Control effectively schedules part-time employees and supervisors across each of its locations with Workforce Ready and the organization can now better manage and compare labor costs from franchise to franchise through access to real-time data, including employee time, attendance, and total hours worked.
  • Workforce Ready allows administrators to process paid sick time or expanded family and medical leave in accordance with the Families First Coronavirus Act (FFCRA) as well as the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), helping to ensure compliance with evolving government regulations.
• Since implementing Workforce Ready in 2015, Environment Control has experienced higher efficiency in onboarding and a significant reduction in time-to-hire. Talent acquisition has automated the screening, tracking, and hiring process while identifying best-fit candidates ? a critical component in an industry known to struggle with high turnover.
• Performance management provides visibility into individual employee performance, while managers can identify and recognize top performers, offer career development opportunities, and provide ongoing feedback to drive engagement, retention, and productivity.

Supporting Quotes

• Jeff LaBenne, executive vice president, Environment Control
  "With thousands of employees across the United States, visibility into schedule and labor data is critical for us. Kronos Workforce Ready provides the real-time information we need to make quick and effective decisions on staffing, especially as it relates to our COVID-19 service response. Furthermore, Environment Control has seen an improvement in our ability to attract and keep high-caliber workers and expedite new-hire onboarding. The mobile experience has been a game-changer, providing critical information to remote employees when and where they need it and helping to streamline communication and keep our teams focused on what matters: providing superior service to our clients."

• John Kelly, director, services and distribution practice group, Ultimate Kronos Group
  "As one of the largest commercial cleaning organizations in the nation, Environment Control has established itself as an industry leader not only for its dedication to excellence but for its dedication to its workforce. The service industry is a people business ? and Workforce Ready has helped elevate the organization by providing powerful tools to attract and retain high-quality workers, enabling on-the-job access to important and timely information via mobile capabilities, and automating processes to improve performance and productivity company-wide."

Supporting Resources

• About Environment Control.
• About UKG (Ultimate Kronos Group).
• Follow UKG on Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube.
• Read the report: Gartner Peer Insights "Voice of the Customer": Cloud HCM Suites for 1,000+ Employee Enterprises, Peer Contributors (Publication: February 18, 2020).
• Ultimate Kronos Group CEO Aron Ain shares how to transform employee engagement into a growth strategy in his book, "WorkInspired: How to Build an Organization Where Everyone Loves to Work."

About Kronos Incorporated

Kronos is a leading provider of workforce management and human capital management cloud solutions. Kronos industry-centric workforce applications are purpose-built for businesses, healthcare providers, educational institutions, and government agencies of all sizes. Tens of thousands of organizations ? including half of the Fortune 1000^® ? and more than 40 million people in over 100 countries use Kronos every day. Kronos merged with Ultimate Software on April 1, 2020, to create one of the world's most innovative HCM and workforce management companies. Visit www.kronos.com. Kronos: Workforce Innovation That Works.

About Ultimate Software

Ultimate Software is a leading global provider of cloud human capital management (HCM) and employee experience solutions, with more than 51 million people records in the cloud. Ultimate's award-winning UltiPro delivers HR, payroll, talent, and time and labor management, as well as HR service delivery solutions. Founded in 1990, Ultimate is headquartered in Weston, Florida, and employs more than 6,000 professionals. To learn more, visit www.ultimatesoftware.com. Ultimate Software: People First.

© 2020 Kronos Incorporated and Ultimate Software. All rights reserved. Kronos and the Kronos logo are registered trademarks and Workforce Innovation That Works is a trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. See a complete list of Kronos trademarks. UltiPro is a registered trademark of The Ultimate Software Group, Inc. All other trademarks, if any, are property of their respective owners.