Spica's hybrid work time and attendance tracking solution

About Dhimahi: IT development teams established in three countries

Dhimahi is a technology company with over two decades of experience in creating web and infrastructure business solutions. 

Building on a commitment to technical excellence, dedication, and a culture prioritizing employee well-being, Dhimahi has emerged as a reliable partner for companies seeking tailor-made, technologically complex innovations designed to optimize operations, boost productivity, and fuel growth. 

They work with some of the biggest companies and brands in Europe, mostly in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

"About 10% of our team maintains a consistent presence in the office, while another 10 % regularly work from home. The rest typically come in anywhere from one to four times per week. Our working environment is very flexible, allowing a combination of remote and in-office work," says Emilija Kercan, company COO. 

Established in 2001 by its founders who were students at the time, the company derives its name, Dhimahi, which means “to meditate”, from the ancient Sanskrit language. In the broad sense of the word, meditation is any work executed with focus and dedication, which are two of the company's core values. 

Over the years, the company has honed its ability to listen to the market and swiftly respond to emerging opportunities, which has fueled significant growth in recent years. To meet escalating demand and fulfill all orders, Dhimahi has had to expand its workforce internationally. 

Dhimahi fosters long-term partnerships with every client, founded on trust, quality, and reliable delivery of results. Each project is entrusted to an agile team of experts wholly committed to its success. 

Once the client outlines the product vision, Dhimahi assumes responsibility for its technical realization and provides comprehensive services, guiding the client through every stage of development, from prototype and MVP (minimum viable product) to the final product and ongoing operations.  

As of March 2024, there were already 15 such teams established, each comprising between 3 and 12 members. Each team is led by a dedicated team leader responsible for overseeing the team members, fostering the relationship with the client, and ensuring the successful and professional execution of the project.

Dhimahi generates 85 % of its revenues from the Western market, with a primary focus on developing ticketing websites. Their key client in this sector is Eventim. Additionally, they specialize in crafting complex business applications for a diverse array of clients, including Ticketcorner, Generali, Petrol, Churchpool, Decathlon, and more. 

"Our aim is to cultivate long-term projects. With a steadfast dedication to development-oriented work, we've maintained partnerships with certain clients for over 15 years," explains Emilija Kercan, COO at Dhimahi.  

Solution: A product for various working arrangements

"In 2021, we transitioned to the SPICA All Hours solution for time and attendance tracking. This decision was prompted by our relocation to new premises in BTC and the transition to remote work as a result of the epidemic. We sought a solution that would enable our employees to clock in remotely. 

At that time, the SPICA All Hours app proved to be the most optimal, offering multiple options for recording working hours—whether through a terminal upon arrival at the office, via the web version of the app, or on mobile phones," explains Emiliija Kercan. 

"On average, about 10% of our team maintains a consistent presence in the office, while another 10% regularly work from home. The rest typically come in anywhere from one to four times per week. We aim to create a flexible working environment that allows a combination of remote and in-office work," explains Emilija Kercan. 

At Dhimahi, time and attendance tracking is trust-based. Nevertheless, to comply with legal regulations and facilitate payroll processing using data from SPICA All Hours, employees are required to diligently and consistently record their working hours.

"If employees spent their entire workday either in the office or working from home, automating the transmission of payroll data would be simpler. However, the flexibility we provide poses a challenge when they work in both locations on the same day," explains Tina Koželj, Business Assistant. 

"With so many employees, it's still a daily occurrence that someone forgets to register their working time or makes a small mistake when registering, especially when working from home. When this happens, I contact them and then correct or add an entry in SPICA All Hours. If employees spent their entire workday either in the office or working from home, automating the transmission of payroll data would be simpler. 

However, the flexibility we provide poses a challenge when they work in both locations on the same day," explains Tina Koželj, adding that registering through Spica All Hours is crucial for successful data processing. 

Solution: All Hours streamlines the work for team leaders

"Spica's time and attendance tracking system streamlines the work for team leaders as it allows us to monitor absences, work habits, and manage leave requests for individual team members," explains Matija Urh, Head of Development at Dhimahi.  

SPICA All Hours provides an overview of all team members' leave and includes employees in the calendar systems of different countries. This feature allows us to see holidays in the respective countries our employees come from. Overall, the overview it offers is great," says Matija Urh, Head of Development at Dhimahi. 

The overview provided by All Hours significantly aids Dhimahi's team leaders in efficiently planning employee absences. Given the multitude of projects managed by Dhimahi, extensive adaptation and coordination within the team are essential. Depending on the nature of the project, the entire team may take leave simultaneously, or leave arrangements may be organized in a way to ensure continuous team coverage.  

By shifting time registration to the All Hours app, Dhimahi has enabled employees to monitor their own attendance and absence, while also tracking how much annual leave they have left. 

The Spica solution is one of several systems that the company uses in parallel, as employees are also required to input information about their project-related work into other systems. 

"We utilize the Spica solution to meet legal requirements, monitor attendance and absences, and respond to HR needs. Other systems are used to document the specifics of the work itself, as mandated by our contracts with clients," explains Emilija Kercan.  

They have also successfully integrated All Hours with Slack, the platform they use for communication. Now, statuses such as annual leave, sick leave, lunch break, and other events entered in Spica All Hours are automatically displayed in Slack. This enables instant overview of who is absent. "When a colleague's status shows 'annual leave' or 'sick leave', we immediately know that they are currently absent," explains Matija Urh. 

Dhimahi also utilizes a reservation system for work desks and conference rooms. Now, they aim to use the SPICA All Hours app to reconcile bookings with actual attendance. The goal is for the app to automatically notify the employee when a desk is booked and to free it automatically if they are not present in the office by a specified time. 

Forging business model based on Spica solution

Emilija Kercan recalls another valuable aspect of Spica's solutions: "With SPICA's time and attendance solution, we've developed our own business model for service billing. 

By analyzing data such as average working hours, holidays, sick leave, and other absences over a three-year period, we've derived the average number of hours worked per employee."

This has set a standard for the average number of working hours, which now serves as a reference point for determining the required number of working hours per team for each project.

Key advantages

• Recording time and attendance in accordance with legal requirements
• Enhanced traceability and processing of payroll data
• Ability to record hybrid working time
• Simplified monitoring of the presence and absence of employees working abroad
• Streamlined work organization for team leaders thanks to the inclusion of holidays for different countries within All Hours