Must-have time & attendance software RFP template in 2025

Time and attendance (T&A) software is the foundation of workforce management. Every clock-in and approval drives payroll accuracy, compliance with labor laws, and visibility into labor costs. When systems are fragmented — time clocks don’t sync to payroll, CSV uploads are manual, or timesheets are kept on paper — businesses end up with costly errors, compliance risks, and frustrated employees.

The right time and attendance software should automate time capture, apply complex labor laws automatically, sync with payroll instantly, and give leaders real-time insights into staffing and costs. Even better, it should live inside an all-in-one platform with HR, payroll, scheduling, and IT — so every change ripples across the business without manual work.

This guide outlines the most important areas to evaluate when running a Time & Attendance RFP. Plus, you’ll get a free downloadable template with all of the most important vendor questions.

1. Accurate time capture and attendance tracking

The foundation of any T&A system is reliable time capture. You should evaluate whether vendors support web, kiosk, and mobile clock-in, biometric or GPS verification, and multiple job codes for dimensional tracking (e.g., project, client, or location). A good system should also offer flexible shift swaps, enforce attendance policies, and provide alerts for late arrivals or no-shows.

Rippling Time & Attendance supports every major clock-in method — web, mobile app, kiosk, and optional GPS verification. Employees can easily switch job codes, while managers get real-time alerts for exceptions. Because it’s connected to HR and payroll, approved hours update everywhere instantly, eliminating re-entry or syncing issues.

RFP questions to ask:

• What methods are available for employees to clock in/out (mobile, kiosk, biometric, GPS)?

• Does the system allow employees to switch jobs, projects, or cost codes mid-shift?

• Are managers alerted to late arrivals, no-shows, or missed punches in real time?

• Can employees request shift swaps and have them logged in the system automatically?

2. Payroll integration

Time tracking that doesn’t connect directly to payroll just creates another bottleneck. Look for systems where approved hours flow into payroll automatically — no CSV uploads — and where you can preview impacts before payroll closes. This ensures accurate gross pay, deductions, and taxes every time.

Rippling unifies T&A and Payroll on the same platform. Approved hours automatically flow into Rippling Payroll, with previews showing the impact of hours, overtime, and deductions before pay is finalized. Historical pay runs can be compared line-by-line, helping admins catch mistakes before they happen.

RFP questions to ask:

• Do approved timecards sync directly into payroll without manual uploads?

• Can payroll previews include timecard data for validation before processing?

• Can the system compare current and past pay runs to catch discrepancies?

• How are adjustments (retro pay, corrections) handled?

3. Compliance automation

Labor laws around overtime, breaks, and minimum wage differ by state, city, and even job type. Your T&A system should enforce these rules automatically, prompt employees for required attestations, and provide audit-ready records. Without this, businesses risk penalties, lawsuits, or back pay claims.

Rippling automatically applies federal, state, and local labor laws based on each employee’s work location. Meal and rest break requirements, overtime thresholds, and wage minimums are enforced automatically. Employees are prompted for attestations, and non-compliant timecards are flagged before payroll runs. Compliance 360 dashboards help HR and Operations teams stay ahead of risks.

RFP questions to ask:

• How does the system enforce federal, state, and local overtime and break rules?

• Can the system automatically assign policies based on employee work location?

• Can employees provide attestations for breaks or hours worked?

• Does the platform generate audit-ready reports on demand?

4. Alerts, approvals, and workflows

Approvals shouldn’t live in email threads. A modern T&A system should let you configure conditional workflows — for example, overtime approvals routed to both managers and Finance. Alerts should proactively flag issues, while approvals and edits are logged for audits.

With Rippling’s Workflow Studio, you can set rules like “flag if an employee is approaching overtime” or “require approval for shifts that exceed scheduled hours.” Approvals route dynamically based on employee attributes, and every action is logged in an immutable audit trail.

RFP questions to ask:

• Can approvals and alerts be configured based on business rules (e.g., overtime thresholds)?

• Are approvals dynamic, updating automatically when roles or managers change?

• Can workflows span departments (e.g., HR, Finance, Operations)?

• Is every action logged with a full audit trail?

5. Real-time labor visibility and reporting

T&A systems shouldn’t just record hours — they should help you manage labor spend proactively. Leaders need real-time dashboards showing overtime, absenteeism, and labor cost trends across teams, projects, or locations. Reports should be self-serve for managers but enforce role-based permissions.

Rippling’s analytics engine connects T&A, Payroll, HR, and Finance data in one place. Managers can run pre-built reports on overtime, absenteeism, and coverage, or build custom dashboards — without needing IT. Labor costs can be broken down by location, role, or project, and reports can be scheduled and shared securely.

RFP questions to ask:

• Can managers view real-time dashboards for attendance, overtime, and labor costs?

• Can reporting be segmented by department, project, role, or location?

• Can non-technical users create and share reports securely?

• Does the system integrate labor data with payroll and finance analytics?

6. Employee and manager experience

No one wants to use a system they can’t figure out. Employees should have one app to clock in, see their hours, request time off, and view pay stubs. Managers need mobile access to approve edits, monitor overtime risks, and communicate with teams.

Rippling provides a single mobile app for all workforce tasks. Employees can clock in, swap shifts, request PTO, and view pay all in one place. Managers get push notifications for missed punches, overtime risk, or unapproved hours, and can resolve them instantly. Integrated team chat also streamlines communication around attendance and scheduling.

RFP questions to ask:

• Can employees and managers complete all time and attendance tasks in one app?

• Are mobile alerts available for exceptions, approvals, and overtime risk?

• Can employees see their recorded hours and pay impacts in real time?

• Is communication (e.g., swap requests) logged in the system automatically?

How Rippling helps enterprises

Rippling Time & Attendance isn’t a bolt-on — it’s part of a unified workforce management platform. 

Approved hours flow directly into payroll, finance, and reporting. Labor laws are enforced automatically based on employee location, with proactive alerts and attestations built in. Managers and employees work in one modern app, reducing support tickets and boosting adoption. And because T&A is built on Rippling’s single employee record, every change ripples across HR, IT, and Finance instantly.

With Rippling, enterprises can:

• Pay their workforce accurately and on time with automated payroll integration

• Eliminate compliance anxiety with continuously updated labor law enforcement

• Manage labor costs proactively with real-time reporting

• Empower managers and employees with a modern, mobile-first experience

• Deploy quickly and scale confidently with unified HR, Payroll, and WFM

Rippling RFP for time & attendance software example

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This blog is based on information available to Rippling as of September 12, 2025.