Technology firm iPointlive has launched new software to enable businesses to monitor, manage and protect employees directly via their mobile phones.

iPointlive’s Mobile Employee Management software is one of the first fully-automated apps on the market to turn GPS-enabled phones into monitoring devices.

Developed by industry experts working in close conjunction with their customers, the product, which is simple to install and use, allows companies to locate employees at the click of a button. All information is delivered in real-time, allowing an accurate, up-to-date overall business picture to be delivered via the iPointlive reporting suite. The system is cloud-based, meaning reports can be accessed from any internet-enabled device.

Business benefits include reduced costs, improved performance, reduced driver distraction and assisting with the compliance of health and safety laws.

The software makes the need for manual timesheets and mileages claims obsolete – thus eliminating the discrepancies and exaggerated claims that come with them.

Company director Steve Cole said: “Black-box technology that monitors company vehicles has been around for many years. Our approach differs because we put employees central to all we do.

“Our Mobile Employee Management app is unique in that it is automatically able to monitor the movement of employees however they are traveling, whether it is on public transport, in company or private vehicles or on foot. And because we utilise the latest technological advances, it minimises the drain on the phone’s battery life, unlike some other GPS applications.”

“Our software also has important monitoring features that can help promote safer driving practices. With the ability to record safety data such as how fast the driver is travelling and how often employees make or receive calls or text messages whist driving, poor behaviour can be challenged and changed using iPointlive.”

Another important safety aspect of the software is an element which generates automatic reports confirming that employees have reached a specific place – whether it is a home address at the end of their shift or a remote location in the middle of the day.

Mr Cole said that whilst there were a handful of mobile phone based tracking systems currently on the market, they all relied on the employee telling the system when they start and finish work.