Introduction: Why Better Labor Planning Requires Total Visibility
Labor costs are your warehouse’s number one expense, yet most operations can’t say with certainty whether that labor is truly optimized. That disconnect stems from limited visibility: labor planning happens in spreadsheets, indirect work goes unmeasured, and real-time performance is hard to act on.
Optimizing labor requires more than filling shifts and setting targets. It demands complete visibility into how time is planned, how indirect work is managed, and how effectively teams execute on the floor against targets. Takt brings these elements together in one connected system, linking labor planning, real-time execution, and indirect labor tracking to give warehouse leaders the clarity needed to act with confidence. That’s how you move from fragmented operations to total visibility within your warehouse.
Smarter Labor Planning Starts with Real Visibility
Most labor planning still relies on guesswork, whether it’s done in spreadsheets, through outdated systems, or by copying last week’s schedule and hoping for the best. The problem isn’t a lack of effort. It’s a lack of visibility, and adapting to real time deviations from forecast.
Labor is your warehouse’s largest cost center, often accounting for 50 to 70 percent of total operating expenses, according to the Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC). Yet most teams still plan labor with limited insight into where time is spent or how well that time is aligned to demand. Without that level of clarity, labor plans are static and disconnected from the work they’re meant to guide.
Takt gives warehouse leaders a centralized, data-driven platform to build, manage, and adjust labor plans with confidence. Whether you're planning by role, area, or standard, you can quickly align labor to demand and account for both direct and indirect work. The result is a labor plan that’s not just organized, but actionable, responsive, and deeply tied to real operations.
You Can’t Optimize Labor Without Tracking Indirect Work
Most warehouses track direct labor, yet indirect work is often overlooked or treated as a fixed cost. Tasks like cleaning, meetings, equipment checks, and shift transitions are part of the daily rhythm, but they rarely make it into labor plans or performance analysis. The result is a blind spot that distorts your understanding of productivity and weakens your ability to plan with accuracy.
Without clear visibility into indirect labor, it’s impossible to know how much time is truly available for task execution. That gap creates inefficiencies and unexpected delays that compound across shifts and departments. According to a study published in the International Journal of Production Research, failure to accurately track indirect labor can result in a 15 to 20 percent gap between planned and actual productivity.
Takt brings indirect work into full view. Every warehouse operates differently, so Takt allows you to define, track, and analyze indirect activities alongside direct labor. This gives you a more complete picture of how time is actually spent. This clarity helps you plan more realistically, manage labor standards more precisely, and make informed decisions that improve both cost control and performance.
Empowering Execution with Takt Coach & Takt Kiosk
Planning doesn’t end when the schedule is built. To drive real performance, warehouses need systems that validate, refine, and improve labor plans over time. That’s where Takt Coach and Takt Kiosk come in.
Takt Coach gives managers early insight into the strength of their labor plans. Instead of relying on instinct or manually scanning past performance data, leaders are automatically alerted when groupings are at risk of falling short. These predictions are based on historical trends and real operational outcomes, helping managers make proactive decisions before a shift even begins.
Takt Kiosk captures indirect work in real time, logging how long employees spend in those functions and tying that data back into labor planning models. Over time, this creates a richer understanding of how indirect labor fits into the day, making future plans more accurate and grounded in actual work patterns.
Together, Takt Coach and Kiosk close the loop between planning and execution. Every labor decision becomes part of a learning cycle that leads to more realistic plans, fewer surprises, and stronger performance over time.
Conclusion: Achieve More with a Connected Labor Strategy
Building a smarter warehouse starts with better labor decisions. But without visibility into planning accuracy, indirect work, or execution risks, even the most detailed plans can fall short. Takt brings all three into focus, helping you plan with data, adjust with confidence, and continuously improve over time.
Your total warehouse isn’t just a vision. With Takt, it’s reality.
Learn how Takt helps you connect planning, performance, and visibility