Design of a Digital Staff Attendance Monitoring System for IMT Enugu

Staff attendance management in Nigerian polytechnics has been persistently undermined by manual sign-in procedures that are susceptible to proxy signing, incomplete records, and the absence of reliable data for performance evaluation and payroll processing. At the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu, these challenges have been reported across multiple academic and administrative departments, creating accountability gaps that affect institutional productivity. This study designed a digital staff attendance monitoring system for IMT Enugu, leveraging biometric fingerprint capture integrated with a web-based record management platform. The system architecture comprised a fingerprint scanner module interfaced with a Python-based data capture script, a MySQL database for record storage, and a PHP administrative dashboard for attendance reporting and analytics. Departmental heads were provided with real-time attendance dashboards segmented by staff category, allowing instant visibility into punctuality and absenteeism patterns. The system generated automated monthly attendance summaries compatible with payroll processing workflows. Prototype testing conducted with a simulated staff dataset confirmed accurate fingerprint matching, tamper-resistant record generation, and successful integration of attendance data into payroll summary reports. Administrative staff who reviewed the prototype identified significant improvements over the existing manual register in terms of data reliability and time efficiency. The study concluded that a biometric digital attendance system is technically viable and institutionally necessary for IMT Enugu, and recommended phased implementation beginning with academic departments where attendance accountability directly impacts teaching quality.

Keywords: staff attendance, biometric system, IMT Enugu, digital monitoring, payroll integration