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Remote and hybrid working have transformed how businesses operate, offering flexibility and improving work-life balance for employees.

However, managing attendance, sick leave, holidays, and unexpected absences has become significantly more complex for HR teams and managers.

Traditional spreadsheets, manual reporting, and disconnected communication channels often create confusion, delays, and compliance risks. For modern businesses, having a structured system is no longer optional. This is why solutions like absence management software have become essential tools for organisations that want to maintain visibility, consistency, and efficiency across distributed teams.

The Hidden Cost of Absence in a Hybrid Work Environment

When teams work across multiple locations, even small absences can create operational challenges. A missed shift, an unreported sick day, or unclear holiday scheduling can quickly affect productivity and planning.

The hidden costs often include:

• reduced team coordination
• delayed project delivery
• payroll inconsistencies
• compliance risks with employment policies
• increased administrative workload for HR teams

Without proper systems in place, managers often spend unnecessary time chasing information instead of focusing on performance and workforce planning.

In hybrid environments, visibility becomes one of the biggest challenges.

Why Traditional Tracking Methods Fall Short for Distributed Teams

Many businesses still rely on spreadsheets, shared calendars, or email chains to track staff absence. While these methods may work for smaller teams, they quickly become inefficient as organisations grow.

Manual systems often create problems such as:

• duplicated or outdated information
• lack of real-time visibility
• approval bottlenecks
• difficulty tracking recurring absence patterns
• inconsistent reporting across departments

This becomes even more problematic when employees work remotely and managers are no longer physically present to monitor attendance.

A lack of centralised data also makes long-term planning more difficult, especially when analysing absence trends or preparing compliance reports.

Why Kelio Supports Better Workforce Management

For UK businesses looking to improve operational control, Kelio offers a practical and reliable way to centralise absence tracking and automate essential HR processes.

By integrating attendance management with absence monitoring, Kelio helps organisations reduce manual work and improve decision-making across teams.

A structured platform allows businesses to:

• track holidays, sickness, and unplanned leave in one place
• automate approval workflows
• improve visibility for managers and HR departments
• ensure policy consistency across teams
• generate accurate reporting for compliance purposes

This creates a smoother experience for both employees and employers, especially in remote and hybrid environments where communication gaps can easily appear.

What to Look for in an Absence Management Solution

Not all systems offer the same level of support. Choosing the right software requires understanding the specific needs of the business and how absence management connects with wider HR operations.

Key features to prioritise include:

• real-time absence tracking
• self-service employee access
• automated notifications and approvals
• reporting and analytics tools
• compliance support for UK employment requirements
• integration with payroll and workforce planning systems

The goal is not simply to record absence, but to improve how absence is managed across the organisation.

A good system should save time, reduce errors, and support better workforce decisions.

Remote Work Requires Smarter Processes

As remote and hybrid working continue to shape the future of employment, businesses need systems that reflect this new reality. Managing absence manually creates unnecessary risk and inefficiency, especially when teams are no longer operating from a single physical location.

Technology plays a key role in maintaining structure and consistency.

With the right tools in place, organisations can move from reactive absence handling to proactive workforce management, improving both employee experience and business performance.

For modern teams, absence management is no longer just an administrative HR task focused on recording holidays or sick leave—it has become a strategic part of operational success, helping businesses improve workforce planning, maintain productivity, ensure compliance, and create a more transparent and efficient working environment for both managers and employees.

Shares of Zydus Lifesciences jumped around 6% after the company announced that its board of directors will meet on May 19 (Tuesday) to consider a buyback of shares. The pharma company also announced the acquisition of US-based cancer drug-maker Assertio for $166.4 million.

Zydus Lifesciences shares climbed to an intraday high of Rs 993.80 on Thursday. The stock is up about 8% over the past month and 10% over the past year. Over the longer term, Zydus Lifesciences has delivered a 93% return in three years and nearly 61% over five years.

Zydus Lifesciences share buyback

In an exchange filing released on Wednesday, Zydus Lifesciences announced that its board of directors will meet on May 19 to consider and approve its results for the January-March quarter of the financial year 2026. Along with the earnings, the board will also consider a proposal to buy back fully paid-up equity shares of the company, it further said.

This comes after Zydus Lifesciences’ Rs 600 crore share buyback at a price of Rs 1,005 apiece via the tender route. The buyback price implied a premium of nearly 9% from the level at which the stock was trading on the record date. Before that, the company executed a Rs 750-crore share buyback in 2022.

Zydus Lifesciences announces acquisition of Assertio Holdings

Zydus Lifesciences on Wednesday announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire US-based pharma company Assertio Holdings for $166.40 million. Assertio is focused on speciality and oncology supportive-care therapies.

“Zydus Worldwide DMCC, a subsidiary of the company, has signed a definitive agreement, through its wholly owned acquisition subsidiary Zara Merger Sub Inc, with Assertio Holdings to acquire all outstanding shares of Assertio for $23.50 per share in cash,” according to the statement.
Also read: NLC India shares rally 18% to fresh record high after Q4 net profit skyrockets 189% YoYThis comes after The Economic Times reported that Zydus Lifesciences is close to acquiring a US-based drugmaker. Sources in the investment banking circles told ET that Zydus will get a boost since the target company has its own pipeline of biologic drugs. For several months, Zydus Lifesciences has been looking at ways to grow its pipeline of innovative drugs. It was also seen in discussions with Ardelyx a few months ago, but the talks did not materialise. “Zydus has been in discussions with at least three companies,” the source mentioned.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

India is considering a significant reduction in the taxes paid by foreign investors on the country’s bonds as authorities seek ‌to align ⁠policies ⁠with global norms and attract inflows, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday.

The move, recommended by the Reserve Bank of India, is being seriously considered by ⁠the Finance ‌Ministry as authorities seek to curb the ⁠rupee’s depreciation, the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The RBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The rupee weakened to a record low ‌of 95.9575 per U.S. dollar during Thursday’s session, last at ⁠95.7150.
The 10-year benchmark bond yield declined 2 bps to 7.03% after Bloomberg’s report.

Metropolis Healthcare has reported a robust performance in the fourth quarter, with strong growth across revenue, patient volumes, and profitability, supported by a clear shift in diagnostics demand toward speciality and preventive healthcare segments.

Strong Q4 performance and full-year finish

Speaking on the quarterly results, C Surendran, MD, Metropolis Healthcare highlighted the company’s strong finish to the financial year.

“We have had a very excellent quarter, quarter four and a grand end to the year. We have had 23 percentage revenue growth and the margins, of course, on the very high side, 70 percentage plus kind of margin growth we had in quarter four and we ended the year very well.”

He attributed this performance to a combination of strategic focus areas and successful integration of recent acquisitions.

“There are two or three things which is really helping us to get this kind of a growth. One, of course, our continuous focus on the speciality segment and our focus on the TruHealth, these two are segments which is growing faster than the company’s growth. Now, this is definitely helping us to grow. And also, the integration that we have done of all the acquired entities, four entities we have acquired during the last 12 months and the acquisitions almost in the last phase, they all started performing well, that is helping us to grow.”
Looking ahead, the company has laid out a steady medium-term growth path.
“In terms of the guidance for the coming years, we definitely see that a revenue growth of 14 to 15 percentage CAGR is definitely possible in the next two-three years, that is what our estimate at this point of time and our margins will also come closer 27-28 percentage in the next two to three years’ time.”
Demand shift toward speciality and preventive testing
On the demand environment, Surendran pointed to a clear structural shift in diagnostics consumption.

“In fact, in the last two quarters, we have seen improved need for the high-end speciality testing and also like you know that we have launched the genomics testing in the last quarter and we have also seen very high uptake on the genomics testing.”

He added that preventive healthcare continues to gain traction.

“So, all the speciality segments is really doing well and also, the preventive health is another segment which is really seeing good amount of traction. So, the overall diagnostics is moving away from a concentration on the routine and semi-special testing to more of speciality and preventive healthcare kind of a testing, that is a real moment that is happening in the industry and that is really what is driving us the growth.”

Margin expansion and operational efficiency gains
The company’s sharp improvement in margins has been a key highlight over the past year. Surendran explained the structural drivers behind the expansion from around 18% last year to 25.5% currently, and confidence in further improvement ahead.

He said three major initiatives have driven profitability gains.

“See, three big initiatives have happened during this year. One, of course, at the end of last year we mentioned that our massive lab expansion has come to an end and now, it is time for us to go and bring in productivity from the labs that we already set up.”

He added that operational improvements have significantly enhanced throughput.

“So, our actions around improving the number of centres around each lab has really taken up very well and we are seeing a very good throughput coming and the productivity of each of the labs getting better and with no more new labs getting added, there is no erosion in the margins, that is one big step that we have taken.”

Technology upgrades have also played a key role.
“Second one is, we have really relook at our lab tech platforms, the platforms in which the testing happens. We looked at upgrading this platform, some vendor consolidations that we have done and we have also brought in the best of technology in the labs, that is really giving us improved material consumption and also we have introduced some technology enablers in the labs to reduce our material consumption.”

He further noted ongoing automation and digital improvements.

“So, this definitely is helping us and there are many other productivity enablers through the digital and the automation path that we are taking. So, all these are giving us very sustainable margin upside.”

Integration nearing completion
On the integration of acquired businesses, the company said most of the heavy lifting is already done.

“Well, like I said, we are on the last phase of the integration, technology part of integration almost over, people integration is over, all the synergies that we want to bring in are all over. Maybe the next three to four months’ time we will complete the full integration in terms of aligning the product portfolios, the sales strategy, etc. So, more or less we are done with integration. Next two to three months we will bring it to a closure and then it would be business as usual for us.”

Acquisitions, growth contribution and future strategy
Acquired entities currently contribute around 8% to FY26 revenue. The company expects stronger growth ahead as integration stabilises.

“So, the year one like we mentioned in the past is all about cleaning up the business and bringing into in tune with the Metropolis ways of working, so that part. So, we did not concentrate too much on the volume growth or the revenue growth in year one, but we concentrated on the synergies and the integration of the platforms, which we have completed and this year will be a year where we will definitely take off with respect to the revenues and volume growth, etc, that will happen and that will be in line with the rest of the organisation’s growth.”

On future acquisitions, management remains open.

“So, we are always in the hunt for suitable opportunities for us to come and buy out. So, we are looking out for it. We have a pie and then once this integration of the already existing acquired integrities are over, we will have the time and energies to go and do the next set of integration of the newly acquired entities.”

Tier-wise growth strategy
On geographic mix, tier I cities currently dominate revenue, but tier II and III are also growing steadily.

“Well, our tier II cities are growing at the same time at around 20 percentage. We have brought in some new labs in the past and some of the acquired entities are sitting in the tier II. So, tier II will also definitely will grow as in there are some cities that we identified we need to put some extra focus, which we will do it. So, our plan will be all the three tiers, tier I, tier II, tier III all the three segments should grow in the days to come.”

Why guidance has been moderated
Addressing the apparent moderation in revenue growth guidance to 14–15%, Surendran clarified the base effect from acquisitions.

“No. Well, I mean in the year 26, you got the additional revenue from the acquired entities which you likely mentioned sometime back is about 8 percentage. So, 8 percentage has come out over 13.5 percentage that we did last year, 13.7 percentage we did on organic level and the remaining about 8 to 9 percentage come because of the newly acquired entities. Now, for the coming year the revenue of the acquired entity will be already there in the baseline, that is not going to come on top of it, that is the reason you will find that the revenue guiding for the coming year is in the range of 14-15 percentage.”

In a move that has set the M&A community talking on both sides of the Atlantic, eBay has firmly slammed the door on a $55.5bn (£40.9bn) unsolicited takeover approach from American video games retailer GameStop, branding the bid “neither credible nor attractive”.

The rejection, communicated in a sharply worded letter from eBay’s board to GameStop chief executive Ryan Cohen, will come as little surprise to anyone with a passing acquaintance of the relative scale of the two businesses. GameStop, the bricks-and-mortar gaming chain that found cult status in 2021 as the original “meme stock”, is roughly a quarter of the size of the online auction house it is attempting to swallow, a David-and-Goliath dynamic that City analysts have long viewed as a near-insurmountable hurdle.

In its rebuff, the eBay board cited “uncertainty” over how the deal would be financed, alongside concerns about “the impact of your proposal on eBay’s long-term growth and profitability”. Directors also pointed to “operational risks, and leadership structure of a combined entity”, as well as questions over “GameStop’s governance”, a pointed reference, observers will note, to a company whose share price has historically been driven as much by social media sentiment as by retail fundamentals.

GameStop had attempted to bolster the credibility of its overture with a commitment letter from TD Securities for roughly $20bn of debt financing. Yet that prospective debt pile is precisely what gave eBay’s board, and a chorus of independent analysts, pause for thought. Sucharita Kodali, retail analyst at Forrester, told Business Matters the proposition was hardly “a terribly good offer”, warning that it would saddle the auction giant with GameStop’s borrowings at a moment when eBay is finally finding its feet again.

That recovery is no idle boast. Despite the well-documented competitive squeeze from Amazon, Etsy and, more recently, the Chinese disruptor Temu, eBay posted net profits of $418.4m in 2025, more than treble the $131.3m delivered the year before, even as sales softened. The board insists its turnaround strategy is bearing fruit and is in no mood to surrender the upside to an opportunistic suitor.

Mr Cohen, however, is unlikely to retreat quietly. The GameStop chief, who built his fortune through online pet retailer Chewy before becoming the unofficial figurehead of the meme-stock movement, claimed last week that eBay could be transformed under his stewardship into a credible challenger to Amazon. He has also signalled his willingness to bypass the boardroom and take his proposition directly to eBay’s shareholders, a hostile gambit that would set the stage for one of the more colourful takeover battles of the year.

For Britain’s SME owners watching from across the Atlantic, the saga is more than a transatlantic curiosity. eBay remains a vital sales channel for thousands of small British retailers, many of whom built post-pandemic businesses on its platform. Any prolonged ownership dispute, or a deal that materially loaded the company with debt, could have tangible consequences for the fees, listing policies and seller protections those firms depend on.

For now, eBay’s chairman and chief executive will be hoping the matter ends here. The bookies, and most of Wall Street, are betting it won’t.

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