Just the job

Anyone working in facilities management knows that getting your internal processes right results in better customer service for your clients as well as improved productivity.

One of the best ways to make your business run smoothly is to ditch paperwork for digitisation. Going digital can be a game changer for FM suppliers and their clients. However, digital platforms are not a magic wand. As in any other facet of FM, you need the right tools for the job – or in this case, the right tools for job management.

TRACKING JOBS

Trying to manually track scheduled service agreements is a tricky business and requires a lot of admin resource. The human error element also means the risk of missing appointments. Using manual processes also means that to get a complete picture, you often have to follow several paper trails to create an overview of job progress.

By automating job management, the right people in your business will receive notifications when service visits are approaching SLA (Service Level Agreement) deadlines. Furthermore, you know in real time when job sheets are completed, enabling swifter invoicing.

Job management software enables FM firms to easily and efficiently track jobs. Backed by the right cloud-based technology, the tool gives all employees access to complex project schedules, real-time tracking, reporting and even invoicing. Whether your staff are in the field or in the office, everyone has the same information and is on the same page.

Mobile apps also make the job easier with step-by-step workflows for users, supported by access to guides so users can be quickly self-taught. Back at base, the office is fully informed of issues on site thanks to field personnel posting photos live on the platform that gives everyone a better appreciation of job status. This enables the management team and the end customer to recognise unforeseen issues, provide quick answers to questions and agree on action to be taken.

FIRST FIX RATES

Paper-based businesses are often unable to achieve the same first-time fix rate as those using job management platforms. This is down to lack of information, leading to the response team not having the right parts or even the right skills to carry out the repair. This impacts customer service due to increased down time, costs you more money to send people back to the job site, and impacts your emissions due to those extra miles.

With a job management platform, workers with the right access can see key information such as engineer and site locations, client job records, relevant suppliers and prices, and team availability. This instant information transfer to field service personnel means faster response times for urgent jobs.

COMPLIANCE

Regulatory compliance remains a huge aspect of facilities management. Manual communication relies on workers having the time to talk to the right people to move a job to the next stage. Job reporting and engineer handovers are therefore easily affected by simple logistical issues such as working hours, leading to delays in key information reaching office teams.

Conversely, digitisation helps to create and enhance a culture of compliance within your business. For example, when setting up worksheets, you could tick a box to make their completion mandatory. This could be a risk assessment that must be completed before the job can commence, or certain forms filled in before a job is signed off. It ensures that compliance and safety steps are followed consistently every time – even with sub-contractors using the same app. Management has better control of compliance, with exception reports that can highlight or alert if there are issues that need resolving, such as staff not following the procedures and needing training.

Some clients also require specific documents to be completed as part of their compliance processes. A good job management platform will allow you to create digital versions of these documents, so you meet the customers’ criteria while also making life easier for engineers. Because this kind of software creates a central project view, it provides one single point for all information. This enables multiple users to upload and view documents such as job records and invoices, in real-time.

You can also automate job sheets and mandatory fields to ensure engineers complete jobs within the guidelines of certain accreditations and legislations. This can be a deal-breaker for new business opportunities – especially in the public sector – and really help you to differentiate from your competition.