5 Biggest Challenges Site Workers Face & Why Software is the Solution

2018-06-29

Your biggest asset could be the one thing you’ve been neglecting: Your crew.
Field workers determine the success of some businesses but in the hustle and bustle of running the company these individuals’ points of view are often forgotten.
Here’s an interesting thought: Don’t think of how satisfied you are with your employees’ performance; how satisfied do you think they are about their work environment?
As a field work manager this should be one of your top priorities. When last did you consider this?

Is Employee Satisfaction a Priority? Yes!
Where other companies need high quality products to draw clients you need teams that deliver excellent work. Without a doubt their attitude towards the work, the management, the clients and the company will determine how well they perform.
You may think it’s up to them to maintain positive attitudes but many factors that determine this can actually be controlled by management.
Wouldn’t you want to enhance the value of your assets if you had the power? Perhaps all you need is excellent software because technology is changing the way field workers function.
Will you give your team these handy solutions to their current challenges?

The Challenges & the Solutions

Employees Feel Disconnected
Do you realize the employees who should showcase your company values are the ones that experience the least amount of interaction with your business? Office workers and management see each other often and have time to build rapport & experience company culture.
Workers who feel connected to their leaders and peers will automatically deliver better quality work. Not so with your field workers.
They’re physically removed from you and this distance can lead to them not feeling part of your team.
So how do you fix this?

The Solution
Top of the range field work software puts employees and managers in contact with each other right through the day. This virtual connection goes a long way in helping field workers not feel they’re part of a separate team than the rest of the company:

• They have access to managers at any given moment
• They can ask office workers for assistance
• They don’t have to deal with it on their own if they realize they need advice

That’s the power of technology. Keep reading. There’s more.

Confusion Breeds Frustration
What happens when there’s no communication? You get misunderstandings. That’s a common occurrence when colleagues—or managers and subordinates—don’t see each other often.
Here’s the unique challenge your field workers face: Misunderstandings can leave them red in the face in front of clients and none of it may be their fault:

• Wrong address details on a job card
• A manager communicated the wrong time for a meeting
• There’s no record of previous work done

No one likes fixing other people’s mistakes so when these problems occur often your field workers will start to feel frustrated and even negative towards the company.

The Solution
There’s no chance of misunderstanding if all relevant information is kept online and made accessible to field workers. Field work scheduling software makes it easier to keep everyone updated with the day’s program and whenever there’s a problem the worker or manager can communicate online.
This is how you prevent disasters before they even start out as small problems.

It’s Difficult to Keep Clients Happy
You may talk with grumpy clients over the phone but your field workers face them every day. That means they get the full onslaught when something goes wrong.
More often than not scheduling is a manager’s responsibility but there’s no saying how long a certain piece of work will take. This means teams rarely arrive on time.
Can you manage this better?

The Solution
You can do a lot better with management software on your side. When it shows real time updates of workers’ progress it’s much easier to gauge accurate arrival times. Managers will also see when someone becomes available, direct them to a new job and so keep give clients the quickest response possible.
As an added bonus the client’s details—and history of work done—can be shown on this online platform. This empowers workers to make informed decisions and they don’t have to pester the client with unnecessary questions.

Paperwork Lowers Productivity Levels
You know you’re always talking to your crew about their productivity. You want as much work as possible done every day and you probably think your workers waste unnecessary time if they can’t account for every second of their days.
Chances are they’re trying to keep up to date with paperwork:

• Hours worked
• Reports
• Feedback and reviews from clients

Since some of this determines their salaries they have to prioritize it. Can you make it simpler?

The Solution
All of this data can be done, saved and retrieved with field work management software. Your HR and Payroll department will have access whenever they need it and here’s the best part: No more conflict about faulty payments or late reporting because there’s no chance of human error anymore.

It’s Not Always Safe
You know the dangers your field workers face every day. But do they know you care?

The Solution
Field work software can actually make their days safer:

• Better scheduling leads to less pressure which makes for better (safer) decision making
• When they need expert advice on risky work you can give instant feedback
• If permission is needed for certain tasks they don’t have to wait for a manager to reach the site because you can discuss it on the platform and even send relevant documentation to each other

And when you implement modern tools to assist them in their daily tasks it serves as proof that workers are valued; that they’re assets.

What if you’ve been searching for business solutions in all the wrong places? Your crew can be the key to happier customers and a better bottom line. Best of all is you’ll have a low employee turnover rate. All of that is possible thanks to technology. Isn’t it time you give it a try?