Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the skilled trades faced a critical labor shortage. The situation hasn’t improved in the last 18 months. It’s a safe bet, in fact, that HVAC, plumbing and electrical contractors will continue to experience tight employments conditions — and the challenges to productivity that come with those conditions — for the next several years.
Which technology solution?
“Technology” is often presented as the solution for employers who want to maintain productivity in the face of these ongoing shortages. But that’s only part of the answer. Without the right technology solution for their companies’ needs, skilled trades contractors may find themselves losing ground in the race for a productivity edge.
The number of contractors who still rely on pencil and paper for record-keeping and accounting has steadily dwindled over the last decade, and sharply declined during 2020. Simply switching from a notepad to any random enterprise tech platform might have been enough to generate significant productivity gains five years ago, but that isn’t an option for most business owners these days.
You can’t throw a random software solution at your company’s specific needs and expect customized results. Without the proper research and strategy, you could end up with an expensive new toy that provides no real advantage. Even worse, a bad mismatch could even cost you time and money in the long run.
Survey and strategy
Whether you’re upgrading existing software service or switching platforms to meet emerging goals, start with a survey of the pain points and inefficiencies you need to address.
Identify persistent challenges and any ongoing points of frustration in your current process. Coordinate these challenges and shortcomings with your business goals in order to prioritize your needs. Include team members in your planning, since they’ll be using the software every day. And think about the implementation process, which can be a key factor in getting employees on board.
All-in-one performance
As many different options as are available, however, contractors should look for some common features that can help service companies truly address labor challenges. A single all-in-one platform is critical for efficiency; requiring technicians to move back and forth between multiple apps not only takes up precious work time, it can serve as an obstacle to adoption.
When actionable data from across departments is collected and accessible in real time, all parties involved in a project benefit. Up-to-the-minute insights and transparent communication empower purposeful, immediate decision-making and fast, accurate execution.
Industry-leading efficiency
BuildOps is an all-in-one commercial contractor software solution designed to keep America’s hospitals, power plants, real estate and other essential commercial infrastructure running. Built with industry-leading efficiency in mind, BuildOps offers contractors multiple tools for managing every facet of the service business, streamlining operations and communications so professionals can focus on their jobs instead of paperwork.
Our versatile functionality includes:
- A mobile app for technicians
- Scheduling and dispatch applications
- Service agreements management,
- Financial tools for accounting, quoting and invoicing
- Customer management
- Project management
- Detailed real-time reporting
To learn more about BuildOps and how we can help your team work more effectively and efficiently, contact us to schedule a demo.
