The Next Generation Contractor
Are you a next generation contractor? You’d better be if you want to thrive in today’s renovation, home repair or facilities maintenance business.
Being good at your work is key, but it’s no longer enough. You need to master the entire contractor’s work process. It’s a matter of being in touch, consistently and reliably, with every aspect of service order management, as well as keeping on top of work flow management.
Gone are the days when a contractors’ work process consisted of picking up the phone, driving to a job, doing the work and collecting payment. The next generation contractor needs constant access and communication; at every stage of their work flow management.
Companies like Centah, Inc. provide workflow management software to contractors, facilities maintenance managers, property managers and retailers.
What exactly does this mean for contractors? In The New Small: How a New Breed of Small Businesses is Harnessing the Power of Emerging Technologies, author Phil Simon explains how small firms are using new technology like Software as a Service to get ahead of bigger competitors at a fraction of the largest companies’ costs.
"Over the last 10 years, these technologies have become significantly less expensive and even more powerful," Simon explains. “The net result: By and large, small companies are now able to afford these exciting technologies.” Workflow management that used to be costly is now not only affordable; it’s more cost-effective than keeping track in-house with full-time staff.
It’s also simplified. “Deployment is far easier and more flexible,” says Simon. “No longer do small businesses have to attempt to predict just how much technology they will need – and face dire consequences if they are wrong. Today, a company of 200 employees can scale its technology in the same way that a 20,000-employee company can.”
Using Software as a Service to keep track of contractors’ work process also gives you more freedom as a contractor to grow your business effectively. As Simon writes, "success begets more success, creating a type of network effect. Technologies become more popular because, reflexively, they are already popular. For example, as more companies have adopted cloud computing, others become emboldened to do the same."
It’s true that technology solutions work differently for different types of businesses. The contractors’ work process is pretty specific – unlike some jobs where a virtual workplace is possible, with people working from home and so on, contractors need to show up at sites, do the work there, and keep track of every aspect of service order management and workflow management.
Web-based software can help you. Here’s how:
- Contractors can use their mobile devices or laptops to know where they need to go for their first appointment and go straight there, instead of coming into the office and wasting time. Every aspect of the contractors’ work process is at your fingertips—all the relevant information.
- Workflow management software can reduce overhead and save time by keeping everything stored online and available instantly through your computer and mobile device. Contractors can create and send electronic invoices and quotes, for example, and take pictures of sites to determine what materials or tools they’ll need.
- Providing technology to your employees can be a job perk as well as an important business tool—good to know if you are a contractor with your own staff. For example, you can provide your workers with smartphones or laptops that they can use to keep track of your company’s workflow management as well as for their own use. These kinds of perks can differentiate you from competitors and instill loyalty among employees.
- Contractors can make sure employees are connected by paying for staff Internet access at home. Staff can look at shared calendars to keep on top of service order management (ensuring that the job has been booked, employees are assigned, parts are ordered, appointments scheduled, etc.) and also workflow management (making sure the work is being done in a timely way). Home Internet also encourages employees to go online for work-related courses and training, to seek and research new trends, products and techniques. Is there a new type of nail gun out there? Is there a new, faster way of installing a faucet? As a contractor, you should find out first, and your employees can help.
- Communication is the lifeblood of good workflow management. Companies that use web based software to manage the contractors’ work process are not only in better touch with their customers and suppliers; being connected with supervisors and colleagues enables everyone involved in the job to seek and offer advice, tips and hints on how to get the work done best, through e-mail, chat, blogs, text messaging. It saves time and money—both for you as a contractor and for the people you serve.
It’s sometimes hard for business people who are used to a lot of top-down control to relinquish some of that control. But integrating technology into the contractors’ work process is worth it. Staying connected connects you to your jobs, your new business, your staff and your customers. Technology has changed the industry. As Gandhi said: "Become the change you want to be."
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