Mobile Resource Management Infographic

On a single construction project, large numbers of employees work on multiple tasks.  Each task may involve multiple steps, and each step may involve multiple people.  The use of technology in construction is fundamental in increasing the efficiency of running any project.   Technology allows real-time visibility of project details and allows for easier communication and faster decision making.    Have a look at this infographic from AboutTIme that shows how using a mobile Resource management solution works for your business.

Why is "Big Brother" watching? Not for the reasons you expect.

“Big Brother is Watching”… A term we have all come to loathe.  Whatever happened to the days when a handshake meant a deal was made and a dollar paid was a dollar earned? 

Sometimes it feels as if the use of technology is smothering.  Take GPS tracking for example.  There are various reasons that an employer would choose to use GPS tracking on their mobile workforce.   It seems that some employees feel that it is because they are not trusted.   This may be the case in some instances, but what if we look at it from a different angle. 

GPS tracking helps businesses collect money faster.    When customers are presented with a bill that

shows employees hours, and tasks along with a GPS time stamp, there is little room for debate on whether or not the work was performed.   Most of the time the bill is just paid without argument. 

GPS Tracking helps remote projects run more efficiently.   Data is collected and compared to predetermined budgets.  Sometimes adjustments need to be made to keep projects running on schedule.  GPS lets managers know where employees are working.  They can reassign employees to different projects based on location, saving commute time and keeping projects on time. 

However, when implementing a new technology like GPS tracking, how your employees receive the technology is determined by the way it is presented to them.  

Let your employees know that they are being monitored.  If honesty is an issue then letting employees know that they are being tracked can act as a deterrent.   In most cases, any dishonest actions stop as soon as they know that there is a technology in place. 

Having a discussion about implementing a new technology such as GPS can eliminate any ill will among employees.  It gives you a chance to explain the benefits to them as well as explain the benefits it provides to the business.  Questions can be asked and answered, and most of the time communication ceases any legal claims that may have come about had the technology been implemented without the employees knowledge and understanding.

Why the Founding Fathers would have liked AboutTime

It’s the 4^th of July tomorrow!  In honor of Independence Day we thought we would share a few quotes from America’s Founding Fathers.  As I looked through a myriad of amazing quotes from amazing men,  I couldn’t help but think that the Founding Fathers would have seen the value in a mobile resource management solution.  They would have liked AboutTime.  

“You have too much at stake to hesitate. You ought not to think an hour upon the matter, but to spring to action at once...Now our time and turn is come, and perhaps the finishing stroke is reserved for us. When we look back on the dangers we have been saved from, and reflect on the success we have been blessed with, it would be sinful either to be idle or to despair.” -Thomas Pain

Sometimes it is hard to make a change.  Especially when you have been running your business the same way since you started it.  Even though change is hard “there is too much at stake to hesitate.”  Implementing a mobile resource management could be saving your business money while you are reading this blog. 

“Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclination, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.”-Thomas Jefferson

A mobile resource management solution ensures that all of the data collecting in the field is accurate.  Features such as GPS time stamps  ensures that your data is unaltered and can be used as evidence if needed to protect your business from litigation.

“… having lived long, I have experienced many instances of being obligated, by better information or fuller consideration, to change my opinions even on important subjects, which I thought right but found to be otherwise.”-Benjamin Franklin

A mobile resource management system, like AboutTime, sends the information collected in the field directly to the office in real time., where it can be compared to budgets.  Managers can give “fuller consideration” to how projects are progressing and make changes immediately, thus keeping projects on time and on budget. 

Yes, a lot of leeway was taken with these quotes but the messages, though applied to different circumstances, remain the same. 

Happy 4^th of July from AboutTime!

What type of software are construction companies looking for and why?

A study done by SoftwareAdvice (http://www.softwareadvice.com/)  found that buyers were looking to find software that would increase efficiency.

Why?
The answer is pretty easy.  The more efficient your business runs, the more profit you can make.

Efficiency becomes especially important when profits begin to reflect the fact that time is being wasted, and extra expenses are being incurred because projects are being run poorly.  In fact, 47% of the buyers surveyed were still using manual forms of field data collection, such as pen and paper, to manage their mobile projects.   In past blogs we have talked about how inefficient using paper can be.  

What features were buyers looking for to help their business run more efficiently?

1.    Project Management
2.    Estimating
3.    Accounting/job Costing

Why? 
Again, the answer is pretty easy.   SoftwareAdvice found that firms who use a mobile resource management software complete more projects on time and on budget than those who don’t, meaning their businesses run more efficiently.

Check out this infographic by AboutTime to see the difference between companies who use a Mobile Resource Management Solution and companies who don't.  Click Here

AboutTime has a new movie!  Check it out.  The best 2 minutes of your day is ahead.    http://abouttimetech.com/media/introduction-to-abouttime.html

A Quick Thought ...

Time is the scarcest resource and unless it is managed, nothing else will be managed. – Peter F Drucker

AboutTime Technologies began as simply a time and attendance collection system.  10+ years have passed and their feature set has grown.   Over the years AboutTime has developed into an entire mobile resource management solution.    I spend a lot of  time focusing on all the great innovative feature sets that are available to use in the AboutTime solution.  Sometimes I forget that time and attendance was the first feature developed by AboutTime, and for a very good reason.   As Peter F Drucker said, “Time is the scarcest resource and unless it is managed, nothing else will be managed.”

The first step to managing any project effectively begins with collecting employee time and attendance. 

4 ways smartphones and tablets benefit contractors: Part 4

Everywhere we look tablets and smartphones are being touted as the next best “tool” in construction.  This comes as no surprise when study after study has shown that companies who take advantage of the technology smartphones and tablets provide are seeing higher profits and faster turnaround times on projects than companies who haven’t embraced the benefits of technology.  

What are the benefits that smartphones and tablets provide?

1.  Real-Time Information Transfer

2.  Reduce Paperwork

3.  Location Syncing

4.  Utilize the Camera

In an earlier blog, we talked about documentation and the important role it plays in mitigating risk.    A picture is worth a thousand words can be changed to a picture is worth thousands of dollars.  This is especially true when a picture resolves a situation that could have gone to litigation. 

AboutTime Technologies, a mobile resource management software company, had a client who recently shared an experience where using the picture feature on their app saved them thousands of dollars.

A roofing business had performed patchwork for a customer.  After the next rainstorm, the customer called the roofing contractor upset that their roof was still leaking and demanded that the contractor come back and re-patch the roof.   The contractor had taken pictures of the patch locations to make sure the work was done to the customers’ specifications.  When they looked  at the pictures, it was clear that the leak was in an entirely new location than the previous repairs.   Instead of putting out money for warranty work the roofing contractor received money for patching another hole. 

The best thing about using the camera feature on smartphones and tablets in conjunction with a mobile resource management software, like AboutTime, is the ability to attach the photos to customer accounts making them easily accessible when you need them.