The platform used to communicate your business’s facility maintenance and general repair service requests is equally as important who you’re communicating with.
These days, if you are fortunate enough to attend a trade show that focuses on the maintenance needs of retail stores, restaurants or commercial building property managers, then you have seen the growing trend of web-based, multi-site management software programs aimed at consolidating and improving the processes of facilities operations professionals and their work order management. There is no disputing the value of these technologies. They dramatically increase efficiencies, organize relevant data and provide a useful dashboard for customer and contractor alike to understand one another’s needs and actions.
Each application has its own specific set of goals in mind for the customer, however, their shared intentions are to be a communications tool tasked with expediting the maintenance service requests (handyman, electrician, plumber, painter, etc.) of businesses that have many, geographically diverse physical locations. Here’s where they differ. Some are built to be a truly neutral medium whose sole purpose is to connect customer and vendor. The contractors are selected by the customer and are easily interchangeable if they should need to be replaced due to performance or other concerns. The software company takes no part in the actual coordinating of field services, but it benefits all involved by streamlining the process, monitoring the status, storing the information/documentation, invoicing and providing a robust suite of reporting capabilities.
The other approach that exists is to be both the software developer and aggregator of field services. A more comprehensive solution on the surface, but one that may be very challenging to back out of if the quality or pricing of services at your locations does not meet with your standards. Introducing facilities management software to your company’s employees is time consuming and can be frustrating. Contemplating a change, especially if in a relatively short timeframe, may leave you between a rock and a hard place.
At UmbrellaOne, our people clearly understand the role and value we must consistently fulfill in the facilities maintenance process. We are not software developers. Our job is to provide our customers with top tier services aimed at safeguarding our clients real estate assets and customer experience utilizing . We receive our clients’ service requests via a wide variety of applications and focus on completing them better than anyone else. Software plus hard work is our formula.
