1. Wide Visibility
Smooth flow of scheduling and dispatching calls for a high degree of collaboration. This can only be achieved when employees have a clear picture of where materials, equipment, and people currently are and where they are supposed to be. With so many moving parts in a given business, achieving this can be difficult when using offline tools.
Dispatch software ensures every employee gets an accurate picture of where resources are required, as well as their current location. A dispatching software live map can, for example, help a user see equipment and job sites in relation to each other. By integrating GPS in the software, verifying locations becomes an easy task.
2. Real-time Operations
Maintaining schedules on spreadsheets or whiteboards is somewhat outdated in the 21st century. This is because daily operations may be prone to issues such as equipment breakdown, material delays, personnel problems, human error, and even weather conditions. On the contrary, the use of dispatch software means that you will be relying on a live document where users can assign or request resources at any given time. Therefore, the changes are addressed in a jiffy by colleagues at the shop, field, office, or virtually anywhere. This not only takes efficiency a notch higher but also scales down the cost, duration, and frequency of in-person resource planning.
3. Customizable Views
With dispatch software, employees view schedules by their precise responsibilities and requirements. This is because the software allows filtering should the user need to focus on areas such as a particular time period. For example, a manager might need to narrow down to a specific worksite and ascertain the allocated resources. On the other hand, a superintendent will perhaps only want to view the equipment needed. In such a case, customization allows both the superintendent and manager to view what they want.
This means that it is possible to have numerous customized views that can be accessed from mobile devices or desktops. The user is also free to select multiple or one-day periods and take a look into the future or past when reviewing future needs or past schedules.
4. Structured Communication
The truth is that some communication channels come with limitations, like errors and lag time. If you combine all these weak points, then you will see that operations become nothing short of chaotic, which is bad for business. Text messages, emails, and calls involve select persons, whereas whiteboards are only visible at a single location. The data then has to be reentered into systems or relayed to other people.
With field service software, everything falls into place in terms of scheduled data entry and the manner in which it’s viewed and sent out. This makes the information standardized, thus wiping out mistakes and miscommunication.
5. Specialized Functionality
Specialized dispatch software helps boost employee efficiency to make them work smarter and faster. With the click of a button in their mobile app, they will have up-to-date information about resource requirements and other relevant information. The employee can make changes with drag-and-drop simplicity and also make data entries if need be. Dispatching software also helps in resolving potential disagreements and assessing upcoming availability. It also helps allocate resources for optimum utilization and efficiency.
The Verdict
As you can see, dispatch software is an investment that is worth every dime. With so many advantages, there is no reason why this shouldn’t be part of your everyday business operations. In order to make the experience worthwhile, you’ll need the right technician adept in software installation. Opting for scheduling and dispatch software today means that all the above advantages will come as an added bonus. Take your business’s operations a notch higher and contact us today for a free demo of how our solution works.