Top 10 Reasons to Use ReachOut Contracting Software

10 Ways ReachOut Contract Management Software Gives a Fillip to Your Business

Success in today’s fragmented business environment depends on control over contractors. ReachOut’s contracting software allows seamless integration of contractors to the enterprise network. Here are the top # ways to get the most out of ReachOut contract management software.
Read more: Five Ways ReachOut’s Contractor Management Software Helps Utility Companies

1. Easy Scheduling

A contractor always walks on a tightrope, balancing client and principal employer demands. ReachOut contracting software makes it easy for business managers to coordinate with contractors and schedule work.
An intuitive visual interface offers organized views of open and upcoming work orders. Contractors may use such estimates to pace their work and pre-empt work clashes. Conversely, contractors working on multiple sites and locations mark their availability. Managers plan work according to the availability of contractors and other resources.
Read more: Why Use ReachOut to Manage Your Work Orders

2. Accurate Quote and Bid Preparation

Preparing quotes and bidding for projects is part of the daily grind. But errors slip in when pulling in information from multiple, disparate sources. For example, many sources provide obsolete or incomplete data. Other sources may provide data in an incompatible format. So how does ReachOut solve this?

• ReachOut suite pulls in labor, material and equipment costs, subcontractor margins, and other inputs. 
• The integrated estimating solution calculates the total costs and applies the markup. 
• Business managers can apply various permutations to get the most optimal quote. 
• Managers can even decide whether it is viable to bid on specific projects.

Read more: ReachOut Can Streamline Quote Creation for Service Companies

3. Easy On-boarding

Success in today’s fragmented business ecosystem depends on having skilled contractors on hand. ReachOut contract management software enables easy on-boarding of contractors.
A skills database updates the skills certifications and validation for each contractor. In addition, schedulers use this database to shortlist contractors based on their skills, certifications, and experience.
Business managers and strategic planners use the skills database to evaluate the talent on hand. Then, they can formulate plans to rope in new contractors and bridge the enterprise skills gap.
Read more: Top 5 Ways ReachOut Suite Helps Maintain a Skilled and Competent Field Service Workforce

4. Elimination of Tedious Paperwork

A contractor has to file daily reports, work status report, compliance reports, and more. Therefore, contractors are forced to take time out from doing their actual work to fill in such paperwork.
ReachOut’s automation capabilities eliminate paperwork. For example, the contractor app automates data collection and report generation. As a result, contractors can spend more time fulfilling client needs and less time doing unproductive paper pushing.
ReachOut’s Inspection Module offers the precise inspection/ audit form(s) for each task. The predefined styled digital forms provided by ReachOut allow technicians to enter essential field data, including images, videos, and photographs, and help auto-populate the data to custom reports as and when their supervisors require.
Read more: Top 10 Digital Inspection Forms From ReachOut to Supercharge Your Business

The styled digital forms allow contractors to continue using accustomed-to forms, in the digital mode, without going through the pangs of change. ReachOut users can also request custom inspection/ audit forms if the business demands them. 
One of our clients, Clayton Barrows, tells us that his team at Idaho Backflow saves two hours of work per day as ReachOut helps him auto-populate information into custom reports. Clayton says that auto-populating information into the reports was a game-changer. 
Case Study: How did ReachOut change the whole game for Idaho Backflow, a popular backflow testing business in the region of Idaho? Click here to read. 

5. Instant Invoicing

Generating invoices for contract-based jobs is challenging. Third-party contractors may not be meticulous enough to fill up the work orders. As a result, the work orders may not contain all the details of the work done. In addition, tracking the job status becomes problematic in the absence of direct supervision.
ReachOut’s automated invoicing capabilities allow contractors to generate invoices instantly on work completion. 

• It makes invoicing and contractor payments fast, accurate, and verifiable.
• Geo-locational tracking automates timesheets. GPS capabilities track agent hours accurately.
• The ReachOut mobile app installed on the contractor’s smartphone collects and reports data such as time spent at a site, materials used, equipment services, and more.
• Connected apps pull in data such as quoted rates.
• Agent-generated work orders allow field contractors to raise a work order to cover the work requisites.

Read more: How to create simple and quick invoices using ReachOut

6. Streamlined Communication

The success of fieldwork depends on seamless communication. A single contractor may work on multiple projects and may even be working with competitors. Unfortunately, ad-hoc communication, using various channels, is a recipe for disaster. Important points easily get lost in the chaos.
ReachOut contract management software manages all communication from a single application. The centralized communication platform enables real-time communication among managers, contractors, sub-contractors, customers, and other stakeholders. In addition, push notifications issue timely alerts to stakeholders and prompt them to do the needful.

7. Easy and Secure Access to Information

Having a central depository to store and access important documents improves field service productivity. Using a secure database to store documents and files enables easy retrieval when needed.

• ReachOut’s centralized repository offers contractors, sub-contractors, technicians, and other field agents up-to-date information. 
• Field technicians can access instruction manuals, safety checklists, statutory compliance requirements, service best practices, and additional handy info on the fly. 
• The repository also allows storing invoices, maintenance contracts, work orders, change orders, timesheets, and bid proposals in one easy-to-access location.

Transparent systems offer complete visibility and hassle-free access to the required information on a need-to basis. Robust controls such as advanced encryption and multi-factor authentication limit access only to authorized users. User-friendly administrative features enable administrators to assign roles and permissions.
ReachOut contract management software also improves traceability. Change tracking features make it explicit who made adjustments and at which point. Audit trails record the person who accessed the document with timestamps. Robust backup features safeguard your system against accidental or deliberate deletion.
Read more: Top 3 Field Service Pain Points Addressed by ReachOut Service Management Software

8. Easy Integrations for Seamless Payroll and Accounts

Managing payroll and accounts for contractor-based jobs is a hassle. Calculating the number of work hours and the intricacies of paying temporary workers makes the task complex. So how does ReachOut solve this challenge?

• Payroll applications streamline the process. For example, automated data entry prevents inaccurate invoices. For contractors who work on volumes instead of hourly rates, the system automatically calculates the rates based on volume commitments.
• ReachOut offers easy integration with top accounting software such as QuickBooks and Xero. The integrated solution pulls in data from the field agents and subcontractors app. QuickBooks’s payroll-specific solution makes it easy to pay employees through direct deposit. It also automates complex tasks such as tax management.

Read more: ReachOut FSM Helps Unlock Business Value by Facilitating Integrations with Leading Enterprise Software

9. Faster Project Execution

ReachOut contracting software quickens approvals and reduces time-to-market. The application’s automation capabilities allow contractors to streamline workflows. 

• Dynamic workflows and a to-do list expedite task execution. When field contractors have access to accurate real-time information, they do not waste time waiting for clarifications or follow-ups.
• Intuitive dashboards offer pipeline views of all open contracts and tasks. Contractors evaluate whether their deliverables are on track. They make the necessary interventions to overcome any lag. Managers intervene when needed to resolve glitches.
• Push notifications alert stakeholders on the next step. Targeted messages to the specific personnel shorten approval times.

10. Improved Profitability

ReachOut contract management software improves efficiency and boosts the bottom line. In today’s highly competitive atmosphere, there is little scope to increase rates. Profits come from reducing expenses rather than pushing up rates. Enterprises cannot afford any slip-ups.

• Standardizing processes and procedures reduce supply chain risks and reduce expenses.
• Increased interoperability empowers employees to save time on repetitive tasks. Employees become more productive, indirectly boosting profitability.

ReachOut’s GPS-enabled field companion app makes it easy to identify the location of your technician. Location tracking helps you coordinate with your onsite technician, especially when you have promised a deadline to your client. You can also reassign a technician in case of an unexpected situation to ensure no delay from your end. Your client is notified about the schedule or technician change through the “Uber-like” ReachOut app. 
ReachOut contract management software is the perfect tool to manage the ecosystem of contractors and reap a significant competitive advantage from it. It offers a robust way for contractors, subcontractors, field technicians, and customers to engage. It facilitates real-time updates and information transfer which enhance the quality of service. A good contractor scheduling software brings order to an otherwise chaotic and stressful operational environment, and ReachOut is your ideal choice. 
Sign up for ReachOut today and start managing your technicians, contractors, and work schedules without any stress.