So how do you guys manage jobs if you have more than one going at any one time?
Project management software? A large notebook? File folders?
Most of our jobs are very different from one another so looking for some ideas on improvements.
So how do you guys manage jobs if you have more than one going at any one time?
Project management software? A large notebook? File folders?
Most of our jobs are very different from one another so looking for some ideas on improvements.
In older homes like these, the main remodeling goal is often a more welcoming, more social, and more functional kitchen.
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Replies
Talk about an open ended question!
Very different, hunh? Like one job is changing a doorknob and the other is a high rise office building?
Could you narrow the possiblities a bit?
The more important question is what system are you using and abusing now?
Are you interested in a whole house integrated system where the field data and office data are automatically synchronized, or are you willing to manually sync them periodically? Software the office and firmware the field?
What systems are you interested in talking about? Bookkeeping, estimating, manpower management, project tracking, scheduling, contract writing. . . .?
In my opinion as a very humble office systems designer, it is best to start with a firmware field system for two reasons; the initial outlay is very low, <$30.00/project; It is very easy to design and change on the fly.
A few pocket portfolios and a three ring binder big enough to hold them. Get a binder that lets you slip a cover page that IDs the project behind a plastic over-cover. This would be your field system. Label the portfolios generically, ie. Contracts and Plans, Invoices, Change Orders, etc. . .The Lead Carpenter forum moderator at JLC has an excelent system.
The field system is the best place to start because of it's ultimate simplicity. All the generic data (paperwork) types are the same from job to job. Some jobs may not have all types of data, but the main difference is going to be quantity.
You should have the field system down pat in less than 6 months, and; you should have the parameters of how it interfaces with the office well defined by that time.
This gives you a target date for when you want the first draft of your new office system outlined. In order to get that draft, you will first have to "draw the existing" plan because you don't want to throw the baby out with the bath water.
The system to "draw the existing" is simple, but it will add 3% -5% time to the paperwork processing you now do. Of course the ultimate savings can be as high as 50%. Your milage will most likely be less than that extreme.
SamT
Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either. [Einstein] Tks, BossHogg.