Get it together: 3 organization tips for subcontractors in construction

File cabinets about to burst. Desks covered with mountains of paperwork. Sticky notes here, there, everywhere.

Clutter is chaos – and unfortunately that’s the way of doing business for too many in the construction industry. Subcontractors are especially plagued by disorganization. Unlike new home builders, who might just be balancing one to three jobs at a time, subs rack up projects by the dozen. They could start their day on one end of town, race to the other and be back for a completely different job all within the span of eight hours.

It’s true … there’s a lot to keep track of. Making it even more challenging, subs are often at the mercy of their contractors – waiting to receive their marching orders and having to keep track of all the dizzying details as they come in.

Subcontractors in construction, it’s time to take back some control. How? It all comes down to a little organization. And we’re not talking about those tidying up tips mom taught you all those years ago either. Here are three foolproof strategies sure to save your business time and lower your stress levels.

Leave paperwork behind

All subcontractors in construction have been there. Your builder has a question – and you don’t have an answer. That’s because it’s lost somewhere in piles of paperwork. You’re ripping through your office, searching high and low, ringing up members of your team to help in the hunt.

That’s the thing about paperwork – no matter how many folders and tabs you buy to keep things neat, it’s not searchable. You’ll always have to dig, dig, dig. Let’s leave that time-sucking process behind.

Instead, bring your practice into the 21^st century with document management software like Buildertrend. The leading tech solution for residential home builders, Buildertrend gives contractors the ability to create an account for their subcontractors. From this portal, you can upload unlimited documents, photos and videos – organized by job and super simple to find.

It’s all your files, all in one place.

Simplify communication

Back and forth. Back and forth. It’s a constant pendulum swing between contractor and subs when it comes to communication. Sometimes that pendulum swings via text; other times it’s calls or emails.

All these different methods of connecting are muddying up your processes. The need-to-know-now answers aren’t just buried in paperwork – they’re mixed somewhere in this mess of messages.

Once again, it’s document management software to the rescue. Ditch pen and paper to digitally take notes and log them in the Subcontractor Management Portal. Or, to keep your builders in the know as you make progress or run into issues, snap images or videos then share away. Subcontractors in construction can also store insurance certificates, proposals and other important documents within their portal.

Create processes then document them

Disorganization for subcontractors in construction often comes into play simply because you don’t know who is doing what and when. That’s why it’s important to create clear processes for your business instead of always making decisions last minute, willy nilly.

To be more proactive, organize your business procedures by creating a manual that has detailed descriptions of everyone’s role within your subcontractor business and what each person is responsible for. Of course, for many subs, they’re the sole proprietor of their companies. If that’s the case, this manual can detail how you handle various business operations, such as accounting, marketing and sales.

Again, this level of organization all equates to good documentation. Buildertrend makes it happen. You can upload these manuals to each job and win over contractors with your organized processes as everything is shared with them.

Get organized when you work with a Buildertrend builder

Buildertrend isn’t just for the contractors who run their jobs out of the program. It’s for subcontractors in construction, too.

Not only does it keep you more organized through file-sharing capabilities, but it also gets your team more involved and invested in projects. You’ll never be left wondering what’s next, when am I needed or where are those job details. It’s all organized right in the sub portal.

Check out the other ways managing your jobs becomes easier with Buildertrend.

 

About The Author

Sean Robinson Sean Robinson is a senior content marketing specialist at Buildertrend