When projects go past deadline or over budget the first instinct is to assign blame. It’s easy to do especially when thousands of dollars are on the line. But instead of pointing fingers, with no idea where the blame actually lies, you could use code tracking to know exactly what was done on the job and when.
Track How Your Employees Are Working
Think a project should be taking an hour, but it’s actually taking three? With construction costs on the rise, including labor and materials, it is getting more and more expensive to make mistakes. A couple of hours extra here or there quickly add up causing projects to go over budget.
Cost code tracking solutions, like those offered by ExakTime, give you the ability to see how your employees use their time on the job, how long projects take and how much you’re spending. Being able to pull up this information at-will allows you to always be in-the-know, enabling you to make informed decisions about projects that will impact your company’s bottom line.
Identify Employees for Succession
Besides keeping the company in the black, code tracking allows you to quickly identify any strengths or weaknesses in your talent pool. When patterns develop showing certain employees or teams consistently take longer to complete a job than others, you can require them to take additional training or switch site managers. The same goes for identifying employees who consistently go above and beyond. The construction industry is facing a worker shortage crisis in the near future and succession planning allows you to retain talent and close any skills gaps that exist.
Use a Cost Code Tracking System
A cost code tracking system, like the one offered by ExakTime, puts the responsibility of tracking cost codes in your employees’ hands. ExakTime Mobile allows your workers to quickly select a location and a cost code before they tap ‘Go’ to clock in. They can also record Field Notes on their own device to detail any issues that come up, including pictures, voice, and text.
If your workers use our JobClock Hornet wireless time clock, you can track cost codes with Keytabs or a FastTrakker handheld device. Keytabs are available in 10 different colors. Red and green are used for clocking in and out, but the other eight can be assigned to a specific job activity, such as dry walling or roofing in the construction industry.
Using ExakTime solutions, you can confidently record to-the-minute details about how much time each task takes your workers. In addition to helping you pinpoint weak spots or show definitively that your workers weren’t responsible for an error, you can also use this information strategically to create data-driven bids for future projects and make sure you’re providing an efficient price for the time you expect.