Maybe I should more specific....

Paper calendar?
Electronic Calendar?
Chalk Board?

Just curious what systems people use to organize jobs.

 

Paper, and its in pencil. I also use a lot of erasers. :yes:

 

I inform the HO of my current backlog, and then contact them when when their job is next on the list.

Is there something more specific you’re looking for?

 

Right now I'm running a 6 week schedule.

I explain that everybody gets served in the order they accepted the contract. I'll tell the HO that there job will be coming up in about six weeks, and that I'll contact them a week to a week and a half before to give them an exact start date and go over colors. Exteriors always get a ballpark, with an explanation about how the weather impacts a schedule.

It's always a challenge to keep on track, and I do my best. But I typically will run behind schedule a bit, rather than ahead.

 

Estimate sheets are triplicate forms. One to customer, one for office, one for crew work order. I don't schedule anything by day, only by week. Crew leaders get one week's worth of work orders and are responsible for calling customers 24hrs in advance to let them when they are coming.

Google calendar for rough scheduling and job management. My crew leaders are synched to it and they post when a job is completed or if jobs will not be completed by week's end. I use a whiteboard in my office as a master list.

I am very open to software suggestions as my system is showing its' weaknesses too frequently. Scheduling is my biggest nightmare. I am running 35 jobs per week. Try keeping that organized.

 

I have a spreadsheet that acts as a flow chart. All the jobs are in order, and there’s a bunch of check boxes to the right for the status of every job from the beginning to end. It also gives me the total mandays so I know my current backlog at all times.

For the job calendar I still prefer paper - even tho I'm an iPhone nut. :blink:

 

More specifically I was curious to the actually 'how' you schedule.

Colour code a chart with interior / exterior / fill in stuff?

Write it on a napkin?

Use a program?

I'll be honest that even though I'm organized on a job I'm still weak with paper work (taxes, GST, payroll) I have a book keeper, accountant, I use QB's now, Payworks for payroll, but I still keep too much in my head as far as 'running the show'.

I have job lists, estimated days tacked on each. Then there's the 'filler' stuff like a window sills that may take 8 hours or a small fence there and there that may take a painter a day or partial day.

Have my paper calendar with highlighters....but its constantly changing as we know. The carpets didn't get installed in time so that job is delays a week, rain, customer changes scope...etc.....

Silver bullet?

.

 

PP and LA.....we hopscotched our replies....

 

When they call asking when I'll get to them, I tell them they are next......

 

My Dad had a way of getting people to accept just getting on ' the list' with virtually no time frame commitment except, this year sometime, or next spring. And he would let them know 1-2 weeks in advance. Worked out good usually.
I do a lot of work for contractors and management companies that pretty much demand a set schedule. And a lot of HO's want set times for one reason or another.
It's tough, even if you have a good handle on production rates. There are just too many variables. Add ons, weather delays, etc..
Lately, I try to get as many jobs as possible 'on the list'. If I'm pressed for specifics more than that I give a ballpark like 'mid June' or something. I have to do some set dates though, no way around it sometimes. For these I try make the dates pretty far out, and work the other ones around it. If necessary, send one or two of our small crew to start on time while finishing up the one were on. I will have to do this next week because a condo job starts on the 10th and won't finish where we are till mid week. (Add on's)


I'm trying to use my phone more, set reminders In advance, notes.
I do too much in my head too. Use pen and paper too often still.
As far as gauging time frames, I usually lay it out in week long intervals, and generally over estimate how long it will take to try to make up for delays/last min stuff.
When you have a set schedule with lots of specific dates, getting a few days/week behind has a snow ball effect that can really throw it off. I try to stay as flexible as possible.
One thing I tell clients that have to be putt off is, that I'm finishing for someone else and when I get to you I will not leave to go start another job too early either.
Overall, I really suck at scheduling too. Sorry no magic bullet.

 

I think alot of you over think the whole process. A notebook, pen, and a spreadsheet on the computer handles our 6 figure income company with no problems at all

 

My wife writes it down so she knows where I'm at and for billing and every thing else is in my head. Apparently I have plenty of empty space in there.

 

Paint and Hammer...If you can multitask and remember schedules via your brain capacity go with it. As I got older, I used a paper calender to track my jobs. Now I use Google calender. But just as back up. I still rely on my memory.

 

Paul

We have painted several walls in our two shops with white board paint and we have a bucket full of coloured markers. Everything is put up on boards, in three categories: year, month, and week, by color. We then photograph the boards so we have them in our phones, so when a customer asks about scheduling, we can literally pull up the schedule and see the year. Next to each whiteboard is an actual calendar of the year.

This is supplemented by legal pads for notetaking.

Let me know if you would like me to email you a picture of our whiteboard wall system.

 

I use apple calendar. You can add multiple calendars; one for power washing, one for painting, one for dates I got paid and the amounts. When I do my excise taxes I just need this calendar.