Building a system to manage the field

So to provide context on the area we were working on. Property managers typically handle various responsibilities, including rent collection, maintenance, advertising, tenant screening, and conflict resolution, as well as conducting property inspections. Traditionally, property managers are expected to manage all these tasks. However, at Different, we utilise a casual workforce, referred to as "home experts," to perform on-field operations, which are then communicated to schedulers and Property Partners. This approach allows Property Partners, who specialize in customer experience, to concentrate on managing relationships with owners and tenants. We decided to do further research in order to see where were the painpoints within this process were.Our research revealed several key insights: Lack of Centralization: We didn't have a centralized list of home experts or their assigned tasks. Reliance on multiple spreadsheets and external tools made it difficult to track progress or identify areas for improvement. Communication Reliance: Operations heavily depended on conversations to confirm task completion. This lack of real-time status updates led to inefficient communication channels like Slack for simple confirmations. Performance Measurement Difficulty: Using various tools for field ops work obscured performance visibility at both task and job levels, complicating cost understanding at a property level and forecasting for future work. High Management Overhead: The mix of systems and tools resulted in cumbersome scheduling and planning for home experts, leading to administrative overhead, missed tasks, and reduced responsiveness. Fragmented Tools for Home Experts: Home experts had to navigate multiple, often poorly integrated tools, hindering collaboration and leading to incomplete or substandard work. Owner Frustrations: Owners expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of transparency, particularly regarding routine tasks, which are a top priority for them. This lack of clarity often led to unnecessary follow-ups. After extensive deliberation, we identified two primary areas to address with our new product: Visibility: We aimed to provide a comprehensive view of all activities and participants, with data centralized in our database. Efficiency: Our goal was to reduce redundant tasks through technology, such as eliminating the need for double-checking timesheets and manual data entry. We believed that improving in these areas would not only benefit property owners but also enhance the overall experience. By equipping our operations team with better tools, we could work towards optimizing and reducing service costs. While we had specific metrics and plans in place, we were mindful of the adage that everyone has a plan until they're punched in the face. So we came up with a solution and that solution was the development of a sophisticated, interconnected system within our enterprise software, Andi and within our Apps. This system was designed with several key components to streamline our field operations: Queue System: We implemented a queue system that functioned as a state machine. This system was responsible for scheduling jobs efficiently and effectively. Job Pool: The job pool served as a central hub, distributing tasks to schedulers. These schedulers were then tasked with assigning jobs to our home experts, ensuring a smooth flow of operations from one stage to the next. Home Expert App: A crucial component of this system was a dedicated app for our home experts. This app allowed them to track their job statuses, understand their schedules, and stay informed about upcoming tasks. This level of organization and accessibility was key to enhancing their efficiency and effectiveness in the field.