One of the biggest challenges for electrical contractors in this technology age is the abundance of available software. There is software for just about everything you can think of, from estimating to ERP systems and project management tools to field time tracking. Not to mention the software companies that will promise you the moon, and after purchase you may realize the capability is “on the roadmap.” ECs many find a problem, get software to fix it and then find out it didn’t help. I have seen this; heck, I have lived this. There are a couple steps that may not totally stop this from happening, but they can at least help and hopefully reduce the number of times it happens.

When looking into software, develop a process map, which will determine the workflow, responsible parties and any technology currently being used, if any. In doing this, users may find that the issue isn’t a software problem, but a process one.

For example, during spec review, critical requirements such as equipment availability, third-party inspections or unique coordination needs may be identified but remain buried in estimating documents. This is where the breakdown happens. Those effects are not clearly communicated and discussed during the project kickoff meeting, so operations and field teams may proceed without planning for schedule impacts, sleeves, inspections or subcontractor coordination. This disconnect often leads to rework, schedule delays and added cost because the information was never moved from preconstruction into execution planning. With a process map in place, this gap can be identified and addressed. If needed, a cloud-based tracking platform could be a possible company-wide solutions. Without mapping, this could be misdiagnosed as a field problem, and the field team could look for a software when the issue is actually hitting operations and estimating teams.

Another advantage of auditing is identifying siloed software, such as cloud platforms. Some divisions will use Dropbox, another BOX and yet another OneDrive. Identifying and standardizing will help reduce overlapping software. OneDrive comes standard with your Microsoft 365 account. Dropbox and BOX are recurring auto-draft subscriptions. It is entirely possible that the EC has moved from Dropbox to OneDrive and never canceled the subscription. This would not be the first time I have seen this happen, and you never catch it until you log into your Drobbox and see the last activity was 18 months ago. If this sounds familiar, a solution could be getting into your unused account, verifying the subscription terms, and either turning off the auto-renew or canceling the subscription altogether. If canceling, confirm that you get the remainer of your time on your subscription and use it as an implementation timeline to your new standardized platform. Know that a lot of the subscriptions you sign up for can be negotiated to have the evergreen (auto-renewing) option changed to a confirmation email 30 days before renewal.

With software solutions, it is exceedingly difficult to track and audit, but once done, it can save a lot of wasted nickels and dimes that can add up. More importantly, it streamlines the process and communication flow, which is a goal that all ECs are after.