Everybody with a job on a given day gets a run. It carries the stops in driving order, the drive between them, the time each one starts, and a map. You change that order by hand, then send it by text, in the app, or both.
You open Routes from the Tools menu in the menu bar, and it opens on today in your company's own timezone. Everybody with a job that day sits down the left.
A job joins a run when it has that date, a site and a person. The ones missing a site or a person appear under Jobs not on any run. That list tells you what you are about to forget, rather than letting the job quietly appear nowhere.
People rostered that day with nothing to do appear too, and you can give them a job on the spot.
3 jobs · 1 hr 8 min driving
4 jobs · 52 min driving
2 jobs · 31 min driving
3 jobs
You set a depot for the business, or their own address for whoever goes straight from home. Each person carries their own leave time, and you can count the drive back at the end.
A rostered shift that day overrides their own default leave time, so somebody on an early start gets planned from that early start. Only admins and that person can see a home address.
The Plan all runs button works through everybody in turn, and a bar names the person it is planning. The Plan this run button does one person.
Each stop shows the time its work starts, the drive to it and its time window. Late by means the rest of the day cannot meet the arrive by time. A stop they reach before its window opens also shows when they arrive and how long they wait. The map numbers the stops in driving order.
The plan names a site whose address it cannot find, and leaves it off the run rather than guessing. Drive times allow for roads that are usually busy, not for the traffic on the day.
3 jobs · 1 hr 8 min driving
4 jobs · 52 min driving
John Smith
Leaves Depot at 07:30 (company default)
1 hr 8 min driving · 4 hr 15 min on site · 5 hr 23 min total · 41.6 km · finishes 12:53 back at the start
123 Example Street, Sydney
48 Sample Road, Testville
123 Test Street, Testville
You drag a stop, or move it with the arrows. The times recalculate straight away, and the product saves the new order.
You add a job, move one, or give it to somebody else after planning. That person then reads Changed since planned until you plan it again, so nobody quietly sends a stale run.
You can give a stop an arrive from time, an arrive by time, or a different time on site. The next plan fits around it.
Send shows you the exact message first. You tick a text to the mobile number on their staff record, a notification in the app and on their phone, or both.
Where a text cannot go, the line underneath names the reason. They have no staff record, no mobile number, a number that needs fixing, or they have opted out of texts. It never fails in silence.
Afterwards the person reads Sent. If anything about the run changes later, Sent shows the time it went out, and that it went before that change.
Your company: your run for Tue, 15 Sept. Leave the depot at 07:30. 1. 07:48 Example Pty Ltd, 123 Example Street, Sydney 2. 10:10 Jane Smith, 48 Sample Road, Testville 3. 11:09 John Smith, 123 Test Street, Testville Open My run in the app for the map.
Text message to +61 412 345 678
In the app, and on their phone if they use it
My run on their phone lists today's stops in order. Each one shows the time its work starts, the drive, the window and how long they stay on site. It marks a late stop.
Directions hands the stop to the phone's own maps app. The Edit button opens that stop's job with every field on it. So they change the status, the note and the time at the job itself. Nobody writes it on a hand and types it up at six o'clock.
This product never reads or sends the person's location. The maps app is the only thing that needs to know where the phone is.
My run
Tue, 15 Sept
Leave the depot at 07:30
1 hr 8 min driving · 4 hr 15 min on site · 5 hr 48 min total · finish 13:18
07:48 Example Pty Ltd
123 Example Street, Sydney
18 min drive · Arrive by 09:00 · On site 120 min
10:10 Jane Smith
48 Sample Road, Testville
22 min drive · On site 45 min
11:09 John Smith
123 Test Street, Testville
14 min drive · Arrive by 11:00 · On site 90 min
Late by 9 min
Working out the order
Most job management tools
They give you a list of the day's jobs, and somebody who knows the area puts them in order in their head.
Diract
You get driving order for everybody at once, with the drive between each stop, the arrival times and a map.
A job with no site or nobody on it
Most job management tools
It sits in the list, and nobody notices until the day has ended.
Diract
It appears under Jobs not on any run, and you add the site or the person from there.
A promise made to a customer
Most job management tools
They leave you a note in the job, honoured if whoever reads it remembers.
Diract
You put an arrive by time on the stop. The plan works around it, and says Late by when the day cannot meet it.
Sending the day to everybody
Most job management tools
You send a screenshot to a group chat, or you call at seven in the morning.
Diract
You read the message before it goes, send it by text or into the app, and the run reads Sent with the time.
Changing a job after sending
Most job management tools
The person drives yesterday's plan, because nothing knows the run has changed.
Diract
The run reads Changed since planned, and Sent shows it went out before that change.