Your techs don't have a desk
Big buttons, plain words, and photos that upload on their own when the signal comes back: why Field Lightning starts with the tech's phone.
The Field Lightning team2 min read
Your techs don't have a desk. They have a truck, a ladder, a pair of gloves and about one free hand. Software designed at a desk tends to fall apart right there.
So we started with the tech's phone. The question we ask of every screen is simple: can someone use this in the middle of a job? The goal is a tool that is easy enough to use mid-job, so the office sees what is happening as it happens.
One big button at a time
Open a job on the phone and you see the next step as one big button. No digging through menus.
- Before you leave, it says Accept Job.
- On the road, it says Arrived. Navigate is right there too, and it opens your maps app. If traffic wins, Mark delayed is one tap away.
- On site, it says Work completed. Pause job and Resume sit close by.
The buttons are big on purpose. They are made for a gloved thumb, not a mouse.
Each tap does more than move a screen along. It moves the job along on the office's board. It also tracks drive time and on-site time on the job, inside the tech's work clock. The office sees it without a phone call.
Words anyone can read
Every message should say what happened and what to do next. No codes and no jargon. The phone and the web app use the same words, so a job that is En route on the board is En route in the truck. The same goes for Scheduled, Arrived, Work in progress, Work complete and Paid.
The web app speaks English, Spanish, French and German. Each person picks their own. The iPhone app is in English only for now.
When the signal drops
Basements, crawl spaces and long rural roads are part of the job. If you take a photo or a video in a dead zone, the phone holds on to it. It sends the file by itself once you have a signal again, even if you closed the app in between.
The app is not an offline mode. Most things, like clocking in or moving a visit along, still need a signal. We would rather tell you that now than have you find out in a basement.
The iPhone app is still in testing and is not in the App Store yet.
Want to see how it fits your crew? Try Field Lightning, or talk to us.