Automate Field Research With Field Employee Management Software

Field employee management software automates the process of field surveys and research through solutions like task management, custom forms, etc.

Just a survey – 

61% of employees are burned out on the job

Where did we get that information from? By having people go around places surveying, collecting and compiling data.

Market survey companies and governments are conducting day in and out, but all of them are not done from the vicinity of the office. Sometimes, employees have to step out and go door to door to conduct surveys, collect data and report back. 

To help bring ease into this operation, which is riddled with difficulties, leaving the managers feeling blindsided and lacking control, field employee management software is of great help.

Continue reading this article to conduct field surveys with ease.

Challenges of Market Research Firms While Conducting Surveys

Suppose a market research firm conducts surveys to gather data about consumer preferences, opinions, and behaviour. However, because it has employees in the field, the superiors are having difficulty managing the employees and the data collected.

Market research firms are testing software that will help them mitigate some of the challenges the field survey struggles with. Some common hindrances are:

• Time Management
• Data Accuracy and Consistency
• Data Security and Privacy
• Communication and Coordination
• Training and Supervision
• Logistics and Travel
• Safety and Security of Field Employees

Then, we have field employee management software that is helping you mitigate these challenges and promote seamless data collection and surveys with the help of the employee survey tools it offers.  

Using Field Employee Management Software 

The survey management tool is a software platform that automates and streamlines workflow, thus enhancing the productivity of field employees. It comes with many solutions and features that help market research firms deploy employees to survey and manage them effortlessly.

Task Management

The field survey software’s task management system is efficient in helping managers delegate tasks and locations for surveys to the field employees. 

Easy Scheduling and Allocation: The managers or supervisors assign RWAs, societies, corporate buildings, etc to survey employees remotely. They can also do it in bulk- assigning locations or zones a month in advance. This will help save time and effort and make the job faster and easier. 

Self Allocation: Employees can self-create/allocate themselves tasks like houses, people and zones to conduct surveys in. Managers must grant task creation access to employees. This is great for accountability and visibility.

Location and Time Check: Conducting surveys can be time and location-sensitive. Managers can put in place a location and time check for starting and ending the tasks. 

Digital Custom Forms

Digital customisable survey forms are a huge help when it comes to conducting surveys and collecting data by going door to door. The field employees no longer need to carry a stack of papers that are liable to get lost, stolen or damaged. This is harmful to the data collection practice. Additionally, the company can save a lot of time and money as they no longer have to get the forms printed.

The forms are customisable, meaning the employees having access can edit the form when required, like adding, removing or editing a section. This makes the form clean and has fewer chances of human errors; the best part is that they are digital. Once submitted, the managers can view the document in real time; employees don’t have to go to the office and submit the forms manually. 

Some other features of the customisable survey forms are that field employees can get e-signatures on them, they are uploaded on cloud storage, which means ease of access, and documents like Aadhar cards can be uploaded/attached to prevent forgery like employees filling out the form themselves. 

Geocoded Attendance

A geocoded attendance management system allows superiors to keep track of who is present on the field and who is not. The field employee management software offers geocoded attendance to prevent fraudulent activities like time theft or buddy punching and maintain a clean attendance record. Through it, the presence of the employees can be marked only when they reach their first location.

Additionally, the system even offers visual verification, leaving no stone unturned.  

Real-Time Tracking

Real-time tracking is necessary when dealing with field employees travelling to different locations daily. This helps to maintain accountability for actions and activities. Also, this helps to mitigate the blindsidedness that managers feel towards the operations. 

Analytical Reports

Analytical reports are a big help as they provide insights and important metrics of the field operations. These insights can help determine the future course of the operations, the challenges that the field employees face while conducting surveys, areas that are not yet fully researched/penetrated and areas that are covered. 

Some small features that the field employee monitoring software offers are:

Expense Tracking

Conducting surveys is no cheap task. The employees must be paid and reimbursed for fuel, food and other expenses. The software allows field employees to request for reimbursements remotely, making this process easy. The request is visible to the immediate managers automatically.

Additionally, field employees can even track their claim status in real time.

Inbuilt chat box

The geographical gap causes fragmented communication to develop. Now, this can be harmful to the company’s data and field employees’ tasks. To avoid this from happening, the field employee monitoring system offers a built-in chat box for lucrative communication.

Additionally, the platform comes with an SOS button, which can be of great help when employees have to go into unsafe areas or when female employees feel unsafe. On pressing it, alerts are sent out with geo coordinates to the registered numbers.

Benefits of Using The Field Employee Management Software for Field Surveys

There are a lot of benefits to research companies from using field employee monitoring software for conducting field surveys.

Elimination of Manual Form-filling 

Since the survey management software digitalises the form-filling process, human errors are eliminated. The forms are getting filled digitally, thereby speeding up the process.

Automation of Workflow

The field employee management software automates 

• Task Creation 
• Assigning Tasks
• form-filling Process 
• Management of the data collection and employees

The company can leverage all the extra time left due to the elimination of the manual working style.

Visibility, Transparency and Insights

The field employee tracking software tracks employees in real time while collecting data and conducting surveys. Also, the software offers analytical reports and metrics in real-time without having to mine for them. These insights greatly help as they promote transparency and fairness in working.

Enhanced Employee Productivity and Satisfaction

Since the software offers automated solutions, field employees no longer need to work through the lengthy process. The simplification of tasks and working styles helps enhance their productivity. Also, allowing them to leverage the latest technology to get the work done faster increases their work satisfaction level.

Data-driven Decisions

Having all the insights right in front of them allows managers to make decisions smartly and swiftly. The right data gives managers clarity on the performance quality and productivity of the employees. This further helps to assign zones and sectors to the field employees. 

Centralised Data Collection

The field employee management software is cloud-based, allowing the data to flow freely. Managers have dashboards to access metrics and data. Field employees have an app to access the forms and task details. Thus bringing ease of working for both.

Conducting Surveys Has Never Been Easier…

Market research firms have employees all over the city and even in jungles and in other states, going door to door collecting data and conducting surveys. Their visibility of actions and management is tough without field employee tracking software in place.

TrackoField is a field employee management software that guarantees you help in enhancing the productivity of your employees, ease in their management and scaling of the business with the help of its solutions like customisable forms, task management etc.

Schedule a demo now!