When it comes to scaling tech rollouts nationwide, you need to decide between either hiring an internal team and increasing your W2 overhead or farming out the work to a nationwide installation partner, like TechLink, that manages a 1099 workforce. There are many pros and cons to consider ensuring you’re making the right decision for your business and growth goals. In this article, we’ll explore four things to consider when making this critical decision: cost, reliability, efficiency, and project management.
Consideration #1 – Cost
Scaling a W2 team of project managers and tech installers is a time-consuming and expensive investment to undertake. One of the largest variable costs in a W2 workforce is the time and labor spent on managing your workforce utilization rate so that your sunk labor cost is providing return with revenue-generating activities. In addition, you might have to purchase or upgrade your management software so it’s capable of overseeing and dispatching your teams. And finally, you have the added travel expenses of getting your teams to all of your install locations.
In contrast, with an installation partner like TechLink, you have immediate access to a team of experienced project managers, a nationwide network of vetted and localized technicians, and proven work order management software. In addition, our billing is customized to your business’s situation. This can mean project-specific pricing or flat rates can be implemented so you are never surprised by an invoice. Pricing is always up for negotiation when we have volume or if we can nest in automation, like API integration. And as far as the workforce utilization, by routing your on-site needs through a company like TechLink your costs become on-demand only with no idle time or waste.
Consideration #2 – Reliability
Your internal W2 hiring process has vetted, background checked, and verified the employment history of all of your new hires, so you feel confident regarding the reliability of the team you’ve built. They also know that their performance is tied to their employment, so they have the motivation to do well or face a write-up or possible termination if they’re not reliable or meeting expectations.
Much like your hiring process for W2 employees, TechLink has a recruiting team that interviews every 1099 tech, reviews their skills, certificates, and past work, and can run background checks if clients require them. Then, through our software portal, our team of project managers will match installer skills, certificates, and work experience with the scope of work requested by the client. In addition, our project managers can monitor and manage the performance and reliability of every tech out in the field. So, you can count on our team of professionals to be reliable and show up on time.
Consideration #3 – Efficiency
Your internal teams know your standard operating procedures and scope of work backward and forwards due to training and handling the same tasks day in and day out. But there’s a catch: they can’t be everywhere at once, so it takes time for your efficient team to visit every single site location across a nation and perform their work.
Having access to a localized network of highly skilled contract technicians can greatly mitigate the problem of travel time for your internal install team’s rollout. On many occasions, your customer will require the rollout to be done quickly, often with tight deadlines such as new store openings. You can achieve better results by tapping into our nationwide database of Technicians. In addition, for quick emergencies, we can even pull up a site location and dispatch the closest tech that can address the immediate need. This gives your company access to instant response for time-sensitive work.
Consideration #4 – Project Management
Project managers are the glue that binds your internal install and maintenance teams together as they prioritize, delegate, and oversee all aspects of the work that needs to get done. They troubleshoot issues on the fly and keep the project moving forward so deadlines are met. In other words, they are mission-critical.
We couldn’t agree more and that’s why, unlike many other portal-only field service providers, TechLink has 40 dedicated project managers and an implementation team on staff. Every day they review work orders, deliverables, and locations while managing the selection and dispatch of techs that match the work order requirements. Their mission is to act as an extension of your company so you can focus on other important matters.
So, have you made up your mind on which way you’re leaning? There are benefits in both camps, and some negative ones too. But the big question is, can you afford to spend your company’s time and cash flow hiring, implementing, and managing internal install teams or does it make more sense to partner with a turnkey, nationwide installation service that’s ready to go to work for you today?
At TechLink we understand the importance of a partnership, one that believes in your business goals as much as you do. We leverage our team of professionals to support you in every project, complete the task on time and on budget, and with full transparency. If you’re ready to partner with a managed installation provider, please contact us to get started.