Follow-up to proof is a simple rule: a contractor job stays open, and keeps being followed up, until evidence that it was done is on the record. Each work order has respond and attend times, reminders that go up the line when those times pass, and a list of what must be uploaded before it closes.
OpsChase logs every reminder with its time and channel, and checks the proof before a job can be marked complete.
Why multi-site teams care about follow-up to proof
Most missed maintenance is not refused; it is forgotten. A contractor says they will come Thursday, Thursday gets busy, and nobody notices until the site rings again. Across many sites, those small silences pile up into a backlog nobody can see. Following every job through to evidence turns that backlog into a list of named jobs with a next step, and “done” finally means the same thing at every site.
What good follow-up looks like
- Response and attendance times set by trade and priority, written down before the job is raised.
- Reminders that start automatically when a time passes, without anyone having to remember.
- Escalation in a sensible order: the contractor, then their office, then your site or regional manager.
- One record of every reminder, so nobody repeats a call that already happened.
- A close condition that names the evidence, such as a certificate, readings or before-and-after shots.
Common mistakes
- Following up only the jobs someone complains about.
- Sending reminders from personal phones, so the history leaves with the staff member.
- Closing a job because the contractor said “all done” on a call.
- Escalating straight to a manager on the first miss, which wears out goodwill with good firms.
- Asking for proof that was never explained to the contractor at the start.
How it fits the rest of OpsChase
Follow-up sits on the work order from the moment it is raised. Response policies come from the trade and priority; proof rules come from the job template. When a time passes, the next step fires once and is logged. Contractors confirm, check in and upload from their phone, and reviewers see on the job whether the requirements are met. Until they are, the job shows the next follow-up time rather than a vague status.
Where to start
Choose one trade where silence hurts, such as fire or HVAC, and agree the response time, attendance time and evidence with the contractors who do that work. Run it for a month across one region. Once the pattern works, copy the template to the next trade instead of designing every rule at once.
See service level agreement (SLA) for setting times and proof of completion for what counts as evidence.
On OpsChase: one queue for your team and contractors, follow-up when a job goes quiet, and photos or sign-off before it closes. Book a demo — one site or many.
- Can follow-up run after hours?
- Yes. After-hours flags send night jobs to on-call contractors and raise them internally when nobody responds.
- Is proof always photos?
- No. Each template sets its own mix: photos, a checklist, a signature, a certificate or a site check-in.
- What if a contractor refuses to upload?
- The job stays open, and follow-up continues until the evidence arrives or you give the job to someone else.
- Will contractors mind the reminders?
- Good firms rarely do when the rules are clear up front. Reminders replace the ad hoc calls they already get, and each one stops once that step is done.
- Who gets told when a job escalates?
- You decide the order. A common setup is the contractor first, then their office, then the site manager, and the regional manager for urgent work.
- Can we export the follow-up history?
- Yes. Each job’s reminders, confirmations, check-ins and uploads export together, which helps when an auditor or landlord asks who was contacted and when.