In a 2023 study, Verdantix found that improving contractor management is something 85% of firms are prioritizing. And it’s no wonder – World Commerce & Contracting discovered that in 40% of organizations, it’s a guessing game of who’s in charge of which contract.
Therefore, safety software that keeps up is a must-have for large enterprises. So, how can you use Pro-Sapien to make contractor safety management smoother and safer in 2024?
This is a common question we get asked at Pro-Sapien. Let’s have a closer look at some of our features and how they can help you become more efficient in onboarding contractors.
Common challenges with contractor safety management
Many of our clients manage large sites where people who don’t work directly for the company frequently come and go.
The safety onboarding process for those typically includes gathering insurance documents, training certificates, and checklists. All these help to uncover whether the contractor is compliant with corporate policies.
However, this presents two challenges for the safety team of a large site:
- Capturing information from external sources
- Managing contractor safety data in an organized process
Let’s have a look at how you solve each challenge, using one of our customers as an example.
Real-world use case: Contractor safety onboarding
A US-based Pro-Sapien customer needed a better way to manage the onboarding of contractors. They had acquired new facilities and suddenly found themselves working with dozens of new contractors – and faced the two common struggles from above.
Capturing information from external sources
First of all, contractors did not have access to the customer’s Microsoft 365 environment, where Pro-Sapien is deployed. In other words, they did not have company email addresses to be able to login to Teams or SharePoint.
Therefore, our customer required a method of external sharing to allow the contractor employee to submit data and complete checklists in Pro-Sapien (Microsoft 365), without a company account.
This is where our external access feature came in handy for the customer.
The external sharing feature is compatible with any Pro-Sapien form. It allows external individuals to perform various activities, such as completing safety checklists.
As a form owner (and with the right permissions), you can view all external users who have access to a specific form, add new external users by entering their email addresses, and remove external users when necessary.
When you invite an external user, they receive a notification email and can access the Pro-Sapien form after a quick verification process through Azure AD.
Using Pro-Sapien’s ‘Share’ button, the customer’s safety team can now invite contractors to complete custom checklists in a matter of seconds – saving considerable amounts of time and providing complete visibility.
Solving data management
With contractors able to submit data – what happens with it afterwards? This was the next challenge we are solving for our customer.
When onboarding contractors, you want to make sure that you only hire those who fit your safety criteria. Therefore, our process doesn’t stop with the gathering of information.
Based on the customer’s criteria, the Pro-Sapien Contractor Register Software can calculate a score per contractor – for example, A, B or C – taking into account measures such as TRIR and DART rate. This feeds into the workflow and helps the safety team decide on the next steps.
Furthermore, all contractors are held within a register complete with filtering and searching abilities, to easily keep track of approved contractors across the growing company.
What their process looks like step by step
Let’s have a look at how our customer’s overall contractor process looks in more detail with Pro-Sapien’s Contractor Register and External Access feature:
- Safety Manager invites contractor: The Safety Manager invites the contractor directly from the contractor onboarding form.
- Contractor registration: The external contractor receives an email with a link to register. This process is managed through Azure AD security and takes no longer than 2 minutes to complete.
- Safety onboarding form completion: The contractor is then routed directly to their safety onboarding form to answer questions and upload documents before submitting back to the Safety team for review.
- Safety team notification: Once this information is received, there are notifications to the Safety team or responsible parties for review.
- Contractor score calculation: A score is given to the contractor based on their responses, providing guidance on whether they should be Approved, Rejected, or if more information is required.
- Safety team decision: It is then up to the Safety team to make a decision on whether this contractor has passed onboarding.
- Contractor tracking: All contractors are tracked in the company’s Contractor Register module from Pro-Sapien, where it is easy to quickly see Contractor Status, Review Dates, Contact Details and more. Workflows manage an automated review process to stay up to date with contractors.
- Audit log update: Every time a contractor form is submitted or reviewed, this is tracked in a fully auditable history log.
All in all, the customer is making use of Pro-Sapien’s new external access feature, Checklist module (Inspections), and Contractor Register module to enable this seamless process.
Switching to this automated contractor onboarding approach is set to boost efficiency and save time—all through the Pro-Sapien EHS platform built into Microsoft 365!
Why Should You Choose Pro-Sapien’s External Sharing Solution?
Using Azure external access with Pro-Sapien ensures adherence to strict security protocols, including configurable permission settings that meet your organization’s requirements. Our solution integrates seamlessly with our main EHS system without compromising on security.
This means third parties can access and use specific parts of the system just like internal users. The entire experience is part of a familiar workflow process, which means that it’s self-explaining and you don’t need to spend much time on training people how to use them.
And the possibilities don’t stop with contractor onboarding. The external access feature can be used for other information gathering too, such as:
- Allowing a contractor or supplier to contribute to an incident investigation
- Inviting contractors to Permit to Work forms for signature
- Collaborating on an Audit with an external auditor
Enabling third-parties to submit data directly into Pro-Sapien is a major time saver, allowing our customers to boost efficiency and data quality. Less time on admin, more time on EHS!
What Do I Need to Consider?
The external sharing feature and Contractor Register module are part of Pro-Sapien’s EHS software built into Microsoft 365. These can be deployed alongside our range of solutions including Inspection Checklists, Permit to Work, and more. If you’re still exploring what modules you need, you might be interested in our guide on how to phase a large EHS project.
Do you already know what you need and want to manage contractors effectively? Learn more about Pro-Sapien’s Contractor Software and watch a demo today:
