Disclaimer: I’ve just read through this blog, I think it’s important to mention that we have no ownership of, or financial interest in, Activity Cloud – we’re just lucky enough to use it. I think that there’s lots of companies out there that would benefit enormously from this software.
Land & Wave has a secret – something that has allowed us to grow and become more complex without lots of stress. We use software called Activity Cloud to manage our diary, staffing, logistics and bookings.
We’re surprised that more outdoor companies haven’t invested in software that makes running their business much easier and more profitable. We work with some quite large outdoor companies that are still using handwritten sheets or MS excel to manage staffing and logistics.
In 2014, Land & Wave switched from using MS excel to Activity Cloud to manage our diary and logistics. Since 2014 Activity Cloud has developed to allow us to effectively manage staff , CRM, working hours and more.
What is Activity Cloud?
Activity Cloud is a cloud-based diary management system for outdoor companies. It’s a centralised hub that allows organisations to manage diary, staffing, logistics and bookings easily and intuitively.
Activity Cloud allows an entire staff team to see what they need to see. It gives staff the information they need to do their jobs and work within a busy team effectively.
Activity Cloud reduces confusion and administrative expense significantly. Specifically, it has helped us reduce human error and allows us to operate complex programmes for upwards of 300 clients on a busy day.
This is what Activity Cloud looks like today: I can see at a glance who is working, what they are doing, what time they’re doing it, what meetings are arranged and who is the assigned ‘Day Manager’. Today is a simple day; the software can easily deal with much, much more complexity…
Managing Staff
From March – November Land & Wave employs between 40 and 55 full time, seasonal and freelance staff.
Activity Cloud is an excellent tool for storing staff information. Activity sign offs, observations and performance management can all be recorded (and accessed instantly).
Land & Wave uses the software to allocate staff, to review staff and to store staff qualifications.
Our instructors use the software to see where they need to be, at what time, with what equipment and who they are working with.
Reporting
Activity Cloud enables us to see exactly how many hours our staff are working, what kind of sessions they normally work on and how much time off they’re owed. The software helps us to allocate work fairly and give a good range of experience to the whole team. It helps us prevent the inevitable drop in quality created by overworked staff that are constantly programmed to the same activity type or client group.
If staff finish late we can instantly extend their working day, if staff go home early we can shorten that working day. We can be very efficient with our staff hours, which is incredibly important for effective staffing and a happy team.
We can see working hours over a day, week, month or over the whole length of a contract.
We can see instantly, how much time off staff are owed, their average hours per day, sick days and how often they are late.
Should your organisation use activity cloud?
If you employ more than 5 people – YES
If you’re currently allocating staff and resources with a pen and paper, white board or MS excel – YES
If your current systems cause human error and frustration – YES
If your current system isn’t cloud-based and accessible by your entire team anytime and anywhere – YES
If you’re currently reliant on a paper based staff observation/ review/ qualification system – YES
Activity Cloud is inexpensive, intuitive, logical and functional. We couldn’t work without it.
Here’s how to find out more about Activity Cloud
Email the team at Activity Cloud
Cut and Paste this into the body of your email…
Hello Activity Cloud,
I help run an outdoor company, we’re really interested in using your software.
We currently employ [INSERT #] staff members.
Our busy season runs from [INSERT Month] to [INSERT Month]
I would like to improve our Staffing / Logistics / Bookings / Administration / Time Management / Reporting systems [DELETE AS APPROPRIATE].
Please get in touch with some more information. It would be brilliant to get access to your demo site.
Kind regards,
etc
20 March 2018 by Phoebe Webster
