Developing a better partnership with your pest control provider - Part 1

Over the past few decades, shifts in technology have impacted a large portion of our lives – almost anything imaginable is only a few clicks away. That applies to pest control, too, although you may not know it if you’re working with a pest control provider who still keeps manual records.

Technology has revolutionized the way companies conduct business and make critical decisions. Strong data, gleaned through technology helps businesses respond to competitive pressures, mitigate risks, determine needed structural and equipment improvements, and impacts to budget decisions.

Although many organizations leverage their own information for these decisions, businesses should also be looking to their vendors to provide them with useful data and business intelligence. That includes pest control providers.

Utilize An Online Pest Control Data Management System

Having oversight of your commercial pest control program’s results can help you make important decisions around audit or regulatory readiness, facility maintenance, storage, employee training, policy development, and even capital expenditures.

Yet, in spite of advanced technology, many pest control programs still rely on traditional paper-based methods for recording activities. This can result in piles of handwritten documents, making it difficult to establish a link between actions and outcomes, and creating a daunting mess to navigate. A few of the challenges with manual record keeping include:

• Difficulty in finding the right documents for audits – particularly those that are unannounced
• Accidental loss or destruction of important documentation
• Tracking actions taken as a result of pest control services becomes cumbersome – or worse, is not done at all

In order to gauge your site’s performance, you have to manually extract, compile and trend activity from your records.

The process is further complicated when multiple site locations are involved, which is often the case for larger companies or those that are growing.

With strict regulatory and compliance standards and expectations for safety, sanitation, hygiene, and quality present in almost every industry, businesses must remain vigilant. Maintaining accurate documentation of pest control actions can demonstrate to authorities, customers, your employees, and even the public at large that your brand is taking the necessary, and often expected steps, to protect public health and safety.

For these reasons, a robust online pest control data management system should be an important factor to consider when evaluating potential pest control providers.

But what criteria should you look for in such a system? To find out more tips on selecting a pest control provider and an online pest management system that works for your business, stay tuned for Part 2 of this series.