Mobility helps contractors improve response time—without sacrificing quality.

In the roofing industry, where job openings have nearly doubled since 2014 but the number of hires have only increased by 14 percent, getting a knowledgeable contractor to the next job site as quickly as possible without compromising quality is imperative.

“The other contractor is not always our main competitor. Often, we’re competing with ourselves to improve our response time,” said Lori Swanson, Owner, Founder, and President of Guardian Roofing.

To increase efficiency and maintain the same high-quality standards, Guardian Roofing’s technicians needed access to real-time information like client history and job specifications while out in the field. And to keep projects running smoothly, the team needed a way to help technicians troubleshoot unexpected issues quickly and provide homeowners with real-time status updates while they are away from home. 

But without the right technology or the right wireless partner, none of this was possible.

With a fast-paced business to run and limited time to spare, Guardian Roofing needed a partner who could provide customized solutions and support to keep their technicians moving.

T-Mobile for Business worked with Guardian Roofing to build a plan that would make switching over their hundreds of devices affordable and easy.

“Knowing that T-Mobile for Business has a dedicated business team added so much value for us. Yes, they have a great plan that helped us with our budget. But having a true partnership was invaluable,” said Swanson.

But it’s more than just the data.

With 78,000 residential contractor jobs added between June 2018 and June 2019, and an incredibly low national unemployment rate of 4.0 percent, the lack of skilled laborers entering the roofing industry and the increasing number of roofing jobs means it can be tough to get a spare pair of hands to a job site in a timely manner.

If one of Guardian Roofing’s technicians runs into an unexpected issue, the team can quickly—and virtually—coach them through it from their phone or tablet, instead of having to send someone to the job site to help. And when technicians need to join meetings back in the office, like safety and training meetings, they can do so without having to go back and forth, freeing up even more time to focus on customers.

The tricky part about removing someone’s roof is not knowing what unexpected issues might arise. And when homeowners have their own jobs to do, getting them back home to deal with those issues can really slow a project down.

To keep projects moving smoothly, Guardian Roofing leverages image and communication apps on T-Mobile’s network to walk customers through any unexpected issues, without having them on site or taking their contractor’s word for it. Technicians can share notes, diagrams, and timestamped progress updates with customers so they can quickly make decisions on any unexpected issues. This way, Guardian Roofing’s technicians can ensure a job well done and a high-quality customer experience. 

In addition to saving time and optimizing operations through using modern mobility solutions, Guardian Roofing estimates they save 30%* on their mobility solutions compared to their previous provider, which has helped them to give back to the local community.

With organizations like Rebuilding Together of South Sound and No Roof Left Behind, and their own independent efforts like the Halo Project, Guardian Roofing has donated one new roof or major roof repair to a local homeowner in need every year since they’ve been in business.

 “Anytime you have a value-added partner that helps your business' bottom line, you're able to do more for your team and have more resources to give back to the community,” said Swanson.