Free tools · Field crews

sageful Free tool · Field crews

Before a new tech runs a job alone, they show you these 5 things.

For the lead or owner deciding whether a new tech is ready to work solo. Use it during their last week of ride-alongs.

Spread over 3 to 5 normal jobs, about 15 extra minutes per job for the lead.

Your answers save in this browser only.

Why it matters

Most owners decide a tech is ready by gut feel, or because the schedule is full and someone has to go. Then the first callback, the first upset customer or the first near miss shows the gap nobody checked. By then the tech feels set up to fail and the customer has already seen it.

A short sign-off fixes both sides. The tech knows exactly what ready means, so it feels fair. The lead knows exactly what to coach when one item is not there yet. And you have a dated record of what each person was shown and could do before they went out alone.

Check this against your own safety program and the person who signs off on safety for you. It is a starting point, not compliance advice.

How to use it

  1. Fill in the boxes at the top and show the tech this sheet on the first day of their last ride-along week. No surprises.
  2. Pick 3 to 5 normal jobs for the week. Each skill should be seen on a real job, not described in the shop.
  3. Watch each skill. The lead does not help, hint or take over unless something is unsafe.
  4. Check each item as you see it. For skill 3, ask the scenario questions on the drive between jobs.
  5. When a skill is fully shown, both of you initial and date it in the sign-off table.
  6. If one skill is not there yet, write what to coach in Notes and try it again on the next job. Do not sign it to be nice.
  7. When all five are signed, the tech is cleared to run that type of job alone. Give the sheet to the owner and file it.

The worksheet

1. A full pre-job walk, out loud

2. The job start to finish while you watch

3. Customer curveballs, asked on the drive

  1. You arrive and the customer is not home. What do you do?Good answer: follows your policy on gates and access, calls the office, documents with a photo, does not guess.
  2. The customer is upset and raising their voice. What do you do?Good answer: stays calm, listens, does not argue or promise, calls the lead or office.
  3. The customer asks for extra work while you are there. What do you say?Good answer: does not quote on the spot unless allowed, and knows how to pass it to the office.
  4. You find something unsafe or outside the job. What do you do?Good answer: stops, keeps people clear, calls it in, photographs it.

4 and 5. Paperwork, cleanup and truck reset

Sign-off

SkillDate shownLead initialsTech initials
1. Pre-job walk, out loud
2. Job start to finish, no help
3. Customer curveballs
4. Paperwork right the first time
5. Cleanup and truck reset

Notes: what to coach before the next try

Free from Brian LeSage · Sagefulsageful.app/free/ride-along-signoff
Example: a made-up 8-truck pest control company

Tri-County Pest has Jordan in her third week. On Monday the lead, Chris, hands her the sign-off and says: by Friday I want to sign all five of these. If one is not there, we will know exactly what to work on.

Monday she nails the pre-job walk and the job itself. Tuesday, on the drive, Chris asks what she would do if a customer asked her to also spray the shed. She says she would just do it. Chris explains the policy, and she gets it right when he asks again Wednesday.

Her app entries are missing photos twice. Chris writes that in Notes and they practice on Thursday. Friday all five are initialed and dated, and the owner moves her to solo routes for residential general pest. Commercial accounts get their own sign-off later.

Common mistakes

  • Signing off because the schedule needs another truck. Fix: if a skill is not shown, it is not signed. Ride one more day.
  • Helping during skill 2. Fix: hands in pockets. Step in only for safety, and if you do, it is not signed yet.
  • Testing everything on one perfect job. Fix: spread it over 3 to 5 normal jobs so you see real conditions.
  • Asking the scenario questions once and moving on. Fix: if the answer is off, explain and ask again the next day.
  • Treating sign-off as permanent for every job type. Fix: sign off per job type. New kinds of work get their own sheet.
  • Losing the sheet. Fix: file it with their records. It shows what they were shown and when.

Make it yours

  • HVAC and plumbingAdd a skill for diagnosing one common call out loud before touching anything, and quoting it the way your company quotes.
  • Stormwater, septic and underground workAdd confined space and traffic control rules to skill 1, and do not sign off solo work that your program requires a two-person crew for.
  • Cleaning and janitorial crewsSwap truck reset for supply cart reset and add the client's site rules, like alarm codes and areas that are off limits.
  • Landscaping and lawn careAdd equipment checks on mowers and trimmers to skill 1, and property line and irrigation head checks to skill 5.

Use it with

A new tech's first day, in 7 checks.Open →A new tech's first 30 days, one week at a time.Open →Turn a tech's voice notes into a job report, with one prompt.Open →

Free to use, copy and share with your team. No sign-up.

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