Mobilize thousands of field workers on a large scale

The situation #

Some activities rely on a large pool of temporary staff
who are assigned to short-term assignments spread across numerous locations. It is necessaryto
staff quickly, ensure that each person sees only the assignments that
apply to them, and track their presence in the field.

The most telling example is that of an inventory company: it mobilizes
thousands of inventory takers across hundreds of retail locations, within
short time slots, sometimes handling several hundred assignments in a single month. When a
manager announces that an assignment is confirmed, hundreds of people
log in almost simultaneously to reserve their spot.

The same pattern can be found in many other professions: see the table of
correspondence at the bottom of the page.

Goal #

• Each user sees only the tasks that apply to them.
• He signs up on his own, using his phone, in just a few seconds.
• He verifies his identity on site using an identification code.
• The organization is scaling up without losing its responsiveness.

Step-by-step setup #

1. Model the stakeholders #

Describe your talent pool in the People module, using the fields that will be used to
segment them: geographic area, skills, qualifications, availability.

2. Create lists and limit visibility #

Create lists of people based on criteria (area, qualifications, etc.) and
link them to assignments so that each assignment is visible only to the
right people. This is the core of the system, described in detail at
Secure assignments using lists of people.

3. Open the speaker's space #

Grant access tothe volunteer portal: volunteers can use it to view open assignments
, sign up, cancel if necessary, and view their history. See
The volunteer portal.

4. Managing the field: presence and working hours #

On site, the contractor presents their ID code to confirm their
presence. When assignments involve salaried employees, Kafinea
also provides comprehensive time sheet management (recording and tracking of
working hours); see
Time Sheets.

Keep in mind the time zones of remote locations (e.g., overseas):
Dates and start/end times are determined based on the time zone of
the presenter.

5. Real-time control via the API #

For organizations that manage an operations control tower,
Kafinea provides an API. This allows you to feed real-time data
on registration status, attendance, and assignments to your own
dashboards or third-party tools. See
the Kafinea API.

Why Kafinea is at the top of the list #

• Controlled visibility: each task is accessible only to the right
  people, and this rule is strictly enforced (not just a simple display
  filter).
• Long lists that remain fluid: even with thousands of speakers and
  of presentations, the screens remain responsive.
• Peak connection volumes: During a surge in registrations, seats are
  allocated without overbooking.

This model works in many industries #

The inventory is just one example. The same framework—a pool of people, lists
that limit visibility, self-registration, and on-the-ground presence—
applies to many activities:

In any case, the basic process remains the same: describe the people involved, create
lists, launch missions, allow participants to sign up, and then
monitor their presence in the field.

See also #

• The speaker's space
• Ensure safety during operations by maintaining a list of personnel
• Timesheets